Last night’s instalment of EastEnders saw Zoe Slater (Michelle Ryan) finally disclose the paternity of her twins, though fans aren’t convinced that she’s telling the truth.
It was revealed after Zoe’s return that she had given birth to twins after leaving Albert Square. Devastatingly, one died, and she decided to give the other up for adoption.
During a row with Sharon Watts (Letitia Dean) last night, Zoe dropped the bombshell that Dennis Rickman was the father of her children.
Viewers will know that Dennis was the love of Sharon’s life, and they had been a couple at the time Zoe fell pregnant. However, Zoe and Dennis also had a history.
Following the shock reveal, Metro readers have made it quite clear that they don’t believe Zoe is telling the truth, and they suspect a cruel twist is coming…
‘She said that to hurt Sharon,’ Alison Hanney predicted on Facebook, while Samantha Hill agreed, writing: ‘She was Lying to wind Sharon up she knew that would cut deep.’
‘Maybe she was just trying to hurt Sharon?’ Yvonne Fisher echoed.
Lyn Wood was adamant that Dennis wouldn’t have cheated on Sharon at that stage in their relationship, pointing out: ‘Don’t believe it, he left her, she still wanted him and he wanted Sharon, he only ever loved Sharon. She is spiteful. She knows they are not Dennis’s.’
But if Dennis isn’t the father, then it must be someone else – and Metro readers have got an idea who.
Who is the father of Zoe’s baby?
‘I don’t think she’s telling the truth, I still think Anthony,’ Clare Brigden suggested.
Anthony Trueman (Nicholas Bailey) recently returned to Walford for Patrick and Yolande Trueman’s (Rudolph Walker and Angela Wynter) wedding.
‘I still think it’s Anthony’s babies,’ Caz Lucas agreed, while Pat Hill said: ‘Its Anthony’s babies shes just saying dennis to get a reaction out of sharon.’
Some Metro readers took this idea and ran with it, even going so far as to come up with another interesting theory.
‘It’s not max it’s not Dennis it’s Anthony trueman. And the new girl jasmine is her daughter, she didn’t die. That’s a plot twist lol,’ Zaina Golding speculated.
The new girl, Jasmine, tried to convince Cindy Beale (Michelle Collins) to give her a job in the Albert earlier this week, and despite initially being turned down, she eventually managed to bag herself some shifts.
Nicola Crowe agreed, writing: ‘i think zoe’s babies are anthonys and the girl that now works in the albert will be the girl baby, she’ll have survived!’
One fan had a totally different theory, which would certainly be unusual, but not unheard of.
‘Could be both Anthony and Dennis? There’s a rare thing where twins can have different fathers. I think the new girl is her and Anthony’s and maybe the son is Dennis’s?’ Charlotte Hartiss wondered.
This phenomenon, known as Heteropaternal superfecundation, is extremely rare in humans, and was tackled for the first time in a UK soap by Hollyoaks in 2024.
What is Heteropaternal superfecundation?
Heteropaternal superfecundation refers to when two or more eggs from the same menstrual cycle are fertilised by the sperm of two different men, with the separate sexual intercourse acts taking place close together.
While common in animals such as cows, cats and dogs, it is considered to be extremely rare in humans, though it’s particularly hard to estimate how rare since it’s only discovered if there is a dispute over paternity.
Twins born as a result of Heteropaternal superfecundation are fraternal and are genetically considered to be half-siblings given that they share the same mother but have different fathers.
Identical twins, which occur when one fertilised egg splits in two, cannot have different fathers.
The storyline saw Mercedes McQueen (Jennifer Metcalfe) fall pregnant with twins, only to discover that both Warren Fox (Jamie Lomas) and Felix Westwood (Richard Blackwood) were the dads.
Could EastEnders be set to follow suit and tackle this rare situation in a storyline?
Or are other Metro readers right – will Anthony be revealed as the real father?
Alternatively, could we be set to discover that Zoe has been telling the truth all along, and Dennis really is the father?
Only time will tell…
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