Doctors fans may just have spotted a familiar face if they tuned into EastEnders on’
Thursday.
The latest instalment from Albert Square saw actress Joanna Bending pop up as the storyline involving Tommy Moon’s (Sonny Kendall) abuse of mum Kat Slater (Jessie Wallace) took centre stage.
Joanna is best known for her role as Dr Michelle Walton in Doctors, which the BBC axed earlier this year and is set to air its final episode next month.
Following her debut as Dr Walton back in March, Jonna landed a guest spot in EastEnders as social worker Jackie Fairhurst.
Jackie was seen visiting Kat and Alfie Moon’s (Shane Richie) with police colleague DC Perkins (Odimegwu Okoye), following a tip-off from a worried Jean Slater (Gillian Wright) about Tommy’s violent behaviour.
Thursday’s episode saw Jackie eventually decide it would be best for Tommy to be taken into care, after discovering he had also been hitting his younger twin brothers Bert and Ernie.
While Kat was devastated at the turn of events, her neighbour Zack Hudson (James Farrar) came to the rescue after offering to take Tommy in as he was a registered carer.
Joanna’s Doctor’s co-star Elisabeth Dermot Walsh, who plays Dr Zara Carmichael, was delighted to see her pal pop up in their fellow BBC soap.
She posted on X, formerly Twitter: ‘Whoah back up. Isn’t that @BBCDoctors Dr Michelle Walton moonlighting on @bbceastenders? A GP AND a Social Worker; she is a woman of many talents! Whoop Whoop @jobendy. Love You. XX.’
Kia Pegg, who plays Scarlett Kiernan, also joked: ‘Dr Walton what are you doing here?’
Doctors’ final episodes, which were originally due to air in December, were filmed in March. At the time, director Niall Fraser asked fans not to gather outside of their production base in Selly Oak, Birmingham, as the show wrapped.
Niall provided a further update on X recently, this time confirming that the last episode has been brought forward to 14 November.
The show’s final weeks will also feature another soap swap, as Hollyoaks star Isabelle Smith is set to appear as a guest character called Bea Reynolds, sharing scenes with Joanna’s Dr Walton.
