Kathy Beale (Gillian Taylforth) is set to face a difficult ordeal when she is arrested for the café fire in upcoming EastEnders scenes.
With Rocky Cotton (Brian Conley) in serious debt, he decides that he would rather set the café alight and claim money on the insurance than tell his wife exactly what kind of a mess he’s in.
Money has been tight for the couple ever since Rocky’s ex-wife Jo Cotton (Vicki Michelle) demanded £50,000 in exchange for her silence over Rocky’s bigamy, which has ultimately led to Kathy not being able to afford to pay for repairs after the café began to experience electrical faults.
As the Beale’s reel from the events of the fire, Cindy Beale (Michelle Collins) is quick to place the blame on Kathy.
It is no secret that the relationship between Kathy and Cindy has never been particularly friendly, and Cindy’s shock return from the dead earlier this year has caused more trouble for Kathy than she’d like to admit.
When she learnt that son Ian (Adam Woodyatt) was seeing Cindy, Kathy made him choose between them, and Ian’s choice left Kathy and Rocky homeless.
Despite this, Kathy and Ian have since made up, and when Cindy spots a warm moment between them at the hospital, she is quick to storm back to Walford in a rage.
At the Vic, Cindy is comforted by ex-husband George Knight (Colin Salmon), who’s cruel-to-be-kind attitude towards her actions encourages her to head back to the hospital.
When she arrives, it seems as though she has forgiven Kathy, and is quick to put the past behind her with Ian.
However, everything changes when the police arrive and announce that they are arresting Kathy for the café fire. Has this got something to do with Cindy?
The following day, Albert Square is rife with news of Kathy’s arrest, with the matriarch having spent the night being questioned by police.
Having stubbornly refused a solicitor, she begins to regret her decision as the hours creep by.
Meanwhile, Cindy continues to blame everyone what has happened, and soon horrifies Ian with her vile comments, and it isn’t long before the truth about her visit to George comes out and leaves Ian wondering why they’re even together.
When Cindy is found to have spent the night at the Vic following her row with Ian,Elaine (Harriet Thorpe) and George are shocked, but Anna (Molly Rainford) continues to dote on her mother.
Unfortunately for Cindy, rock bottom is growing ever closer, as Anna soon kicks her out when she discovers the awful truth.
It isn’t long before Kathy arrives at the Vic ready to go for round two with Cindy, and soon Cindy retreats to No.45 for a bit of peace.
Later, George arrives with news which spurs Cindy to make amends and, in an attempt to regain Ian’s trust, she invites Kathy and Rocky to move back into No.45.
Is this a disaster waiting to happen, or will the warring women finally be able to put the past behind them?
