Spiralling Lauren makes shocking demand of EastEnders’ Mark to prove himself
Lauren Branning (Jacqueline Jossa), who successfully exposed Max Branning’s (Jake Wood) affair back in the day, and the one Cindy Beale (Michelle Collins) had with Junior Knight (Micah Balfour), is very close to having a full-blown affair of her own in EastEnders.
The chemistry between Lauren and Mark Fowler Jnr (Stephen Aaron-Sipple) has been brewing for ages, and viewers knew the will they/won’t they would eventually turn into a ‘will they’ due to how shifty the pair looked during the flashforward episode.
Next week, Lauren does her best to ignore her feelings for Mark, but is rattled when he attempts to make her jealous by flirting with one of Jack Branning’s (Scott Maslen) female colleagues.
Mark’s games are cut short when the woman takes an interest in one of the stolen cars. He later heads to see Lauren to tell her how he really feels, but Peter Beale (Thomas Law) arrives an interrupts the moment.
Lauren tries to deflect Peter’s questions, but eventually admits that she and Mark have been dealing stolen cars.
As Lauren spirals in the aftermath, Penny Branning (Kitty Castledine) pushes her to be honest about her feelings for Mark, but she isn’t sure what to do next.
Lauren appears to make a decision though, and later meets up with Mark. There, she asks him to prove how much she means to him…but what exactly will Lauren say next?
As the week draws to a close, Lauren is surprised when Peter asks to meet up, and then reveals that Mark has told him the truth.
Has Mark really revealed his connection with Lauren?
Or is Peter referring to something else?
Pondering over the different side we’ll see to Mark in these scenes, star Stephen Aaron-Sipple told us: ‘Nobody is tough all the time, so it’s been nice exploring a different side of Mark beyond his hard-man persona. We all have people we can let our guard down with, and for Mark, Lauren has become that person.
‘She doesn’t judge him for who he is, and that allows him to be more playful, open and vulnerable around her. Mark obviously has Vicki, and he had a similar relationship with Sam when she was on the Square, but since Sam left, Lauren has become that person for him.’
When asked about whether Lauren and Mark would make a good couple, Stephen said: ‘They already make a great team. There’s a lot of mutual respect between them, and neither of them judges the other.
‘They could make a great couple and, in another world, maybe they already would be. The problem is there are quite a few obstacles standing in their way right now!’
