New EastEnders pictures reveal the dawn of a new era on Albert Square, as Kat Moon (Jessie Wallace) takes over as landlady of The Queen Vic.
As viewers of the BBC soap have seen, the Slater clan decided to play a practical joke on Ian Beale (Adam Woodyatt), when he announced his decision to buy the famed boozer.
Pretending she’d won £100k on a scratchcard, Stacey (Lacey Turner) took great joy in seeing him squirm.
Unfortunately, the prospect of having that amount of cash in her pocket seemed out of the question. That was, until, a man from an insurance company arrived to tell her that her ex-husband Martin (James Bye) had left the same amount of money in his policy.
She wanted to secure her family’s financial future by making an investment – and hoped that Kat would accept her offer of stepping back behind the bar.
Unfortunately, as the auction began, Kat’s husband Alfie (Shane Richie) dropped the bombshell to Stacey that he needed €50,000 to ensure he could bring his estranged step-daughter Zoe (Michelle Ryan) back to Walford.
The Queen Vic’s owners and licensees across the years
Between 1985 and 1991, the pub was owned by fictional brewery Luxford & Copley, with the following in charge:
- 1985-88, 2005: Den Watts
- 1988-90: Frank Butcher
- 1990-91: Eddie Royle
Sharon Watts, Phil Mitchell and brother Grant then bought the famed boozer, and it has been in private ownership ever since. Below are the names above the door.
1991-95, 2001-02, 2020-21: Sharon Watts
1995-2001, 2002-04, 2005-09, 2010: Peggy Mitchell
2005: Chrissie Watts
2009: Archie Mitchell
2010, 2013: Roxy Mitchell
2010-12, 2025-: Kat Moon
2010-13: Alfie Moon
2013-20, 2021-22: Mick Carter
2013-20: Shirley Carter
2013-20, 2021-25: Linda Carter
2023-25: Elaine Knight
Stace initially agreed, but after a heart-to-heart with mum Jean (Gillian Wright), she knew that her money was best spent on those who had been by her side through thick and thin.
She rushed to tell Kat the good news, and in a bid to stall the auctioneer from slamming his hammer, Jean set off the fire alarm to send everyone out into The Square.
As the winning bid – placed by a ruthless developer who planned to redevelop The Vic into flats – was about to be accepted, Kat told current owner Linda Carter (Kellie Bright) that she could match the offer.
In yesterday’s instalment, Linda began to pack her bags and looked around her home in reflection of both good and bad times. She knew it was the right decision to make.
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Kat promised her that she’d keep her late husband Mick’s (Danny Dyer) West Ham scarf on display as a fitting tribute, and as the new images show, it’s still proudly wrapped around the bottles of whiskey.
Looking down over Kat’s shoulder is a picture of Peggy Mitchell, who is undoubtedly the most iconic landlady ever to grace the building.
EastEnders continues tomorrow at 7.30pm on BBC One, or can be streamed from 6am on iPlayer.
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