Danny Dyer breathed his last as the character Mick Carter in EastEnders’ explosive Christmas Day Special.
The character was killed in true soap style while trying to save the life of his ex-wife Linda after she and Janine Butcher drove off a cliff into the English Channel.
His exploit came after Mick learned the truth about wife Janine’s recent scandal and confessed his love to Linda, before ending the show dramatically in a suspenseful finale.
Mick’s death came as he, Janine and Linda squared off in an explosive finale at the White Cliffs Of Dover – after learning that Janine was responsible for the car accident Linda was to blame for in previous episodes.
Janine tried to escape from her husband and his ex-wife as they tried to make her pay for their crimes and quickly drove away.
But Linda wouldn’t let her get away, jumping into the passenger seat and wrestling with Janine for the wheel – resulting in them losing control of the car and throwing themselves off a cliff into the English Channel.
Behind them was Mick, who got out of his car and jumped into the water to save her after realizing what had happened.
The duo had previously been submerged in water and trapped in Janine’s car
The Christmas dinner took a quick turn when Janine’s daughter explains to Scarlett about the car accident and exposes her mother as the culprit.
‘She’s lying, she was driving your car when it had an accident. She came to pick you up [Linda] high. Linda, you called the victim and spoke to Mum,’ the boy called.
While Janine tried to dismiss the truth by claiming her daughter was “not doing well,” she couldn’t keep up with her own lies.
Mick was starting to piece things together and wanted to know if Janine was in the car with Linda when she crashed – before finding out she was actually the one driving.
Linda turned to Janine and asked, “Did you change my clothes? When they found me I was in the driver’s seat. She must have taken me there to make it look like I did it.
She then jumped at Janine when things took a violent turn, leaving Mick shocked as he processed the situation.
After the dramatic meal, Mick chatted privately with Linda and confessed his love to her, despite being married to Janine.
Turning to his ex-wife, he admitted, “It’s you, always has been. I’ve known it all along, I just couldn’t take it. Every day I’ve tried to convince myself that I love Janine, but it’s you. i loved you all along And now I’m married to her, please forgive me.’
Overjoyed at the news, Linda replied: “Of course I forgive you, it’s not your fault, I love you.
Mick asked if he and Linda could try again, with the latter replying: “Yeah that’s all I’ve ever wanted, you’re the love of my life. No one else ever came near, no one.”
The pair shared a kiss and then agreed: “We will never be apart again”.
From the sweet moment back to reality, it was time for Mick to tell Janine their marriage was over as he decided to make her pay for her actions.
On the way to her bedroom, Mick said to Janine: “You lied to me. for me your husband Do you really think I want to be with you now? I wanted to give up everything for you and for what? I don’t love you, I never loved you, I want you out of my sight. You disgust me.’
The landlord tossed her a holdall and insisted she pack her things as Linda called the police while Mick said to Janine: ‘You’re going to jail, do you understand me? You have made your bed and now you will lie in it.”
Janine then set out with her passport to escape while Mick and Linda set out to pursue them.
Mick drove next to Janine on a narrow street and tried to convince her to get out of the car before both cars came to a dead end.
“It’s over, get out of the car,” he said to his wife when Linda called the police from the remote location.
Janine hits Mick on the head as he falls to the ground before getting in her car and driving away, with Linda jumping into the passenger seat to try and stop her.
The two wrestle for the wheel as Janine tries to pull away, and loses control of the car as the entire vehicle falls off the cliff’s edge into the sea.
Under the water, Janine and Linda are then trapped in the car and submerged in water while struggling to get out – before Mick discovers they fell in and jumps out to save them.
He dives and manages to open the car and get Janine out of the car, saving her as he swims up and brings her to shore.
But in search of Linda, a struggling Mick leaps back to save her – unaware that she’s already managed to get herself out of the water on her own.
Linda escorts Janine back to shore and searches for Mick, yelling for him before bursting into tears as he is nowhere to be seen.