EastEnders spoilers follow.
EastEnders has aired a sad moment for Nigel Bates after he realised he was the one who caused the crash that injured Jasmine Fisher and Gina Knight.
Tonight’s episode kicked off with Jack Branning escorting Nigel to the police station where he confronted his wife, Julie, who initially lied about the accident and said she was driving.
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“I just wanted to protect you,” Julie tried, but Nigel insisted: “I have to do what’s right.”
He went in for the interview, accompanied by an appropriate adult due to his dementia diagnosis.
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Speaking with the detectives, Nigel appeared confused about the details of the accident and said he couldn’t remember how he accessed his vehicle. Asked to explain how he was so sure he was driving the car, he replied: “It’s like a really strong feeling that I was there and I hit those girls.”
“And people keep lying to me about what I did,” he added, saying that his wife had initially concealed the truth but would confirm his version.
“She’ll corroborate with you what I did,” he told the detectives.
However, Julie lied to the detectives, saying neither she or Nigel left the house on the day of the accident.
Outside the station, Nigel realised Julie must’ve lied again as he was let go. “Did what I had to do,” Julie tried to explain, but Nigel didn’t want to hear her reasons. “You lied. You lied again!” he said.
Meanwhile, George Knight got wind of what went down with Nigel and confronted him in the Square. “It’s a mess,” George told Nigel, who was consumed by guilt.
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Nigel said he hadn’t realised he’d hit Jasmine and Gina or he would’ve stopped and helped them. He said he went to the police to confess but they didn’t believe him as he couldn’t remember what exactly went down.
Agreeing to let things go, George supported Nigel, but he couldn’t bear to live with what happened. As Julie joined him, Nigel barricaded himself at home, while George suggested they called Phil.
“Nobody calls Phil,” Julie said firmly, adding that she knew Nigel better than anyone.
Once she finally managed to enter the house, Julie apologised to Nigel. “I’m sorry for lying to you. I’m sorry for lying to the police but you know why I had to do it.”
“To protect me,” Nigel said.
“Just like you lied to protect me, remember?” she added, reminding her husband how he lied about his diagnosis. “It felt like a lie. It felt like a betrayal,” she said.
“You hurt me, Nigel. You hurt me so much,” she continued. “So can you blame me for trying to keep you here with me after spending all those months apart?”
Nigel reflected on her words, but remained resolute in his decision.
“I could’ve killed those girls and I have to pay for it,” he said.
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“I am a man still, and I want to be treated like a man to make my own decisions right to the end. I’m not my disease,” he concluded as Julie said sorry once more.
She then accompanied Nigel to the police station with his blood-stained shoes as evident of the crash.
“The truth will set you free,” Nigel told her, who asked him if he was sure to go ahead, even if it meant risking jail.
“I am sure and I can deal with it,” Nigel said, to which Julie replied: “We can deal with it, together.”
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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