EastEnders has confirmed all the exciting details for the 40th anniversary celebrations, including a full live episode. The long-running BBC One soap will officially turn 40 next month and as part of the historic milestone, a whole week of episodes will take place in one day. A special hour-long offering will transmit on Wednesday February 19 – the very date the show first hit screens four decades ago – followed by a full live episode on Thursday February 20.

The episode in question which will change Walford – and the lives of those who live in it – forever. One of the core elements of the anniversary week is that fans will have the opportunity to decide whether Denise Fox (Diane Parish) ends up with Ravi Gulati (Aaron Thiara) or Jack Branning (Scott Maslen). The details on how viewers can vote on such a thing and how it all works have now been revealed.

To access the vote, viewers must have a BBC Account. You can register for an account at BBC.co.uk/account, on or before February 19. The vote will officially open at 8:30pm on Wednesday February 19 at BBC.co.uk/EastEnders, and will close at 7:10pm on Thursday February 20 so the result can be incorporated into its live episode which will broadcast at 7:30pm from BBC Elstree Centre that very evening.

Once all votes have been cast, the vote will be independently verified and handed to Executive Producer Chris Clenshaw – just before the live show. The cast will then disregard the losing script and quickly prepare to depict the drama that reflects on screen, as chosen by audiences at home. In addition to playing matchmaker for Denise, fans will also have an extra treat when they cast their vote as they will be given the opportunity to make another decision which will go down in Walford’s history.

Consider us very intrigued. The anniversary will also see the return of Grant Mitchell as Ross Kemp reprises his role and the show will also solve the mystery of ‘Who Attacked Cindy Beale?’. The Queen Vic, meanwhile, is expected to go up in flames while Honey and Billy Mitchell will walk down the aisle to tie the knot. BBC and BBC iPlayer will also be sharing additional Walford content to mark the historic occasion, include EastEnders: 40 Years on The Square, an hour-longdocumentary special fronted by Ross Kemp which will look at the soaps historic impact.

BBC Three will also offer viewers a look at the explosive anniversary storylines with a 45-minute interview special – EastEnders Revealed: The Lock In – hosted by Joe Swash as he chats to some of the actors who find themselves at the heart of the anniversary drama. EastEnders anniversary week commences February 17 on BBC One. If you’ve got a soap or TV story, video or pictures get in touch by emailing us soaps@metro.co.uk – we’d love to hear from you.

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