Sharon was rendered speechless by Keanu’s proposal – and soon revealed her answer (Picture: BBC)
It was the grand opening of Sharon (Letitia Dean) and Phil (Steve McFadden)’s joint venture, the Boxing Den, in Monday (March 27)’s EastEnders, and as many of the locals who weren’t busy with storylines elsewhere as possible were gathered for the grand occasion.
Sharon made a speech about how the gym was named after her late son Denny, and Phil joined in to say that their hope was that it would be a place where teenagers could come and feel more confident about themselves.
‘You know all about keeping teenage boys off the streets,’ Sam (Kim Medcalf) quipped to Sharon after the speech. ‘Only joking – Keanu’s hardly a teenager now, is he?’
Prior to this, Sam had had a chat with Keanu (Danny Walters), who’d admitted that he loves Sharon. Sam had mentioned the age gap between them but told Keanu to ‘own your feelings and act on them. Prove to her that what you want is more than sex.’
Still a bit undecided about what to do, Keanu went to his mum Karen (Lorraine Stanley) for advice. Karen is no fan of Sharon’s, but when her son insisted he wanted to build a future with Sharon and their son Albie she had some words of wisdom.
‘Make a declaration, if you have to,’ she said, but advised her boy to ‘protect your heart.’
Sharon rejected Keanu’s proposal in front of everyone (Picture: BBC / Jack Barnes / Kieron McCarron)
Keanu was perhaps thinking of the first part of this advice but not the second when he decided to turn up at the Boxing Den launch to surprise Sharon – who brushed him off.
Feeling it was time for a grand gesture, Keanu stepped into the boxing ring and asked Sharon to join him. ‘I bet you any money she put him up to this,’ Kat (Jessie Wallace) muttered to Phil, ‘to make it all about her – again.’
Keanu opened his speech by telling Sharon what a great job she was doing for the kids by opening the gym, but when he started saying how ‘kind, loving and generous’ she was her expression started to change as she began to wonder where he was going.
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She didn’t have longer to wonder as the next moment he was dropping to one knee and holding out an engagement ring. ‘Sharon, I love you. Will you marry me?’ he said.
Everyone held their breath as Sharon had a little think.
‘Get up,’ she hissed at her would-be groom. ‘Just get up, please.’
As he pushed her for an answer, Sharon rushed to get out of the boxing ring and ran out of the room.
‘What a joke!’ Phil chuckled – but Kat didn’t look so amused. Was she wondering whether the reason for Sharon’s reluctance to marry Keanu was because she’s still holding out a hope of getting back with Phil one day?
EastEnders continues Tuesday March 28 at 7:30pm on BBC One.
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Sharon wasn’t in the form for Keanu’s public declaration of love.