Grant Mitchell (EastEnders)

Grant Mitchell first arrived in Albert Square in February 1990 with his older brother Phil (Steve McFadden), and the pair become co-owners of the local garage, The Arches. Grant had returned to civilian life in London having been a paratrooper in the Army, which included serving in the Falklands War at the age of 19. After a brief fling with Julie Cooper (Louise Plowright) and getting involved in various dodgy deals, Grant starts wooing the local barmaid, Sharon Watts (Letitia Dean). She grows attracted to his machismo, and soon their flirting progresses into a relationship. Fiercely protective of his girlfriend, most of Grant's initial problems in the Square revolve around his over-possessive nature and jealousy. He puts Sharon's boss Eddie Royle (Michael Melia), the landlord of The Queen Victoria public house, in hospital after he makes a pass at Sharon; he later becomes prime suspect for Royle's murder, but is proved not guilty when the killer is revealed to be Nick Cotton (John Altman), the well established local villain who eventually owns up to the crime but is found not guilty in court. In the wake of this, Grant decides to re-enlist in the army; however, he is left despondent after getting rejected for failing their psychiatric tests.

Grant and Sharon marry (1991).

Despite his hot-headed tendencies, Sharon sees a different side to Grant, and when he proposes marriage to her, she accepts on the condition that he buys her childhood home, The Queen Vic, which he does. Grant marries Sharon in December 1991 and together they run The Queen Vic. Their marriage is stormy and punctuated with violent rows and fights. Grant is desperate for a child, although Sharon would rather concentrate on the pub for the time being, and when he discovers Sharon is still taking contraception, he smashes up the pub and then disappears. In his absence, Sharon is comforted by Phil and they begin an affair, although this comes to an abrupt end when Grant returns and promises to change his ways. He cannot live up to his promises, however, and, on Sharon's birthday in October 1992, Grant sets fire to The Queen Vic to generate insurance money to pay off debts. He does not check to see whether Sharon is out of the way, and she and her dog Roly nearly die in the blaze. The insurance money is insufficient, and Sharon reacts with fury when she discovers what Grant has done. She leaves Grant for a while, and, when she returns and attempts to seize control of The Queen Vic, Grant turns violent, assaults Sharon and her best friend, Michelle Fowler (Susan Tully), and is imprisoned on remand. While he is in prison, Sharon and Phil rekindle their affair, but neither can confess to Grant, and it ends when he is released from prison. Sharon and Grant patch up their relationship; however, in the autumn of 1994, Grant discovers a tape on which Sharon talks about her affair with Phil, and plays it to a packed pub at Phil's engagement party to his fiancée, Kathy Beale (Gillian Taylforth). In response, Grant batters Phil – leaving him with a ruptured spleen – and is abusive towards Sharon until she flees to the United States, signalling the end of their marriage after just three years. She returns briefly to enact revenge – making Grant realise that he is still in love with her, he chooses to be with Sharon over his family. Sharon is ready to turn him down in front of a packed pub and his family; however, in the end, she cannot go through with it, and stops him from publicly proposing before he humiliates himself. She then tells him that she loves him, before returning to the US, leaving Grant heartbroken. They are then divorced and do not see each other for more than 10 years after this. Michelle has a volatile relationship with Grant but, following Sharon's exit, falls pregnant following a one-night stand with him and then flees to the US without telling Grant that he is to be a father. Grant would not find out that the baby is his until years later.

With Sharon and Michelle both gone, he goes on to marry the much younger Tiffany Raymond (Martine McCutcheon), who soon becomes pregnant – although it is unclear whether he or Tiffany's ex-partner Tony (Mark Homer) is the father of her child. When Grant discovers this, he is incensed and throws Tiffany out. He begins a relationship with Lorraine Wicks (Jacqueline Leonard), until a paternity test reveals that Grant is the father of his baby, Courtney (Carissa and Josephine O'Meara), who is born in March 1997. He reunites with Tiffany to be near his daughter, but by this time his marriage has deteriorated. During an argument, Tiffany falls down the stairs of the Vic and is seriously injured, but makes a full recovery. Just after Christmas 1998, Tiffany discovers that Grant has had an affair with her mother Louise Raymond (Carol Harrison), and plans to flee to Spain with Courtney. However, Grant discovers her plan and retrieves Courtney. Tiffany attempts to snatch Courtney, but is hit by a car driven by Grant's stepfather Frank Butcher (Mike Reid); she dies seconds later as the clock struck midnight. Grant tries to move on by dating barmaid Nina Harris (Troy Titus-Adams) for a while, but dumps her after discovering her past as a prostitute.

