Janine is on a mission to destroy love rival Linda once more as she gloats about her engagement to Mick (Picture: BBC)

EastEnders schemer Janine Butcher (Charlie Brooks) takes great pleasure in gloating to Linda Carter (Danny Dyer) about her engagement to Mick (Danny Dyer).

Mick arrives back in the Square later this week with Janine in tow, and there’s a charged moment between he and Linda.

Any hopes of a reunion for the soulmates, however, are soon scuppered as Janine reveals that she and Mick are engaged.

Discussing the plot development, actress Charlie Brooks – who plays Janine – tells us that her character gets ‘so much satisfaction’ out of toying with Linda.

‘Janine gets enormous satisfaction from telling Linda anything ahead of time, and she takes a lot of pleasure in that,’ said the soap legend.

‘But I think that just comes from knowing that there is that connection that will never go between Mick and Linda because they were childhood sweethearts, and that’s looming over Janine all the time.

‘Not that it’s acceptable behaviour in any way, but that is where that need and desire to gloat comes from.’

Janine has a penchant for destroying Linda with public announcements about her relationship with Mick (Picture: BBC)

As Charlie hinted at, this isn’t the first time Janine has taken joy in destroying Linda with a bombshell, as she revealed that she was pregnant with Mick’s baby to her love rival several months ago in a very public setting.

Linda, however, has seemingly come to accept that Mick has moved on, but the question is: does Mick’s heart really lie with Janine?

And regardless of whether it does or it doesn’t, will the wedding go ahead?

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‘I think the engagement definitely makes her feel more secure [about her relationship with Mick], but I think the sight of Linda is always there,’ added Charlie.

‘There’s an undercurrent of unease around their closeness. But the engagement is a step towards getting exactly what she wants.’

EastEnders airs Mondays to Thursdays at 7:30pm on BBC One.

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Charlie told us exactly how much joy Janine gets out of winding Linda up.