EastEnders star Jessie Wallace gave bosses warning over Michelle Ryan return

BBC EastEnders star Jessie Wallace refused the idea over Zoe Slater return as she would feel the audience had been “completely conned” as actress Michelle Ryan makes Albert Square comeback

Jessie Wallace has dismissed the notion of recasting Zoe Slater, arguing that EastEnders fans would feel “completely conned”.

The 53 year old actress expressed her belief that she “wouldn’t be able to give my best performance” as Kat Moon, Zoe’s mother, if Michelle Ryan’s character was replaced by another actor in the popular BBC One soap.

However, EastEnders’ Executive Producer Ben Wadey, 31, managed to persuade Michelle, 41, to reprise her role. She made a triumphant return to Walford in an episode aired on June 16, marking her first appearance since June 2005.

Speaking to Radio Times magazine, Jessie revealed: “I said to Ben: ‘It has to be Michelle. It won’t feel right if Zoe is recast.'”. I wouldn’t be able to give my best performance. The audience would feel completely conned.”

Michelle, whose character left Walford for Ibiza, Spain, in 2005 to distance herself from Den Watts’ murder (played by Leslie Grantham), committed by Chrissie Watts (Tracy-Ann Oberman), had been invited to return to EastEnders previously, but the timing hadn’t been right until now.

She explained: “In the past, the timing just wasn’t right. I didn’t feel a need to do it and, for me, there always has to be a need. This time, I surprised myself with how open I was to it.”

Michelle, who joined the soap in 2000, departed EastEnders in 2005 at the age of 21, feeling “done at five years”, and chose to “jump” onto other projects instead of “doing the same sorts of storylines”.

Zoe made a brief return to screens in June, but it was short-lived as she fled to Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, after confiding in Alfie Moon (Shane Richie) and Stacey Slater (Lacey Turner) about her troubles.

Unbeknownst to Kat, her husband Alfie travelled to Spain in an attempt to bring Zoe back to Albert Square, deceiving Kat by claiming he was going to Australia for cancer treatment.

Upon Alfie’s return to Walford, he informed Stacey that Zoe was still missing, prompting Kat to label him the “biggest liar in Walford”. However, Zoe is set to return to Albert Square in the summer, reuniting with her mother, Kat.

Michelle spoke highly of working with Jessie again after 20 years, saying: “Jessie is one of the best actresses I’ve ever worked with. “The rapport we have and our friendship off screen as well, it all just feeds into that mother-daughter bond.

“On set, it’s like having someone in your corner all the time and always knowing that I’ll be fine. I can just talk to Jessie. We have a shorthand, and we have a similar kind of view on the characters and their journey.”

Michelle first joined the long-running drama in 2000, with her character Zoe becoming central to one of the most unforgettable storylines in soap opera history – the shocking revelation that she wasn’t Kat’s (Jessie Wallace) little sister, but actually her daughter.Z

Zoe remained in Walford for five years before departing for a fresh start in Spain, following her confession about her involvement in Den Watts’ (Leslie Grantham) death