It is at this point that Grant and Phil have established themselves as the undisputed hardman of the square's local borough – Walford; the pair have spent the entirety of the 1990s decade embarking on criminal activities, amongst other separate shenanigans. Despite the majority of occasions when the pair clashed, particularly in the follow-up to Phil's affair with Sharon, the two brothers remained faithful to each other. This impact heightens in 1999 when Grant goes into partnership with Phil's new enemy Steve Owen (Martin Kemp), and they end up having a feud – which ends with Grant punching Steve after getting annoyed with his disrespectful attitude towards him. By then, Grant and Phil have conducted a plan to cheat some gangsters by intercepting a drug deal and stealing a large amount of cash – in order to take care of their debts. The job is initially successful, but it quickly grows obstructive when Phil finds out that Grant had slept his ex-wife Kathy before doing the job. He confronts Grant after the job and Grant admits he did it in revenge for Phil’s affair with Sharon. As they attempt to flee from the oncoming police, Phil pulls out a gun and shoots the steering wheel in their getaway car – causing Grant to plunge the car into the River Thames. Phil is rescued, but Grant is not found and presumed dead. It soon transpires a week later that Grant has survived, and he leaves the country with both Courtney and the stolen money to Rio de Janeiro. He does not return to Walford for six years, although he remains in contact with his mother and brother.

Grant returns to Walford with Phil to exonerate their younger sister, Sam (Kim Medcalf), for the murder of her ex-boss and Sharon's adopted father – Den Watts (Leslie Grantham). Although she was involved in the events surrounding Den's murder, Sam was framed for the crime by his widow and her nemesis Chrissie (Tracy-Ann Oberman) – the real murderer. Grant manages to put behind him his differences with both Phil and Sharon, forgiving Sharon when she confesses that she aborted his child. The two brothers manage to convince Sharon that Chrissie is the real killer and that Sam is innocent. Whilst teaming up with Phil and Sharon to prove Sam's innocence, Grant forms a rivalry with her husband Dennis Rickman (Nigel Harman) – who had previously teamed up with Den to imprison Phil for robbery. Grant and Dennis soon put their differences aside to help Phil with their conflict against Johnny Allen (Billy Murray), the local gangland kingpin who holds a grudge against the Mitchell brothers because of their mother – Peggy (Barbara Windsor). When Johnny extracts CCTV footage of Chrissie confessing to her boyfriend Jake Moon (Joel Beckett) that she killed Den, he plans to use the tape as bait for Phil and Grant – intending to kill them. The brothers eventually beat Johnny at his nightclub office in order to get the tape, which is promptly delivered to the police; as a result, Sam is released from prison and Chrissie is arrested for Den's murder.

