EastEnders fans are overjoyed with the news that characters Kat Moon, Mo Harris and Jean Slater will be returning to Albert Square.
Actors Jessie Wallace, Laila Morse and Gillian Wright will reprise their Slater family roles in 2018, according to a BBC statement posted on Facebook on Wednesday.
🚨NEWS🚨 SHE’S BACK AND JUST LOOK WHAT THE KATS DRAGGED IN…One of Walford’s finest leading ladies is heading back to…Posted by BBC EastEnders on Wednesday, December 20, 2017
It came as a surprise to fans of the soap, who last saw Kat fighting for her life in the Irish Sea.
The fact that she will not be returning with husband Alfie (Shane Richie), however, suggests that not everything has gone to plan since the pair left to start a new life together.
Referring to the obvious absence, one delighted fan commented over Twitter: “Oh my gosh! I’m so pleased that Jean and Mo are coming back with Kat! A Slater reunion! Still, there’s someone missing, and you know who I’m referring too. His return would complete this.”
Oh my gosh! I’m so pleased that Jean and Mo are coming back with Kat! A Slater reunion! Still, there’s someone missing, and you know who I’m referring too. His return would complete this. ☺️ #EastEnders
— Tom Gardiner (@TomGardinerUK) December 20, 2017
Another added: “Yes! Yes! Yes! I’ve missed Jessie as Kat. Now to bring back Alfie @realshanerichie ;).”
Yes! Yes! Yes! I've missed Jessie as Kat. Now to bring back Alfie @realshanerichie ??
— Thomas E. Clarke (@ThomasC94) December 20, 2017
“Hooray!!! I love her!” commented one, while another wrote: “Kat lives!”
Hooray!!! I love her!
— Pooble Moo (@pooblemoo) December 20, 2017
Kat lives!
— dtotheb17 (@dtotheb17) December 20, 2017
“Great news,” wrote another fan. “She (Wallace) is a great actor, and always thought Big Mo and Jean worked well in the show when Kat and Stacy were in it at the same time.”
Great news. She is a great actor, and always thought Big Mo and Jean worked well in the show when Kat and Stacy were in it at the same time.
— Ian Fry (@Ian_Fry) December 20, 2017
Wallace said she was “thrilled” to be coming back while the show’s executive consultant John Yorke promised: “It won’t just be familiar Slaters either as there are a couple of twists and characters to add fresh spice to an iconic creation.”