The children of actress June Brown appear in her character Dot Branning’s funeral episode of EastEnders.
The iconic actress died earlier this year at the age of 95, having last appeared in the BBC One soap in January 2020.
At the beginning of December, Dot Branning was revealed to have died off-screen in Ireland and now on Monday (12th December 2022), Albert Square will say goodbye to the iconic chain-smoking gossip with a heart of gold.
Speaking to RadioTimes.com and other press at a screening event for the episode, executive producer Chris Clenshaw confirmed that June Brown’s children had been contacted regarding the episodes and even requested to make a small appearance.
Discussing the emotional instalment, Clenshaw revealed: “We knew that we couldn’t put it off for much longer, and as we started to discuss the episodes we of course spoke to June’s family, who also knew that this is what their mother would have wanted.
“In fact, June’s children, named Sophie and Billy, knew how much EastEnders meant to their mother, so much that they requested to attend Doc’s funeral to say their goodbyes, which was absolutely lovely for all of those involved.
“You know, stories were shared throughout the day, which was just gorgeous.”
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The pair are briefly seen seated in the funeral ceremony on the same row as Dot’s great-nephew Reiss Colwell (Jonny Freeman).
Clenshaw later added: “So they approached us and asked if they could be part of the episode, and we thought it was a lovely idea.”
He went on to say that the pair had a “kind of wonderful day” because the cast was “reminiscing and sharing stories about June and which I think they thought was just lovely. So it was a really nice time.”
In addition to the soap’s regulars attending the funeral and the wake for Dot, some old faces are returning for the episodes, including Colin Russell (Lord Michael Cashman), Mary Smith (Linda Davidson), Lofty Holloway (Tom Watt), Disa O’Brien (Jan Graveson), Barry Clark (Gary Hailes), and Lauren Branning (Jacqueline Jossa).
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