Following Sam's release, Grant initially returns to Rio – only to later come back to Walford with Courtney (now played by Megan Jossa), citing family and financial problems back in Brazil. When Phil learns about his brother's return, he tricks Grant into helping him with quest against Johnny. During Grant's absence, Phil and Johnny embarked on a feud that led to Dennis and Sharon getting involved. The impact escalated after Dennis humiliated Johnny on Christmas Day 2005, which prompted Johnny to throttle Sharon with an ultimatum; Dennis will be killed unless she and him leave Walford for good. On the eve of 2006 commencing, Dennis learned from Phil about the threat Johnny made to Sharon – as well as being told that Johnny killed his best-friend and Sam's ex-husband, Andy Hunter (Michael Higgs), on the same night Chrissie killed Den. This resulted in Dennis beating up Johnny, who then ordered Jake's brother Danny (Jake Maskall) – his henchman – to kill Dennis. Following Dennis' murder, Phil was wracked with guilt for sparking the events of Sharon losing her husband and has vowed revenge on Johnny more than ever. After hearing Phil explain his reasons for wanting to bring Johnny to justice for killing Dennis, specifically as a promise he made to Sharon before she left Walford, Grant reluctantly accompanies his brother in settling their score with Johnny once and for all. Their efforts quickly falter by Grant arguing with Phil about the situation he has put them in, all the while Phil demands Grant to maintain their course against Johnny – who uses this opportunity to capture the brothers. Johnny later orders Danny to kill the brothers and bury them in the woods. After marching them into the forest for execution, Danny prepares to kill Grant; however, the brothers are saved when Jake appears and shoots Danny – accidentally killing him. After telling the brothers that it was Danny who killed Dennis on Johnny's orders, Jake allows Phil and Grant to flee whilst he himself proceeds to bury Danny in the woods. Phil and Grant rush back to Johnny's mansion to confront him once more, only to find out that he has already been arrested; Johnny surrendered to the police after his daughter, Ruby (Louisa Lytton) threatened to disown her father unless he confessed to his crimes. Following his arrest, Johnny is sentenced to life imprisonment and later dies of a heart attack – allowing Phil and Grant to finally put their demons to reason for good. The brothers reconcile after Phil apologises to Grant for the situation he put them in, and Grant forgives Phil for his actions.

As time goes on, Grant begins flirting with Jane Collins (Laurie Brett) – the girlfriend of Kathy's son Ian (Adam Woodyatt) – after seducing her. Their affair ends when Phil catches them together and Grant then has a one-night stand with 19-year-old Chelsea Fox – to his mother's outrage. Shortly after, his estranged Brazilian wife, Carla (Christianne Oliveira), shows up in Walford. Grant and Carla resume their relationship, but Carla's ex-partner Ray (David Kennedy) soon arrives to retrieve £12,000 that Carla has stolen from him. Carla and Ray resume their affair and plan to fleece Grant for £25,000. Grant learns of Carla's scam; unbeknownst to Carla he chases Ray away and leads Carla to believe he has fallen for her lies. Grant catches her attempting to steal his money and reacts by dumping her in a litter bin, ending their marriage. After quitting his job at the newly reopened Scarlet nightclub, currently owed by Jake following Johnny's imprisonment, Grant leaves the country again with Courtney for a new life in Portugal.

In May 2016, Peggy returns to Albert Square following a diagnosis of terminal cancer. She decides to stop her treatment, but Phil tries to change her mind, enlisting the help of Sharon. Sharon then calls Grant in Portugal, leaving a voicemail saying that his family needs him. Grant returns to the square soon after and walks in on Phil and Peggy. He plans to take Peggy with him back to Portugal, only for her to say that her cancer is active. Grant is angry when Peggy reveals that her plan for him and Sam to learn about it was by letters to them after her death by suicide, however Phil and Grant seemingly convince Peggy not to do this. Grant tells Phil he immediately needs the money that he lent him. Knowing he cannot get it, Grant threatens him unless he returns the money. Grant returns to Portugal, and Sharon has to call him about Peggy having killed herself. When Sam returns to Walford for Peggy's funeral, she reveals that Grant is unable to attend the funeral, although Grant secretly attends, laying a flower and watching from a distance.

