EastEnders spoilers follow for Wednesday’s episode (18 March), which is available to watch now on streaming service BBC iPlayer and hasn’t yet aired on TV.
EastEnders has revealed Max Branning’s next target, as he stumbles across a secret involving his daughter Lauren Beale. This week, Lauren took Mark Fowler up on his surprise offer to give her a series of expensive vehicles that she would sell at the car lot.
Unbeknownst to her, these cars are actually stolen, as Mark has hatched another criminal scheme to raise the £100,000 he desperately needs to pay off his boss in the gang.
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When Lauren discovered that there have been a string of high-end car thefts in the area, she got suspicious – and discovered the truth when she overheard an incriminating conversation between Mark and his associate Sonny.
Lauren confronted Mark in today’s episode, and as he begun to explain himself, he dragged Lauren into the Boxing Den before Max could walk in on their blazing row.
When Lauren threatened to go to the police – or her uncle Jack – about Mark, he reminded her of the text she sent him asking for more cars, which made it look like she was in on the scheme.
Mark urged Lauren to continue selling his cars as normal, promising that she won’t be incriminated if he got caught out, but Lauren was called away before she could give an answer.
Lauren and Peter met with a mum of a visually impaired child, who told them about a specialist nursery that they were interested in sending Jimmy to. They were left feeling encouraged but concerned about the hugely expensive nursery fees.
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Later, Lauren cautiously asked Penny for advice about her tricky dilemma. When she and Peter told their families about the nursery, Ian, Jack and Max agreed to contribute to the cost, though they warned the couple that money is tight currently.
Back at home, Peter told Lauren that he was going to jump back into personal training in the evenings to earn some extra cash, making it clear that he will do anything for their kids.
This made up Lauren’s mind, so she met up with Mark and told him that she refused to risk getting involved with criminal dealings when Peter was working so hard to provide for the family.
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“I do not want to be dragged down with you,” she said. “From now on, just stay away from me, and my family.”
As Lauren walked away, it was revealed that Max had spied this heated conversation. What will he do now that he knows about Mark’s dodgy scheme?
EastEnders airs on Mondays – Thursdays at 7.30pm on BBC One. The show also streams on BBC iPlayer, where most episodes drop early at 6am ahead of their TV broadcast.
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