List of EastEnders characters introduced in 2020
EastEnders is a BBC soap opera that first aired on 19 February 1985. The following is a list of characters that first appeared in 2020, in order of first appearance. All characters are introduced by the show's executive producer, Jon Sen. The first character to be introduced in 2020 is the son of Sheree Trueman, Isaac Baptiste. The Panesar family matriarch Suki Panesar is then introduced in January. Laura Awoyinka, a colleague of Gray Atkins, is introduced in March. Frankie Lewis, a deaf character who befriends Ben Mitchell, is introduced in May. Ellie Nixon joins the soap in September. Two months later, Katy Lewis, the mother of Frankie, first appears. One month later, [|Mila Marwa] is introduced as a rival, then friend, for Kim Fox. Additionally, multiple [|other characters] were featured during the year.
Isaac Baptiste
Isaac Baptiste, played by Stevie Basaula, first appears in episode 6053/6054, originally broadcast on 1 January 2020. The character had not been announced prior to his first appearance and Basaula's casting details were announced following broadcast. Isaac is introduced as the son of established character Sheree Trueman. The character is billed as a "fiercely confident" and "bold" teacher who "won't be afraid to leave his mark on the soap". Jon Sen, the show's executive producer, described Isaac as someone arriving with "bravado, charisma and his fair share of charm". Basaula expressed his excitement to join the soap and create the character of Isaac. It was confirmed in February 2022 that Basaula quit his role and he departed on 31 March 2022.Since Sheree's introduction in August 2019, it was established that she had a secret, which was revealed to be Isaac in his first episode, an episode set on Christmas Day 2019. Sen dubbed Isaac "the 'other man' in Sheree's life". He added that Isaac has a "troubled past" which would be explored as the reason behind Sheree keeping Isaac a secret from her husband, Patrick Trueman, becomes clear. Later episodes confirmed that Isaac is Patrick's biological son after Patrick realises the truth and questions Sheree. Isaac is first seen on New Year's Day 2020, on a bench in Albert Square.
Suki Panesar
Suki Panesar, played by Balvinder Sopal, first appears in episode 6069, originally broadcast on 27 January 2020. The character was mentioned on-screen before her introduction, but further details about the character and Sopal's casting details were announced on 22 December 2019. Suki is introduced as the mother of Kheerat, Jags, Vinny and Ash. The character was billed as the "fiercely protective" and "larger than life" matriarch of the established Panesar family who "always knows best" and is "not one to be reckoned with". Sopal expressed her delight at joining the soap and deemed the role "a dream come true". Jon Sen, the show's executive producer, said that Sopal brings "a unique blend of steeliness and charm" to the role.Her initial storyline sees her lying about having cancer to garner sympathy and get closer to her children. She was immediately well-received by viewers and critics, with Inside Soap writing that Suki had reached "soap icon status in record time". Over her tenure, Suki was developed from a full-on villain into a character with vulnerability alongside her mischief. This begins with Suki being affected by racial abuse graffitied over her shop due to believing she had become ingrained into Walford. Suki then frames her son, Jags, for a crime and gets him self to prison, where he is killed. The story explores Suki's guilt over what she has done and Honey Mitchell becomes a key support for Suki. She tries to kiss Honey and it transpires that Suki has an attraction to women, which Sopal said explains Suki's treatment of Ash. Her various feuds have also been a focal point for the character, with Suki's rivalries including the entire Mitchell and Slater family units.
Suki is later given a long-term love interest in Eve Unwin, who she has a secret affair with. The on-off relationship has been told through a 'slow burn' approach to respect the reality of both the LGBTQ+ and the Southeast Asian communities. Writers then introduced Suki's abusive husband, Nish, who is released from prison after he murdered Suki's friend. The storyline sees Suki coercively controlled by Nish, and despite not being scared of him, she is worried about what he could do throughout the storyline. Suki and Eve's relationship, dubbed 'Sukeve', has also been well-received by the LGBTQ+ community, with Diva magazine praising the representation it depicted.
