19 February: EastEnders

The first episode of EastEnders was broadcast on this date in 1985. 10 things you might not know about EastEnders:

1. Creators Julia Smith and Tony Holland considered a number of potential titles for the show, which included Square Dance, Round The Square, E8 and London Pride. It was only when Julia Smith started ringing round agents and asked “Do you have any real East Enders on your books?” that the show got its name.
2. Both Julia Smith and Tony Holland were actually born in East London, and Walford, the fictitious area of London the show is set in is actually a portmanteau of the areas they came from: Walthamstow and Stratford. The postcode, E20, was also fictitious, at least to begin with. Back then, the highest “E” postcode in London was E18 (South Woodford). E20 sounded better than E19. However, in 2011 the Olympic Park was given the postcode E20 so it’s no longer fake. The real-life inspiration for Albert Square is a place called Fassett Square in the Dalston area of Hackney.
3. Actor Adam Woodyatt (Ian Beale) has been a part of the show since the very first episode, when he was a teenager, making him the show’s longest-serving character. He’s also been a prime suspect in three murders over the years.
4. The longest serving costume is Dot Cotton’s Christmas dress. She wore the same dress every single Christmas. It is the oldest costume in the entire EastEnders cast wardrobe – it’s almost as old as the show itself. Most of Dot’s other outfits came from charity shops.
5. There’s nothing behind the door to the Queen Vic aside from a corner bar which is visible in shot. Scenes set in the pub are filmed in a studio elsewhere. Most of the drinks are fake, too. Vodka is actually water; Whiskey is water and burnt Sugar; Wine wine is diluted Apple juice. The one exception is the Beer. The beer in the pumps is real.
6. Every episode is 27 minutes and 15 seconds long.
7. The highest viewed episode of any soap in UK television history was the Christmas Day episode of EastEnders in 1986. The one where Dirty Den handed divorce papers to Angie.
8. Fictional tube station Walford East is located between Bow Road and West Ham, on the Hammersmith & City and District lines. The trains, however, are as fake as the Queen Vic vodka, having been animated with CGI since 2010.
9. Also fake are the leaves on the trees and Daffodils in spring. Because episodes are filmed up to 12 weeks in advance fake leaves are added to trees and plastic daffodils placed in the ground to make it look like spring in the middle of winter.
10. Barbara Windsor was actually the fourth choice to play landlady Peggy Mitchell. Emma Bunton auditioned for the role of Bianca before becoming Baby Spice.

Character birthday

Crusher: Power armour wearer and member of Combat Team Delta. Former stunt double who first wore his armour for his role in a superhero movie. Has not yet appeared in a published story.