EastEnders spoilers follow.
EastEnders’ Callum Highway gets a blast from the past next week – when he’s reunited with his nasty dad, Jonno.
Yet it’s hardly a happy family reunion for father and son, especially when tragedy strikes and Jonno has a heart attack…
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“It’s been years since Callum and Jonno saw one another,” our EastEnders insider recaps. “They didn’t part on the best of terms – and the minute they clap eyes on each other again, Callum is forced to arrest his own dad! A reconciliation seems unlikely, though will Jonno’s health scare lead to them making amends?”
Jonno was last on the Square five years ago, when he disowned Callum after his son came out as gay and revealed he was in a relationship with Ben, who he went on to marry.
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His cruel treatment of Callum didn’t go down well with the Mitchells, and protective Phil punched Jonno and drove him out of Walford.
Callum and his brother Stuart always had a difficult relationship with their bullying father, and Jonno’s attitude to his son’s sexuality was the last straw.
So imagine Callum’s shock when he intercepts a situation at The Albert and comes face-to-face with his estranged relative…
“Callum clocks Eve is being harassed,” says our source. “She’s getting a barrage of verbal and physical homophobia – from Jonno. Horrified Callum immediately arrests him, but Jonno insists it’s his mate that’s causing the trouble, not him. Is he telling the truth?”
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Not sure what to believe, Callum wants to give Jonno the benefit of the doubt, but Eve is adamant he was to blame.
The next day, Johnny offers to give Jonno legal advice to find out if he’s telling the truth about the incident, and if he wants to build bridges with Callum.
At first, Jonno is frosty, but when he learns Johnny is a Carter, he changes his tune – the Carters and the Highways go way back, so he takes the lawyer to The Vic for a drink.
Johnny later tells Callum he had a heart-to-heart with his dad and reveals Jonno genuinely wants to meet with him. Callum is touched, but is it too good to be true?
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“Despite everything, Callum is prepared to hear Jonno out,” reveals our insider. “He meets Jonno at his flat, with Johnny there as a mediator. However, when Jonno asks Callum for money, his true intentions become clear.
“Callum refuses to give his dad cash, and Jonno’s true colours are exposed. A row breaks out and crestfallen Callum orders Jonno to leave – then his father falls to the floor, suffering a heart attack.”
Will Jonno be okay? And could this be the wake-up call to heal the fractured family’s rift?
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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