The Characters of EastEnders - Scene Analysis

Link to EastEnders Clip


This scene from Christmas Day 2007 starts off as a happy family Christmas celebration with all the Branning and Slater family gathered round in the lounge. However, when a DVD is accidently put on, a secret affair between Stacey and her fiancee's dad, Max is revealed to all the family.
Involved in this scene is Stacey (Bradley's wife), Bradley (her unsuspecting husband and son of Max), Max (Bradley's father and husband to Tanya), Tanya, Lauren (Max & Tanya's daughter who made the DVD but changed her mind before it was played), Abi (second daughter), Dot and Mo (elderly/older relatives of the family), Jean (Stacey and Sean's mother), Sean (Stacey's brother) and finally Jack (Max's brother). Below i have written a character profile of each significant character in this scene to show the stereotyping of the different roles.

STACEY SLATER

Stacey Slater had recently married Bradley Branning after ending a long secret affair with his father on her wedding day. She had ended it without knowing about the camera that Lauren had set up knowing about their affair, and clueless to the fact her unloyalty had been caught on tape, she had continued to keep the affair a secret not planning to tell Bradley or anyone else. Stacey Slater was known perhaps as one of the most common character from EastEnders. She worked on a stall in Albert Square market selling knock-off items and still lived with her family. She hadn't had the most promising start to life after looking after her psychotic mother and trying to look out for Sean, who was a very angry and revengeful adolesence. However, when she met Bradley, she finally seemed happy with her life. Stacey and Bradley were one of those couples that all audiences adored and knew about, and this why it was such a surprise when the audience found out about her affair with his father.


BRADLEY BRANNING

Bradley Branning was known on EastEnders as the one who was too old for his age. He had vibrant ginger hair, dressed in knitted jumpers, he knew everything about computers and was an expert on Star Wars. Bradley had not suspected a thing until the DVD revealing the affair was put on after exchanging gifts on Christmas Day, but after finding out about the affair with his new wife and his own father, Bradley fell to pieces in the following episodes. His bright, funny and warm personality turned sad and lonely, and he became short, unfriendly and bitter towards some people.


MAX BRANNING

Max is in his 40's at this time married to Tanya with two children, Lauren and Abi. He works in a car lot, and always has done, selling dodgy cars on the Square for a living. He appeared to audiences as a loyal, regular father-figure and husband to the Branning family, but since the affair with Stacey, Max has been known on the square as the cheat; people no longer have high, if any expectations for Max to do the right thing. Over the following couple of years, you see Max have non-serious, casual relationships, but after time, it is clear that Max is still in love with Tanya; the woman he first cheated on. This makes the audiences either pity him or make them feel it is deserved for him to not be able to have Tanya (explained in Tanya's paragraph). However, after time, the cracks in Tanya's pretence began to show as they re-connected and began their own affair cheating on Max's fiancee Vanessa, and Tanya's husband, Greg.

 TANYA BRANNING

Tanya was the wife that Max cheated on. She was very much a family woman who cared more for her immediate relatives than anything else. But being a mother of two (now three) and owning her own salon business, Tanya didn't take the surprise affair too well. She struggled to cope with Max for a while, but after she moved away with the girls for a while and sorted herself out, she returned to Walford shortly after with Greg; her new fiancee. However, after time, she reformulated her relationship with Max as it was clear they were both still in love, and embraced on a long affair with him. With people finding out one-by-one, they still tried to keep it a secret only for it to be revealed to Vanessa and Greg a few months later in a dramatic episode.

LAUREN BRANNING

Lauren was a sweet young teenager who didn't truly mean the harm she caused by wrapping the revealing DVD up for a Christmas present to Bradley. She did this when she found out about the affair and wanted to hurt her father while also letting everyone know the truth. However, during Christmas Day she realised the pain she would cause by doing this and how much it would effect, and potentially destroy her family. Because of her realisation, she attmepted to get the DVD back from under the tree many times, but none of which were successful.