EastEnders boss reveals aftermath of Zoe and Max twist

Max and Zoe have a secret connection (Picture: BBC/Jack Barns/Kieron McCarron)

EastEnders’ Executive Producer Ben Wadey has revealed what lies ahead for Zoe Slater (Michelle Ryan) and Max Branning (Jake Wood) after their estranged relationship was revealed.

Viewers received one hell of a shock last night, when just before the doof doofs, Max was confirmed as the mystery caller desperately trying to reach Zoe.

She was in a critical condition after being shot by either Jack Branning (Scott Maslen) or Ravi Gulati (Aaron Thiara), who were rolling around the floor trying to take possession of a gun.

Viewers were given a glimpse into Zoe’s past through a series of flashbacks, as she fought for her life.

We learnt that 19 years ago she gave birth to twins, though her baby girl was critically ill and she didn’t stick around the hospital to learn whether she survived.

As for the boy, Zoe asserted that he had ‘bad blood’ and wanted him placed up for adoption.

Tonight, the flashbacks continued…

Max and Zoe were an item

Explaining his decision to put the two EastEnders legends together, Ben explained: ‘When you’re lucky enough to come in and exec one of these shows, you have a list in your head of characters you want to bring back.

‘Zoe Slater and Max Branning were up there with who I wanted at the forefront of the show. There’s quite a lot of history between the Brannings and the Slaters.

‘We thought, “Let’s do it in the biggest possible way, with the biggest twist and reveal.” They know each other and have this relationship off-screen that nobody knew about.’

Tonight’s flashbacks showed the two meeting in a bar earlier this year, and Max offering financial support to Zoe in a time of hardship.

Initial flashbacks from 2006 showed Zoe giving birth to twins (Picture: BBC) In tonight’s episode we were taken to earlier this year, when Max first met Zoe (Picture: BBC/Jack Barns/Kieron McCarron)

She admitted that she had exhausted her funds in order to try and find her missing son, and had been paying a dodgy private investigator to hunt him down.

When the man, Greg Dolan (Dean Williamson), wanted another 5k in exchange for what he knew, Max coughed up the cash to help her out.

They went to his dingy flat, and as Max waited outside in the car, Zoe found herself in quite the predicament.

Greg wanted even more money, something she simply didn’t have. In response to his game-playing, she lamped him (see what I did there?) with a lampshade several times, rendering him unconscious.

Zoe then rushed out into the street and told Max what she’d done, and promptly ended things between them.

Back in the present day, she warned him not to coming looking for her, otherwise she’d ‘end [him]’.

He was helping her financially, but things soon turned sour (Picture: BBC/Jack Barns/Kieron McCarron) She’s warned him to keep away (Picture: BBC/Jack Barns/Kieron McCarron)

But this is a soap opera, of course he’ll try and track her down.

‘You have the Brannings and the Slaters yet to discover [their relationship], Ben added.

‘What’s Stacey going to think? It’s just this bomb that we wanted to put at the forefront and let it blow.’

Stacey (Lacey Turner) was of course at the centre of one of the show’s biggest affair plots when her affair with Max was exposed in front of their respective families on Christmas Day in 2007.

Drama lies ahead

Speaking of Christmas, it’s that time of the year when stories start to ramp up in preparation for the highlight of the year – the EastEnders festive special.

Could this Christmas rival 2007? (Picture: BBC Picture Archives)

While Ben kept back exactly what could entail, he did tease what the next few months could look like.

‘I won’t tell you much, but there is plenty of drama ahead,’ he told us.

‘Because the Brannings have connections to so many other families, it brings in a lot of other characters.

‘Max has a lot of history on the show, with secrets that he doesn’t know about but other characters – including his own family – do know about.’

He is, of course, referring to the fact Linda Carter (Kellie Bright) has concealed the birth of their daughter Annie. It seems like just about everybody knows, bar him.

‘Secrets tend to have a way of coming up in Walford at the wrong times,’ Ben continued.

‘It’s going to create some drama.’

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