When Grant's nephew Ben Mitchell (Harry Reid) goes missing and Phil is reluctant to get the police involved, Sharon contacts Grant for help, but Courtney (now played by Alice Nokes) meets Sharon instead; Grant has not seen the messages. Sharon decides to go to the police and finds Grant outside the police station as a result of being drunk and disorderly. Grant goes to The Queen Vic where he flirts with Belinda Peacock (Carli Norris). Grant tells Courtney that Phil killed Peggy. When Courtney tells Grant that Sharon wanted to meet him, he goes to see Sharon and declares his love to her, but she is not interested. Grant accuses Phil of killing Peggy and asks for his money back, but Phil does not have it. Grant tries to persuade Sharon to go to Portugal with him but she declares her love for Phil. Grant telephones Courtney to ask to stay with her but she refuses. Grant then meets Belinda again and they go to her home for sex but are interrupted by her family. Phil finds a letter in Sharon's bag that Michelle sent Peggy, revealing that Grant fathered Michelle's child, Mark Fowler Jnr (Ned Porteous) 21 years previously. Grant visits Jane where he learns that she has been paralysed by her adoptive son Bobby Beale (Eliot Carrington). He admits that he has lost his home and business in Portugal and is in debt. Grant and Jane both comfort each other, but Ian walks in on them and shouts at Grant for deserting his family. Grant leaves, ignoring Phil, who is attempting to tell him about Mark. Courtney calls Grant, who is staying with Aunt Sal (Anna Karen) due to losing his villa and bar in Portugal, for help after Ben and Jay Brown (Jamie Borthwick) are kidnapped by the men who attacked Ben and killed his boyfriend Paul Coker (Jonny Labey). Grant rushes to Courtney's aid and assumes Mark is attacking her, but Sharon tells him he is Michelle's son. Phil initially insists he does not need Grant's help but then accepts it. Phil collapses so Grant vows to rescue Ben. Mark gets in Grant's car to help him, and they find Ben and Grant scares off the men. Grant reconciles with Phil, admitting he no longer wants the money Phil borrowed from him, and Phil tells Grant that Mark is his son. Courtney is angry with Grant when he stops her kissing Mark. Grant confronts Ian about keeping the secret for so long and punches him after Ian insults his parenting skills. Sharon tells him the reasons Michelle did not want him involved and Grant agrees that Mark would be better off not knowing, but Jane convinces Grant otherwise, so Grant offers to take Mark for a drink. After a heart to heart, Grant realizes that Mark would be better off not knowing and decides to return to Portugal after seeing Phil. Phil gives him money, and he reunites with Courtney and the pair return to Portugal. Mark also works out who Grant is, but Sharon convinces him he is better off with his adoptive father – Tim.

In the latter part of 1989 EastEnders executive producer Michael Ferguson, had taken over from Mike Gibbon. Ferguson had previously been a producer on ITV's The Bill — a hard-hitting and successful police drama, which seemed to be challenging EastEnders in providing a realistic vision of modern life in London. Due to his success on The Bill, Peter Cregeen, the Head of Series at the BBC, poached Ferguson to become executive producer of EastEnders.[4]

Following a relatively unsuccessful inclination towards comedic storylines throughout 1989, Ferguson decided to take the soap in a new direction in 1990. Big changes were implemented both off-screen and on-screen.[4] Ferguson altered the way the episodes were produced, changed the way the storylines were conceptualised and introduced a far greater amount of location work than had previously been seen. EastEnders scriptwriter Colin Brake has said that it was a challenging period, but "the results on-screen were a programme with a new sense of vitality, and a programme more in touch with the real world than it had been for a while".[4]

As a consequence of these changes, a large number of characters, including Marge Green (Pat Coombs), Julie Cooper (Louise Plowright), Trevor Short (Phil McDermott) and Paul Priestly (Mark Thrippleton), were axed in early 1990 as the new production machine cleared way for a new direction and new characters.[4] Two major new characters, the Mitchell brothers, made their first appearance in February 1990. Ferguson wanted to introduce a couple of young men who would bring an air of danger, characters who would be "unpredictable" and "bursting with energy". Phil and Grant Mitchell went on to become major long-term characters, rooted firmly at the heart of the series.[4]

Grant as he appeared in 1994.

To cast Phil and Grant Mitchell many actors were screen-tested together. This was done to assure that the chosen actors — who would work predominantly alongside each other — had a strong rapport and physical resemblance. Producer Corinne Hollingworth has commented: "There were some good actors we had to turn down because we couldn't find the 'right' brother". Ross Kemp was chosen to play Grant. Kemp was an actor with a stocky, muscular build and shaven hair, making him an ideal choice to play one of Walford's latest "tough-men".[5] Steve McFadden was given the role of Phil. Both actors worked well and convincingly together and both shared similar physical characteristics, such as short cropped hair and a "round, open face" — facial characteristics also shared by Danniella Westbrook, who was chosen to play their sister Samantha partly because of this (Westbrook was later recast, with Kim Medcalf taking over).[5]

Of the two brothers Grant was the more volatile, but both had a sense of physical danger about them, and both displayed stereotypical masculinity, thuggish behaviour and a tendency to resolve problems through violence. Grant was originally depicted as the more spontaneous of the Mitchell double-act, suffering from a lack of self-control, often incapable of restraining himself and requiring his elder brother to do it for him.[5] Despite the brothers' closeness, rivalry between them was sometimes evident. It was later revealed that Grant's terrible temper was due to post-traumatic stress disorder, caused by nightmares and scarring memories of his combat in the Falklands War.

