EastEnders cast tease identity of Cindy Beale’s attacker ahead of explosive reveal

EastEnders cast members Adam Woodyatt, Harriet Thrope, Michelle Collins and Micah Balfour recently discussed the big Christmas Day twist as Cindy Beale was brutally attacked (Image: Jack Barnes/Kieron McCarron/BBC/PA)

After Cindy Beale’s deadly attack on EastEnders this Christmas Day, some of the cast have teased the identity of the culprit.

One mystery character picked up a metal shovel and slammed it against the back of Cindy’s head. Moments after she had a showdown with just about every suspect after her affair was revealed, Cindy was attacked and left for dead.

She fell to the ground and was discovered some time later, with her life now on the line. Suspects include her own family, her ex, her fling and her love rival.

Her partner Ian Beale, his mother Kathy Beale, her daughter-in-law Lauren Branning, her ex-husband George Knight, his son and her fling Junior Knight and George’s wife Elaine Peacock are on the list. Alongside them are her children Peter Beale, Gina Knight and Anna Knight.

Now, cast members Adam Woodyatt, Harriet Thorpe, Michelle Collins and Micah Balfour have told The Mirror and other press about the big twist. With boss Chris Clenshaw confirming the attacker will be identified to viewers during the special 40th anniversary episodes in February, it’s not yet been confirmed if Cindy survives.

Ian actor Adam teased Elaine star Harriet about the possibility it could be Elaine behind it. Meanwhile, Harriet confessed it could be any of the suspects as they all “want her dead”.

Cindy actress Michelle said of the suspect line-up: “I thought the end was very good with the suspects,” to which Harriet admitted: “The shots of each person. Every one of them [wants her dead].”

It’s then that Harriet teased Elaine’s motivation for wanting Cindy gone. She teased: “I think Elaine is and always has been about survival. There’s no lengths to where she’ll go to. She’s holding onto something that matters and helping things stay in her control is everything.”

She went on: “As we’ve seen in the last few weeks, she has an alcoholic daughter and tries to have a front all the time. Cindy has been tearing her down since the get-go. I think this is the final straw.”

It’s then that Adam hinted at Elaine being Cindy’s attacker, putting his co-star on the spot about whether she was to blame. Adam asked Harriet: “What are you like with a shovel?”. Giving absolutely nothing away, the actress responded: “I’m quite good at gardening, thank you.”

Teasing when the truth would come out, EastEnders boss Chris revealed: “Our 40^th anniversary storylines have been in the works for some time, but even at the very start of planning, we knew that we wanted to reveal the identity of Cindy’s attacker as part of this. Many characters currently find themselves in the line of question, but over the coming weeks, the audience can look out for clues themselves to who may be the culprit. Cindy’s attacker reveal is just one of many stories we have planned for the anniversary as it is set to be a week of explosive drama for the audience to remember.”