EastEnders’ Cindy Beale to return from the dead as actress Michelle Collins reprises role

Michelle Collins is set to make a sensational return to EastEnders as Cindy Beale – 25 years after the character was killed off.

According to The Sun, Cindy will return to Walford later this year, along with her ex-husband, Ian, played by Adam Woodyatt.

A source told the tabloid:

“This has been done so secretively but it’s going to be an absolute bombshell — an unbelievable twist.”

Collins played Cindy on and off for a decade between 1988-1998, making Ian’s life a misery with multiple affairs, a murder plot, and a bitter fight for custody of their children.

The character was last seen on screen in April 1998 when she was arrested for hiring a hitman to shoot Ian. The storyline was slated to culminate with trial scenes later that year, but Collins did not agree to participate, resulting in Cindy’s death off-screen as she suffered a blood clot whilst in childbirth.

After discovering Sharon’s (Letitia Dean) plot to poison him over his role in the death of her son Dennis, Ian slunk away from Walford in January 2021.

Woodyatt briefly reprised the role last year as Ian made a surprise appearance at Dot Cotton’s funeral, observing proceedings from a distance.

After getting a call, he abruptly left, telling his “love” that he’d be home shortly, leading fans to speculate that he’d reunited with Jane (Laurie Brett). However, with Cindy’s return confirmed, it appears it may have been a different former Mrs Beale on the other end of the line.

There have been no details released so far about why the pair return (or how Cindy is still alive).