EastEnders star Balvinder Sopal has hinted at a strong future for her character Suki Panesar’s relationship with Eve Unwin as the show enters its next era.

Fans are bracing themselves for potential changes to the long-running soap, as executive producer Chris Clenshaw stood down earlier this year after a successful and award-winning stint in charge.

Ben Wadey has taken over the position. Wadey most recently served as commissioning executive at Channel 4, overseeing shows like Hollyoaks, but also previously worked as a story producer on Holby City and story editor on EastEnders.

During his previous stint on EastEnders, Wadey worked on the show’s 35^th anniversary celebrations and the introduction of the Panesar family.

Catching up with us at the British Soap Awards at the weekend, Balvinder promised a strong few months to come as EastEnders transitions into its next chapter.

She exclusively told us: “As always, there’s loads of twists and turns. We’ve got a new executive producer, who wants to put his own stamp on the show and he’s really brilliant. I’ve had lots of lovely chats with him.

“And I think we’re going to vamp it up a bit for the viewers. So expect lots of excitement, lots of thrills, lots of turns, twists. But yeah, we’re looking forward to a really exciting year.”

Asked whether Wadey is a fan of Suki and Eve, Balvinder replied: “Actually, Ben Wadey introduced Suki! So he’s definitely a fan of Suki.”

She joked: “Then the other day, he did to say to me, we’re his favourites. Not really! No, he is a fan, yeah. Absolutely. And we’ve got some wonderful stuff coming up.”

Speaking late last year, Chris Clenshaw commented: “I’m pleased to be passing the show on to Ben Wadey. I’m confident that, under him, EastEnders will continue to thrive, and I wish him the very best as it is without doubt the best job in telly and I hope he enjoys the ride just as much as I have.”

The British Soap Awards 2025 took place at London’s Hackney Empire on Saturday night (31 May).

The ceremony airs on Thursday (5 June) from 8pm on ITV1.