Sharon was at the centre of a bizarre storyline in which she attempted to kill Ian (Picture: BBC)
EastEnders gave us a reminder of one of its most bizarre storylines of recent years this week, as Sharon Watts (Letitia Dean) and Ian Beale (Adam Woodyatt) were reunited.
The scene between the two, in the wake of Cindy Beale (Michelle Collins)’s shock return to Walford, saw Sharon and Ian come face to face for the first time since that particular twist, which saw Ian depart Walford after Sharon attempted to kill him
As the pair came face to face for the first time since that fateful night in 2021, Sharon revealed that she had done a lot of thinking about what had happened during that time, and she didn’t want that to ruin the friendship they previously had.
As Ian pointed out that she had tried to kill him, Sharon managed to put an end to that whole saga with just one sentence.
‘So did Cindy, but you seemed to find a way to get past that…’
Ouch. But just what did happen between Ian and Sharon which led to his almost-murder?
Here’s what you need to know…
What happened between Sharon and Ian in EastEnders?
As older viewers will know Sharon and Ian, both original cast members who grew up together in Walford and have been friends since then – but everything changed in 2020.
The pair were reunited in an awkward moment (Picture: BBC)
In February of that year – before Covid plunged the world into lockdown, forcing EastEnders off the air for the first time in its history – the soap celebrated its 35th anniversary, with a week of episodes revolving round a boat party which ended in disaster after the boat crashed, and Sharon’s teenage son Dennis later drowned.
Sharon held Ian responsible for Denny’s death, after discovering that Ian had locked him in a room below deck, in revenge for posting information about Bobby online which led to him being the victim of an Islamophobic attack.
Although Ian did eventually free the youngster it was too late, and Denny ended up losing his life in the Thames.
Sharon found out Ian was responsible when the show returned to the airwaves in September that year, with Dotty telling her what had happened.
In a bid to get her revenge, she began poisoning him, in one of the most bizarre storylines in EastEnders history – a story which also saw Ian and Sharon married after he was hospitalised in an attack at the Queen Vic, which left him thinking he was going to die.
Sharon’s attempts to poison Ian led to his departure from Walford (Picture: BBC)
Sharon’s actions left Ian thinking he had a mystery illness and he went for tests – but things reached a head after he realised what she was trying to do as she served him up a poisoned carbonara.
The truth about what he had done on the night of Denny’s death came to light as Sharon played Ian the final voicemail he had sent her – with a devastated Ian deciding he should finish the job for her, and starting to eat from the poisoned dish.
Eventually, after Sharon talked him out of doing so, he left Walford.
Ian has now returned to Walford after leaving in the wake of Sharon’s murder attempt (Picture: BBC)
Adam Woodyatt subsequently took a break from the show, although it wasn’t the last we’ve seen of Ian Beale.
The soap legend briefly appeared in December 2022 during the funeral of Dot Cotton (June Brown), watching the coffin carried into the church from a distance.
However, he made his comeback properly earlier this year when he was revealed to be living with Cindy in France.
EastEnders continues on BBC One on Thursday night at 7.30pm.
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It was the carbonara’s fault.