Albie Watts
Albie Watts is the son of established characters Sharon Watts and Phil Mitchell. It was initially thought for the first three and a half years of his life that his father was Keanu Taylor as a result of his year-long affair with Sharon. Albie is born at the local funeral parlour in the episode broadcast on 21 February 2020, as part of the programme's 35th anniversary celebrations, after being delivered by Kathy Beale. Sharon's other son, Dennis Rickman Jnr, dies in a boat crash on the River Thames simultaneously as Albie is born, so Sharon struggles to care for Albie as she is grieving for Dennis. Keanu leaves shortly after Albie is born, after being threatened by Phil and told to "get out" by Sharon. Sharon does not initially name her son, so Keanu's mother, Karen Taylor, names him Kayden. Sharon later renames him Albie during the COVID-19 lockdown.Keanu returns to Walford in December 2022, determined to build a relationship with his son, which Sharon allows. Sharon is offered the chance to work in Abu Dhabi for a year resulting in Keanu, who has no legal access to Albie as he is not on the birth certificate, kidnapping Albie in a bid to stop Sharon taking him out the country. Albie is returned a week later via Karen who says that he was left alone in the park, and the police insist he be given the once over at hospital. Sharon and Keanu are called to the hospital where they are told that Albie has AATD, a rare genetic condition that can affect the liver and lungs in later life which can only be inherited if both parents have the condition or the gene. After undergoing blood tests to find out if they have either the condition or the gene, the doctor confirms that Sharon has the gene but Keanu does not, meaning that he cannot be Albie's father. It is at that moment Sharon realises her ex-husband Phil is the father.
Laura Awoyinka
Laura Awoyinka, played by Sarah Paul, first appears in episode 6090, originally broadcast on 5 March 2020.Laura is a partner at the law firm that Gray Atkins works for. When Gray decides he wants to drop Kush Kazemi's grievous bodily harm charge and Whitney Dean's murder charge due to stress, Laura encourages him to continue with the cases. She also asks Gray to persuade Kush to change his plea to guilty and reminds him that she has defended him to other partners at the firm before. Laura visits Gray at his home to congratulate him on the result of Kush's case and to wish him luck for Whitney's bail hearing. She tells him that Whitney needs to receive bail and warns him that [|Sophie Rundell] will be the prosecution solicitor at the hearing. Gray loses the bail hearing, so Laura visits him at his home to warn him that he will be formally suspended during the following week, devastating him. When the law firm drops Whitney's case, Gray decides to take it on. He meets with Laura at his home to inform her about the progress of it, asking for his job back if he wins the case. Laura reminds him that even if he wins, the law firm has to consider his judgement of Leo King, the solicitor Gray employed at the firm while he was stalking Whitney. Laura later bumps into Gray and his family in the street, where she states that she is looking forward to their meeting with Whitney, who has gone missing. When she arrives for the meeting, she instead meets some of Whitney's friends and family, who offer to be character witnesses. However, Laura wants to see Whitney instead, so they claim that she is unwell. Laura and Gray later meet to discuss Whitney's trial; Laura wants to remove Gray from the case as his wife, Chantelle Atkins, has recently died, but Gray wants to continue regardless. During the trial, Whitney's solicitor becomes ill, so Laura tries to persuade [|Judge Adams] to postpone the closing statements to the following day; the judge refuses, so Laura informs Whitney and her aunt, Sonia Fowler, that they will need to get a solicitor from the firm to stand in. Whitney suggests that Gray do it. When Gray arrives, Laura and Sonia agree that Gray is not suitable for the job, but point out that they have to trust Whitney's decision. Following a not guilty verdict for Whitney, Laura congratulates Gray on his work and offers him his job back; he informs her that he is not returning to work, which surprises Laura. Laura later sees Gray with Whitney at a gala event, and, believing them to be a couple, expresses surprise that Gray has moved on so quickly after Chantelle's death. Gray lies that they are indeed a couple, insisting that love has no timetable. A few months after this, Gray attends a colleague's birthday party, now accompanied by Chelsea Fox when he encounters Laura again. After making the most of the free bar, Gray vents that he thinks Laura has a vendetta against him since she won't give him a promotion or any complex cases at work. When Chelsea takes a drunken Gray home, Laura comes round and warns Chelsea to get away from him while she can, as Gray will try to break her down and remodel her in his image as he did with Chantelle. Gray is later seen sending Laura a message on her Twitter account, under the pseudonym Jasper, that says: "People like you always get what's coming". She later sacks him. In December 2021, she returns again and threatens Gray, who is bad-mouthing her to her clients so that they come to him instead. She later warns Whitney about his behaviour and tells her to get him away from Chelsea as quickly as possible.
Viewers predicted that Laura would become Gray's fourth murder victim after Chantelle Atkins, Tina Carter and Kush Kazemi.