How did Debbie Bates die in EastEnders as she reunites with Nigel?
EastEnders' Nigel Bates has finally come face-to-face with his first wife Debbie, in a special episode set in 1990
EastEnders has aired the return of Debbie Bates, 30 years after her shock death.
During the 1990s, Debbie, played by Nicola Duffett on the BBC soap, was the sweet wife of Nigel Bates (Paul Bradley), and together they raised their daughter, Clare (Gemma Bissix), as a loving family unit in Albert Square.
However, after only two years in Walford, disaster struck when Debbie died in 1995, leaving Nigel devastated. She had stepped out into the road and was struck by a passing car, killing her instantly.
Following Debbie’s shock passing, widower Nigel found love again with Clare’s teacher, Julie Haye (played by Karen Henthorn), and the pair married before leaving for a new life in Scotland in 1998.
During Christmas 2024, Nigel made a spectacular return to Walford and reunited with his best friend Phil Mitchell (Steve McFadden). He soon confessed he had been diagnosed with early-onset dementia.
On Tuesday (December 23), the BBC soap aired a special episode as Nigel’s symptoms intensified and he revisited the past.
Nigel’s memory and altered reality transported him back to 1990, where he reunited with his old friends, Pat Butcher (played by Pam St. Clement) and Barry Evans (Shaun Williamson).
In one emotional scene, Nigel also finally came face-to-face with his beloved Debbie, and the pair shared a slow dance in The Queen Vic.
Where is Nicola Duffett now?
EastEnders’ Debbie and Nigel were married during the 1990s (Image: BBC)
Nicola Duffett, who played Debbie Bates, found fame in 1992 when she appeared in the Oscar-winning film Howards End, before being cast in EastEnders from 1993 to 1995.
Following two years in Albert Square, Nicola, now 62, went on to star as Cat Matthews in Family Affairs from 1998 to 2005, living a life of luxury thanks to a generous contract.
The actress enjoyed multiple holidays a year, dining at fancy restaurants, and shopping trips to luxury stores, including Harrods. But when her work dried up, so did her healthy bank balance.
Nicola Duffett as Cat Matthews in the television programme Family Affairs(Image: Channel 5)
In 2005, Family Affairs was axed by Channel 5 after the show’s bosses believed the soap wasn’t drawing a large enough audience, and the final episode aired in December of the same year.
“I wish I had learned to save, but we actors and actresses just are not very business-minded”, Nicola told The Croydon Advertiser in 2009. “I just went into a bad place when they axed Family Affairs.”
Nicola Duffett has continued to act since leaving EastEnders (Image: Anthony Harvey/Getty Images)
She explained how she transitioned from being employed as a television actress to signing on at the Job Centre. She said, “I have gone from not caring about how much stuff costs to checking the prices of absolutely everything.
“But I love it – picking up a bargain – it is so much more satisfying than going out every night to posh restaurants and just paying the bill.” She was made bankrupt in 2007.
Thankfully, Nicola’s acting career picked up again, and she starred as Reet Ellison in Endeavour (2020), Amy Penketh in The Coroner (2016), Daisy Skelton in Waterloo Road (2013), and Eileen in Made In Dagenham, among other roles.
She also landed the role of Lucie Fernsby on Coronation Street in 2020 and appeared in four episodes of the show.
Most recently, she portrayed Bernice in Murder, They Hope and Geraldine in the 2022 Amazon Prime series Agatha Raisin.
