A former star of The Bill has been cast in a new guest role in EastEnders.

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The BBC One soap has cast Iain Fletcher in the role of Walford councillor Mr Barker in upcoming episodes, starting next week.

Fletcher is best known for his role as DC Rod Skase in ITV continuing drama The Bill, which he starred in from 1994 to 2000.

Since then, the actor has appeared on stage and screen, including roles in Band of Brothers, Waterloo Road, Casualty, and the West End stage show Mamma Mia.

Next week, Martin Fowler (James Bye) will continue to lead the fight to prevent the Bridge Street market from being closed, being supported by ex-wife Stacey Slater (Lacey Turner) and his other ex-wife and current girlfriend Ruby Allen (Louisa Lytton).

When Martin arranges a meeting with Councillor Barker next week, he is stressed when it is brought forward and Ruby steps in to help him out at the last minute.

As the meeting in the community centre gets underway, the tensions rise to the surface when Ruby begins to argue with Mr Barker.

Iain Fletcher as Mr Barker stands in a suit in front of a board with designs on in the Walford Community Centre in a scene from EastEnders.
Mr Barker (Iain Fletcher) leads the meeting on the council's development plans for Bridge Street. BBC/Jack Barnes/Kieron McCarron

Following the meeting, however, Ruby will try a different approach to quell the problems caused by Councillor Barker after she has a run-in with him at the Minute Mart.

As the week comes to a close, Ruby carries out her ambitious plan with Councillor Barker, but will she pull it off or could it make the situation a whole lot worse?

Ruby’s efforts come as it’s clear that she remains insecure about the close bond between Martin and her love rival Stacey, despite Ruby bonding with Martin over their recovering young son Roman.

It’s clear that Ruby is going all out to impress Martin but will her actions win his heart as the love triangle continues?

Louisa Lytton as Ruby Allen speaks with Iain Fletcher as Mr Barker in Kathy's Cafe in EastEnders.
Will Ruby Allen (Louisa Lytton, right) get what she wants out of Councillor Barker? BBC/Jack Barnes/Kieron McCarron

Speaking of love triangles, the soap has also revealed that fans will get to decide on the resolution to the romantic predicament facing Denise Fox (Diane Parish).

As part of the soap’s 40th anniversary in February, viewers will decide in an interactive vote whether Denise will reunited with ex-husband Jack Branning (Scott Maslen) or choose her messy affair with her daughter’s ex-boyfriend Ravi Gulati (Aaron Chiara).

We wonder how this one will go down with fans…

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EastEnders airs Monday to Thursday at 7:30pm on BBC One and from 6am on BBC iPlayer.

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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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