EastEnders airs emotional exit scenes after fire drama in early iPlayer release

EastEnders spoilers follow for Thursday’s episode (April 10), which is available to watch now on streaming service BBC iPlayer and hasn’t yet aired on TV.

EastEnders has aired an emotional exit for Ruby Allen, and there was plenty of drama in her final episode.

Louisa Lytton confirmed last month that she had finished her latest stint in the soap, and the latest episode saw her character leave Walford for now.

Stacey was keen to tell the Square that Ruby was responsible for setting fire to Martin’s fruit and veg stall – but she got a shock when she realised that her daughter Lily was the real culprit.

In today’s episode, Lily eventually admitted the truth, reasoning that she felt angry for the family that Stacey ruined while looking at her late dad’s memorial.

lily slater, stacey slater, ruby allen in eastenders

Jack Barnes/Kieron McCarron//BBC

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The teen explained that she got Avani to lie and tell her mum that she saw Ruby torching the stall, in fear that Charli would be taken away from her if the truth got out.

Ruby was horrified when Stacey concluded that she had to protect her daughter and wouldn’t tell the police about this development. With Walford now a hostile environment for her, Ruby decided that she and Roman were going to leave for good.

Lily told Avani the truth and encouraged her to stick to the story, but she was reluctant to be dragged into the drama and suggested that Lily should be warring with Stacey, not Ruby.

BBC

Stacey tried to make amends with Ruby, but the pair ended up in another huge argument, which confirmed to Ruby her exit plans.

Later, Jean reminded Stacey that that she and Ruby used to be best friends, and that they could honour Martin by parting on good terms.

Stacey decided to take her mum’s advice, but Zack told her that Ruby was already gone. However, he disclosed that she was heading to Martin’s graveside before she left, which is where Stacey found her.

The pair finally made friends and had a heartbreaking conversation about how much they both loved Martin, finally able to grieve him together.

BBC

Having sold the stall back to Ian, Ruby had enough money to give her a fresh start. She walked off into the sunset Roman – after revealing that she was changing her son’s surname to ‘Fowler’ as a tribute to his dad.

But back in the Square, relations between Stacey and Lily broke down even further. Lily told her mum that she “stole her childhood” and that she wished she had died instead of Martin.

Is their bond damaged beyond repair?

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.