FUMING EastEnders viewers have slammed soap bosses after a social media post sparked outrage.
It came as the show’s X, formerly Twitter, account honoured the fathers in its fictional Walford setting on Father’s Day.
This featured the likes of Ian Beale, Phil Mitchell, Patrick Trueman, Billy Mitchell and Jack Branning – but fans weren’t happy about one character’s appearance.
Despised villain Dean Wicks (Matt Di Angelo) was also shown, leading to anger from the soap’s fans.
The character has appeared on and off in EastEnders since 2006, becoming one of the soap’s most vile baddies.
Viewers were unhappy that Dean, who had previously raped sister-in-law Linda Carter (Kellie Bright) and was acquitted for the attempted rape of Roxy Mitchell (Rita Simons) was included – and they didn’t hold back.
Taking to X, one wrote: “Dean is in prison and tried to kill his daughter but is still on this list. If we’re including people in prison then Ben should be on this list too. #EastEnders.”
Another added: “Grinning photo of the rapist, classy.”
A third shared: “Why is Dean part of it? He tried to kill his daughter and he stole from her charity. Not exactly “dad goals”, is it? #EastEnders.”
Meanwhile, a fourth penned: “… you guys put Dean on this??? Whaaaaaaaaaaaat”, as a fifth remarked: “Very sweet but why Dean?”
During his stints on the soap, Dean’s storylines have also explored his fractured relationship with mother Shirley Carter (Linda Henry), which included learning that Kevin (Phil Daniels), who raised Dean, was not his biological father.
He also had a rivalry with Shirley’s other son Mick Carter (Danny Dyer), who turned out to be Dean’s full brother.
Currently, the villain is behind bars after being framed by The Six for murdering Keanu Taylor (Danny Walters) on Christmas Day.
The arrest came after police finally discovered Keanu’s body buried under the café – with The Six having planted the murder weapon in his flat.
They also concocted a water-tight story involving Linda falsely admitting to seeing him move the body.
However, the late mechanic actually met his end at the hands of none other than Linda.
THE beloved British soap has been captivating audiences for decades.
EastEnders follows the lives of the residents of Walford as they navigate love, loss, family drama, and community struggles.
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She had been protecting best friend and Keanu’s fiancee Sharon Watts (Letitia Dean) at the time.
Scenes aired last week showed Keanu’s grieving mother Karen (Lorraine Stanley) visit Dean in prison, while he insisted he did not kill Keanu.
After urging Karen to look in Linda’s direction, will she believe him?
EastEnders airs on BBC One and is available on BBC iPlayer.