Grant often displayed laddish, thrill-seeking behaviour; drinking, chasing women, clubbing, gambling and living off of his wits.[5] He became restless easily and actively sought the thrill of danger in order to regain excitement in his life, which led to his participation in numerous crimes, fights and affairs. Grant showed impulsive behaviour, a disregard for social rules and an indifference to the feelings of others, particularly the women in his life. He was often portrayed as arrogant and egotistical, with an inflated opinion of his own importance. Because of this, he rarely admitted to being at fault or backed down from an argument. While the character mellowed in his later years, such behaviour was still apparent. However he is not completely without showing rare signs of compassion. An example of this was that he was one of the few people who offered support to Mark Fowler when he was isolated by the rest of Albert Square (led ironically by Grant's mother, Peggy), because of his HIV illness. Another was that he went to console Nigel Bates after his wife, Debbie, was killed by in a road accident.

Grant took great pride in being a Mitchell, his late father had a local reputation as a boxer.[5] He always strived to live up to the family name and enjoyed the reputation he inherited and maintained.[5] While Grant liked to think of himself as indestructible, he at many times showed emotional vulnerability and a need to be mothered.[6] Indeed, at times he was just as likely to burst into tears as he was to throw a punch.[7] Because of this, he attracted many women, despite the fact that he often treated them as possessions, disregarding their feelings and eliciting exaggerated revenge should they cross him (resulting in spousal abuse and the destruction of all three of his marriages).[8] His quick temper was off-set by a period of genuine remorse and promises that he would change. However, more often than not, Grant reverted to form and when placed under pressure he seemed incapable of controlling his aggression, disregarding all consequences.[9]

One of the most notable and popular early storylines involving Grant was a love triangle between him, his brother and his wife Sharon (played by Letitia Dean). Despite the fact that Sharon married Grant initially, EastEnders writer Tony Jordan has revealed in The Mitchells – The Full Story that the love-triangle storyline had been planned since Phil and Grant's introduction, after the writers came to the realisation that Sharon was perfect for them both.[11] This storyline was slow burning and was spread over several years, providing a plethora of dramatic tension along the way. The episode in which Phil betrayed his brother with Sharon occurred in September 1992 in one of the soap's notorious three-handers. Sue Dunderdale directed the episodes and the performances of McFadden, Kemp and Dean have been described as memorable and filled with high-tension drama.[4] Things finally came to a head in 1994 with some of EastEnders' most popular and renowned episodes, which have been dubbed "Sharongate".[12] The episodes — which were watched by 25.3 million viewers[13] — centred around Grant's discovery of the affair and his startling reaction. The repercussions of Phil's betrayal contributed to many subsequent storylines involving the brothers throughout the 1990s. Writer of Sharongate, Tony Jordan, has stated that of all the storylines he has penned for the soap, Sharongate is the one he is most proud of. He comments "Three of the strongest characters that have ever been in EastEnders are the Mitchell brothers and Sharon... when we actually blew that story it was incredible... being able to reach that many people with your work is what makes EastEnders exciting."[14] Sharongate has also proven a popular storyline with viewers and it was voted the sixth top soap opera moment of the decade in a poll of 17,000 people for What's On TV magazine.[15]

