![\"Jamie](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/jamie-borthwick.png\")
<\/p>\nEastEnders has officially written out Jay Brown from the BBC soap, with Tuesday’s episode revealing the character is now engaged and expecting a child with his new partner.<\/p>\n
The long-running character, portrayed by Jamie Borthwick since 2006, departed Albert Square last year following the actor’s dismissal from the programme.<\/p>\n
In scenes broadcast yesterday, Jay’s stepdaughter Lexi Pearce received a letter containing a baby scan photograph, confirming her stepfather’s new life away from Walford.<\/p>\n
The teenager, played by Isabella Brown, was left distraught by the news that Jay had moved on permanently, with Billy Mitchell describing it as a “big change” for the family.<\/p>\n
Jamie Borthwick played Jay in the soap since 2006<\/p>\n
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BBC<\/p>\n
Mr Borthwick was suspended from the soap in June 2025 after footage emerged showing him using a disabled slur during his participation in Strictly Come Dancing.<\/p>\n
The video captured the 31-year-old actor making the offensive remark while describing people in Blackpool during the BBC dance competition.<\/p>\n
BBC bosses swiftly condemned his comments as “entirely unacceptable”, stating that it “in no way reflects the values or standards” expected at the corporation.<\/p>\n
In September, a BBC Studios spokesperson confirmed to Radio Times: “We can confirm that Jamie Borthwick will not be returning to EastEnders. We do not comment on individual matters.”<\/p>\n
![\"Jamie](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/1770819549_604_jamie-borthwick.png\")
Jamie Borthwick<\/p>\n
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BBC<\/p>\n
The actor had been part of the cast for nearly two decades.<\/p>\n
The soap had been gradually addressing Jay’s absence through scattered references over recent months.<\/p>\n
Initially, Lauren Branning explained that Jay had travelled north to care for his unwell grandfather Bert Atkinson.<\/p>\n
His final on-screen appearance came in August 2025, when he was spotted tying Lexi’s shoelaces in the market.<\/p>\n
![\"Jamie](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/1770819549_119_jamie-borthwick.png\")
Jay Brown has been officially written out of the series<\/p>\n
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BBC<\/p>\n
At Christmas, viewers learned Jay would not be returning to Walford for the festivities, having met a new girlfriend named Elayna while looking after his grandfather.<\/p>\n
Monday’s episode showed Lexi visibly upset after receiving an envelope, which Tuesday’s instalment revealed contained Jay’s letter announcing his engagement and the pregnancy news.<\/p>\n
In the episode, Callum and Billy comforted the tearful teenager, who admitted she wanted “things to go back to how they were before” with her mother and Jay together.<\/p>\n
The pair reassured Lexi that she would always have their support, with Callum acknowledging she had endured more hardship than most in recent years.<\/p>\n
Viewers expressed frustration at how the storyline handled Jay’s departure, with many arguing it contradicted his character’s devotion to Lexi.<\/p>\n
One fan wrote on X: “Jay would NEVER do that to Lexi. Another insisted: “He adored Lexi and promised Lola, he wouldn’t have done this.”<\/p>\n
Some fans of the actor took to his Instagram page to share their disappointment.<\/p>\n
One fan wrote: “The bbc have done you so dirty. They are hardly innocent. A brilliant actor with so much potential. Keep going and working hard, you are loved by so so many. We all know jay wouldn\u2019t leave Lexi like that. They\u2019ve made Eastenders a massive flop.”<\/p>\n
![\"Jamie](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/1770819550_175_jamie-borthwick.png\")
Mr Borthwick was suspended from the soap in June after footage emerged showing him using a disabled slur on Strictly Come Dancing<\/p>\n
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BBC<\/p>\n
Another added: “Why is it fair that eastenders scripts publicly used so much offensive words like the hard R in many episodes (a set of people who write the script ) and you make one mistake and your villainised. So pathetic . Really hoping the best for you I miss watching you!”<\/p>\n
“Stunned by the realization that Jay has gone. Gob smacked you’re a brilliant actor,” a fourth said, while a fifth declared: “Justice for Jamie!”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"EastEnders has officially written out Jay Brown from the BBC soap, with Tuesday’s episode revealing the character is…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":420017,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[29],"tags":[243,830,96,391,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-420016","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-tv","tag-bbc","tag-celebrity","tag-entertainment","tag-tv","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/420016","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=420016"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/420016\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/420017"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=420016"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=420016"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=420016"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}