Who was Terry Bates in EastEnders? Jay Brown's tragic past explained
A reminder of the undertaker's darkest hour
There's an upsetting blast from the past in store for EastEnders' Jay Brown (Jamie Borthwick) when he's asked to arrange the funeral of local gangster Terry Bates - the man responsible for his dad's death.
Cokers' funeral parlour receives the request on Tuesday (22nd October) that leaves Jay shaken, but the undertaker's history with the dead hard man stretches back over a decade, so here's a handy reminder of what went down with Mr Brown.
When was Terry Bates in EastEnders?
Viewers first met the terrifying head honcho of a violent gang of football hooligans back in October 2007. Jase Dyer had been taken in by Terry's firm as a delinquent teenager, but turned his back on him in order to go straight and try and be a proper father to estranged young son Jay, who he had neglected for much of his life. Toxic Tel did not react well to Jase attempting to clean up his act and refused to let him go - with terrible consequences.
How was he responsible for killing Jay Brown's dad?
Terry sent his thugs to the Queen Vic to track down Jase and a dramatic siege ensued, with pregnant Honey Mitchell almost coming a cropper as she went into labour with second child William. Jase realised cutting loose from the firm would not be easy and was forced to continue doing dodgy jobs for his old guv'nor, with Billy Mitchell as his sidekick.
Discovering Jase had betrayed him by stealing money, in August 2008 vengeful Terry kidnapped Jay. Luring Jase into a trap as he held his son hostage at their flat, Jay managed to escape but scaredy-cat Billy hid in the bathroom while Mr Dyer got beaten and stabbed to death by Terry and his cronies, who were later arrested as armed police swooped onto the Square.
Jase died in hospital from his injuries, leaving teenager Jay orphaned and unofficially adopted into the Mitchell clan.
When did Terry Bates make his last appearance?
Justice was served in May 2009 when Terry stood trial for his violent crime and was found guilty, eventually sentenced to life behind bars. Losing Jase has understandably haunted Jay ever since - and probably any viewer who remembers watching the brutal beating scene, which remains one of the most shocking and graphic scenes ever seen on EastEnders.
No wonder Jay wants revenge - but after agreeing to keep it professional and conduct the memorial, he privately warns Terry's corpse he is going to make sure the world knows what kind of a man he was… What has Jay got in mind? And will it bring closure or just make things worse?
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