From 1996 to 1998 viewers were gripped by Grant's combustible marriage to Tiffany Raymond (played by Martine McCutcheon). Their relationship was a typical portrayal of unrequited love on Tiffany's side and was fraught with tragedy and drama. For Grant it was more a marriage of convenience, allowing him access to his daughter, Courtney. Grant's poor treatment of Tiffany included physical and emotional abuse and two affairs, one of which was with her mother Louise (played by Carol Harrison) and the other with Lorraine Wicks (played by Jacqueline Leonard). Their volatile relationship made headlines in July 1997 amid reports that EastEnders bosses were considering airing a highly controversial storyline that saw Tiffany brutally raped by Grant. The plot, which was slated to be aired on Christmas Day 1997, evoked high criticism from female MPs and children's groups, TV clean-up campaigners and church officials, who were all expressive in unanimous condemnation about the BBC's "cynical ploy to win the seasonal ratings war over arch-rival Coronation Street." Labour MP Anne Clywd suggested that the BBC should "reconsider" and Michelle Elliott, director of the children's charity Kidscape, said: "This is an appalling, outrageous, utterly nauseous example of rape for ratings." Reports also alleged that actor Ross Kemp was not happy about the plot either and threatened to quit the role unless the scripts were altered. Subsequently, the plot never came to fruition.[16]

The following year EastEnders topped the ratings at Christmas 1998 when Grant was accused of the attempted murder of Tiffany, and the following Monday 15.7 million viewers tuned in to see Grant make a first court appearance.[17] The year finally culminated with the death of Tiffany — killed in a motor accident, while trying to reclaim her daughter from Grant. 22 million viewers tuned in to see Grant and Tiffany's final clash on New Year's Eve 1998.[18]

On 24 March 1999, it was reported that Kemp had decided to leave EastEnders after almost ten years of playing Grant. The storyline signifying his departure played heavily on the Mitchell brothers' fragile and damaged relationship. After discovering that Grant vengefully had sex with his wife Kathy Mitchell, Phil went ballistic with a handgun causing the car Grant was driving to career at high speed into the River Thames. The episode was written by Tony Jordan, directed by Paul Annett and was watched by 19.5 million viewers.[19] Shot in London's Docklands, the scenes required stunt doubles, divers and crash test dummies and it has been hailed as "one of the soap's most dramatic storylines ever."[20]

Initially viewers were left uncertain as to whether Grant survived the crash, but the character was not killed off and a week later viewers saw Grant depart along with his daughter Courtney for a new life in Rio, Brazil. A spokesperson from the BBC confirmed, "the door is always open for a return."[21]

After nearly six years away, Kemp was lured back to EastEnders for a fixed period in order to reunite the Mitchell family on-screen. Executive producer, Kate Harwood, commented: "We are so pleased that Ross will be back on the show. His character is one of the most iconic and popular in the history of soap. The impact of his return for the inhabitants of Walford should not be underestimated. It is going to be fireworks from the start."[22]

Grant’s high-profile return, which aired in October 2005, proved to be a ratings success. The first two episodes drew respective audiences of 13.15 million (52.9%) and 12.8 million (55.2%) in the overnight ratings alone, consolidating to 13.34 and 13.21 million viewers, respectively.[23] Although he only featured in the show for a period of three weeks initially, his contract was subsequently extended for a further three months, beginning in the spring of 2006. The character was involved in numerous storylines, including the unveiling of Den Watts’ killer; an affair with Ian Beale’s (Adam Woodyatt) girlfriend, Jane Collins; and a week’s worth of episodes dubbed “Get Johnny Week,” which saw the Mitchell brothers embroiled in a vendetta against gangland boss Johnny Allen. Soon afterwards, Kemp departed the role again on 9 June 2006.

In 2011, Kemp told Radio Times that he has no plans to return to EastEnders: "I enjoy the fact that I've far more control over my destiny than I ever had when acting. I didn't even watch the soaps when I was in them because it's like a coal miner coming home and staring at the coal scuttle—I was never a great lover of watching myself act."[24]

On 18 January 2016, it was announced that Kemp had agreed to reprise his role for a few episodes.[25] His return coincided with Windsor's final appearance as Grant's mother Peggy. Grant was also reunited with Phil, Sharon and Kathy.[25] Of his return, Kemp commented, "When I was approached about returning to EastEnders for Barbara's final episodes, it was something I could not turn down. Barbara is a very close friend so when I learned of the storyline, it felt right that the Mitchell brothers are reunited with their mother for the last time. I am really looking forward to going back to EastEnders and filming what are set to be some classic EastEnders episodes."[25] Kemp returned to filming on 6 April 2016.[26] Later, it was announced that Kemp would film a further three weeks,[27] and he resumed filming on 6 June 2016[28] and finished on 26 June 2016.[29]