EastEnders fans can rejoice as it's rumoured Adam Woodyatt is set to make a return to Albert Square after a two-year hiatus, but he's not alone. Not only will Ian Beale be returning but so will his ex-wife Cindy (played by Michelle Collins), who is set to come back from the dead.
Michelle's character was killed off the soap 25 years ago during childbirth off screen while she was banged up in prison for attempted murder. The actress has often ruled out a comeback over the years.
A source described the return as a "bombshell" to The Sun. They told the publication: "This has been done so secretively but it is going to be absolutely bombshell - an unbelievable twist.
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"Ian and Cindy are one of the most memorable couples in soap history. But Cindy has been dead for 25 years - and nobody will see this coming. The biggest surprise is that Michelle has so often said there's no chance she'd come back."
Michelle has a number of acting credits under her belt, including appearing as pub landlady Stella Price on Coronation Street between 2011 to 2014, Casualty, Death in Paradise, Midsomer Murders and The Dumping Ground. Adam has been absent from Walford for nearly two and a half years after taking an extended break in January 2021, briefly returning for Dot Cotton's funeral last December.
According to The Sun, the break coincided with his divorce from wife Beverley Sharp, having been "thrown into financial chaos" by the "vicious" legal battle. Adam joined the BBC soap's original cast, appearing in its very first episode in 1985.
Michelle's Cindy first appeared back in 1988 and dated barman Simon Wicks (Nick Berry) before starting a relationship with Ian and marrying him in 1989. The marriage had their fair share of trouble and she had a fling with Richard Cole (Ian Reddington), who claimed to be the father of her and Ian's twins - Lucy and Peter.
Cindy was written out in a plot which saw her hire a hitman to kill Ian then change her mind too late. After Ian was shot and injured, she fled the country but was arrested for attempted murder. She was then written out by dying during childbirth off-screen in November 1998. Ian was told Cindy died while giving birth to a daughter, Cindy Williams.
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