Diane Parish talks EastEnders’ Denise Decides plot

Viewers will vote the outcome of the ‘love triangle’…

For the first time ever, as part of the show’s 40th birthday celebrations, viewers get to vote for their choice of outcome, which will be revealed during a special live episode in anniversary week.

Last year, Denise (Diane Parish) and Jack’s (Scott Maslen) rocky marriage hit a breaking point when his affair with Stacey Slater came to light. Since then, they have had a few passionate encounters and shared some heartfelt moments as they navigate their blended family.

However, Denise has been secretly seeing former flame Ravi Gulati (Aaron Thiara) since a romantic encounter on Christmas Day. Things are complicated between them due to Ravi’s troubled past, and the fact he used to be in a serious relationship with Denise’s daughter Chelsea. There’s a lot to consider as viewers watch Denise torn between the two men, but ultimately, they will be able to vote on the outcome they want.

How do you feel about Denise’s choice being a big part of the 40^th anniversary week? 

It’s a blessing. I’ve been blessed throughout my time in EastEnders, particularly in the last few years. I think Chris Clenshaw understands Denise better than anybody, and he’s gifted me with the most exciting two years of my time on the show to date. I’m really grateful to the story team who created these ideas for Denise. These stories mean I get to show what I can do, and whatever they throw at me, I’m going to do my best with it! 

How did you find out that the vote would focus on whether Denise should pick Jack or Ravi? 

Chris told us all at the same time and our jaws dropped! I did suspect something might be coming between Denise and Ravi as I kept having a few little scenes with Aaron, and I didn’t know why. We wondered, after everything that happened between Denise and Ravi, how we’d get to this point.

But I was sure that working with an actor like Aaron, who is wonderful, inquisitive, curious and committed, that it would work. So, while I was shocked, I knew this was going to be very interesting as I would be doing this story with two amazing actors. 

What are your favourite Denise storylines from nearly 19 years in the show? 

I have got three favourites. The storyline between Denise and Lucas, when he had her captive. I loved that story and working with my lovely Don Gilet, who played Lucas. I would also say being part of The Six was a big highlight, particularly the Christmas episode. But, although it might sound a little bit odd, my top storyline now is the psychosis storyline.

It was a real acting exercise to research psychosis and to go on a whole journey with it. The scene that I had when Denise was persuaded to go into hospital with Zaarah Abrahams (Chelsea) and Scott Maslen (Jack) was a privilege to work on. So, I value that story the most. 

What’s your favourite EE storyline ever? 

It’s got to be Sharongate. I remember when it was on, I was in the theatre, and I had ten minutes until I was supposed to go on stage. They had a little black and white television in the stage manager’s office, and they were going, ‘Di, Di, you’ve got five minutes,’ and I’m like, ‘Nooo, but it’s about to explode!’ I was recording it on VHS, but they had to drag me on stage because I didn’t want to miss Sharongate being exposed. That, for me, was classic powerful EastEnders.  

Torn between two lovers, feeling like a fool… / BBC EastEnders

If you could swap roles and play any character from the past 40 years, who would it be and why? 

It’d be Angie Watts (Anita Dobson)! I loved Angie. I thought she was brilliant, a fantastic character and I absolutely loved her. She was my favourite from the past. 

What’s the most meaningful viewer response you’ve ever had? 

I love it when people say, ‘You are just like my mum’ or when younger audiences now call me ‘Auntie D’. It’s so cute that they have taken me into their hearts and their homes as Auntie D. I love that.

Also, with the psychosis story, everywhere I went for a while, people were coming to me and saying thank you for playing that story truthfully. It blew me away to discover the number of people who are dealing with or have dealt with psychosis in their lives and how prevalent it is. It’s important to tell stories like this to highlight mental health issues and bring the issue to the forefront of people’s attention. So, those comments really touched me because it was so important to me that I did Denise’s story justice. 

Denise’s relationship with Kim is such a big part of her story and something viewers love. What’s it like working with Tameka Empson on that pivotal relationship? 

My bond with Tameka is beyond anything I can describe, it’s truly special. I knew her from before, but working with her, we just click. We know how and what we are going to do before we do it. It’s weird how much we know about each other! We can finish each other’s sentences, we know what the other is thinking, and our timing is natural.

We speak every day on the phone, we are sisters, and we discuss everything. Tameka is a treasure, and while I hate having to say it so much (laughs), she is a delight in my life and I am blessed to go to work every day and have her there. 

The Fox-Trueman-Danes household is full of great characters. Do you enjoy working together? 

Yes, we all just gel together. Rudolph Walker (Patrick) is like a beautiful father figure to me, and with Tameka, Delroy Atkins (Howie), Jaden Ladega (Denzel) and the little kids, there’s so much richness to the family. Having Angela Wynter back as Yolande has added another layer of richness, too. When people come to film a scene in our house, they leave feeling ten feet tall because it’s so much fun filming there.  

EastEnders, BBC One, Monday to Thursday at 7.30pm and on the iPlayer from 7am

EastEnders: Denise Fox, Jack Branning  and Amy Mitchell / BBC, Jack Barnes/Kieron McCarron