EastEnders boss reveals "slippery slope" for Jay Brown after Lola's death

Spending nights away from home has caused Ben Mitchell (Max Bowden) and Callum Highway (Tony Clay) to wonder just where Jay is venturing to in the evenings, and has also put his duties as parental guardian of Lexi (Isabella Brown) under the microscope.

Well, according to EastEnders boss Chris Clenshaw, things are only set to get more disastrous for Jay as we get closer to the end of the year.

Speaking to Inside Soap about upcoming storylines, Clenshaw was asked if this is the beginning of a tricky time for the character.

He said: "Yes, it is. I think people may have been expecting Ben to struggle more, whereas I think Jay was holding it together relatively well in the immediate aftermath of Lola's death. However, now that things have settled, Jay is the one who is finding it more difficult.

"We've seen him head down a slippery slope in the past; he's dabbled in drugs. He has a good friendship with Gina and maybe they have some common ground, but we are going to see Jay take a slippery slope that is really tragic and sad."

In last night's (Monday 9th October) episode, viewers were stunned to see Jay ask Nadine (Jazzy Phoenix) for ketamine, after she initially told him she takes it to chill out.

He said it would be a one-off, but we know that the episodes this week will include Jay going back to Nadine's for more drugs, later being discovered by Callum - who threatens to tell Ben about it.

While Jay's ways of coping with the loss of Lola have been confusing for many, for the most part he had just been paying Nadine to spend time with him and sleep by his side during a difficult period.

However, now that things have taken a slightly more sinister turn, how will this unfold for Jay?

We know that Ben and Callum are getting increasingly worried about how this will impact Jay's care of Lexi, but will this lead him down an even more destructive path?

We'll just have to wait and see if Jay gets the help that he needs during this particularly tumultuous time.

Read more:

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• EastEnders airs violent callback to iconic Little Mo Slater moment for son Freddie
• Danny Dyer candidly explains EastEnders exit: "I'd f**king had enough"

EastEnders airs Mondays to Thursdays at 7:30pm on BBC One and from 6am on BBC iPlayer. Visit our dedicated EastEnders page for all the latest news, interviews and spoilers. If you're looking for more to watch, check out our TV Guide and Streaming Guide.

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