EastEnders ask viewers to vote on Sonia’s baby name

The names honour the creators of EastEnders…

As part of the 40th celebrations the BBC are asking viewers to help name Sonia’s baby. To honour the creators of EastEnders, Julia Smith and Tony Holland, the Beeb are asking what should Sonia name her baby girl? Julia or Toni.

In dramatic scenes in an hour-long special last night Sonia (Natalie Cassidy) went into labour in the ruins of the Queen Vic pub’s kitchen following an explosion which ripped the boozer apart. When asked by sister Bianca (Patsy Palmer) what she was to call the newborn Sonia noted she was undecided between Toni and Julia. This choice is now in the hands of the BBC One viewers.

The vote will close at 7:10pm tonight, 20th February 2025. The results will be revealed in the special live episode – watch on BBC One from 7:30pm or catch up on iPlayer. To vote for the baby name – along with who Denise should choose to be with either Jack or Ravi – you need a BBC account. Fans can vote here for the baby name. And here for the Love Triangle.

Last night also came with the ‘highlight of the year’ with the return of Antia Dobson in two and a half minutes of glorious Angie Watts.

Creators remembered

It isn’t the first time EastEnders have remembered Tony and Julia within the programme, but the latest is the first time viewers have had a say in the forthcoming content of the programme.

Julia Smith was born in May 1927 and had worked on medical saga Angels for BBC One prior to EastEnders and went on to co-create alongside Tony Holland the ill-fated Eldorado. Julia served as EastEnders’ first producer and worked as a director on the series for its first few years.

Originating from in Maida Vale, west London, Julia was the child of Edward Cuthbert Smith and Elfriede Frances Gritton Menges. The family lived in Bedford Park, a planned development in Chiswick. Her father, a vocalist, later became the senior professor of singing at the Royal College of Music.

The arts played a significant role in her maternal family. Her uncle, Herbert Menges, was a conductor and director of music at The Old Vic, while her aunt, Isolde Menges, was a violinist and professor at the Royal College of Music. Her cousin, Chris Menges, went on to become an Oscar-winning cinematographer. During the Second World War, Smith was evacuated to Wiltshire. She later attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art.

Believing her solemn expression would limit her chances of landing leading roles; Julia pursued a career in stage management. She began at the Regent Theatre in Hayes, Middlesex, before working with various repertory companies. In the 1950s, her work with the Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) led to her first connection with the BBC, where she was invited to adapt a theatrical production for television. After a stint in television, she returned to Stratford-upon-Avon, the home of the RSC.

Smith later transitioned into television production, working as a production manager on serials such as Pride and Prejudice before taking a BBC director’s training course. She went on to direct episodes of Dr. Finlay’s Casebook and Compact, marking her early experience with the soap opera format.

In 1962, she directed the series Suspense and later helmed episodes of popular BBC shows, including Z-Cars (1962) and Doctor Who (1966–1967), where she directed the serials The Smugglers and The Underwater Menace. In 1967, she directed a television adaptation of The Railway Children, starring Jenny Agutter. The production was well received and helped pave the way for the beloved 1970 film adaptation, in which Agutter reprised her role as Roberta.

While working on Z-Cars, Smith met script editor Tony Holland. The two formed a successful producer/script-editor partnership, collaborating on the BBC’s long-running hospital drama Angels from 1979 to 1983. They later worked together on The District Nurse, a series set in the coalfields of South Wales.

Julia died in 1997 aged 70.

Tony Holland was born in January 1940 and as noted had worked with Julia Smith on a number of programmes prior to EastEnders. Born in Shoeburyness, Essex, as the eldest of three children to John and Pat Holland. He had twin younger brothers, Allan and Bryn. Coming from a military family, Holland moved frequently due to his father’s postings, living in various locations, including Aldershot, Gravesend, and Chelmsford.

Tony began his career as an actor, appearing in the 1966 Doctor Who serial The Savages and the 1967 drama Message for Posterity for The Wednesday Play. That same year, a theatrical production he had written, The Isle is Full of Noises, was produced by the BBC for Thirty-Minute Theatre. This experience led him to transition into scriptwriting.

In 1970, with the help of his agent, Holland secured a role as a writer and script editor for Z-Cars. It was there that he met producer and director Julia Smith, forming a long and successful professional partnership. The duo became an established producer/script-editor team.

In 1983, the BBC approached Tony Holland and Julia Smith to develop a new bi-weekly soap opera to compete with ITV’s long-running hits, Coronation Street, Crossroads, and Emmerdale Farm. The BBC wanted a show that would capture the essence of contemporary London.

Inspired by this vision, Holland and Smith conceived a series set in a Victorian square in the East End, centered around close-knit working-class families and eccentric Cockney residents. This concept eventually evolved into East8, the early working title for what would become EastEnders. After a spell in the late 1980s at Ireland’s RTÉ broadcaster working on Fair City, Tony returned to the BBC to help launch, with Julia, Eldorado. It however would only last a year.

Tony died in 2007 aged 67.

EastEnders goes live tonight from 7.30 pm