EastEnders airs blast from the past for Sharon Watts as secrets exposed in early BBC iPlayer release

The BBC One soap has shown Phil recovering from a mental health breakdown in recent weeks and also harbouring his undying love for ex-wife Sharon - but so far, he has not told her how he feels.

During Phil’s stay in a mental health facility, Sharon’s romance with Teddy Mitchell (Roland Manookian) imploded when he learned she had cheated on him with Phil’s brother and her first husband, Grant Mitchell (Ross Kemp).

Since then, Sharon has kept her one-off tryst with Grant a secret to protect Phil’s mental health.

In Monday’s episode (31st March 2025), Sharon continued to grieve her close friend Martin Fowler (James Bye) as she also got a Mother’s Day gift from son Albie Watts.

However, the morning was interrupted when Phil’s friend Nigel Bates (Paul Bradley) revealed his panic that Phil was nowhere to be found and soon the police were involved.

Thankfully, Phil was fine but it did highlight how worried about him Nigel and Sharon remained.

Later, Sharon demonstrated her continued love for Phil by organising a Mother’s Day visit from herself and the other mothers of Phil’s children - Denise Fox (Diane Parish) and her son Raymond Fox, and Kathy Cotton (Gillian Taylforth), his ex-wife and mother of his eldest son Ben Mitchell (Max Bowden).

Phil spent some time playing with his young sons, Albie and Raymond, before being delighted to receive a call from Ben from his prison in the US.

After catching up with Ben, Phil shared an emotional talk with Denise, who also empathised, given her own battle with psychosis last year. Denise highlighted once again how many people loved and cared about Phil, while also making clear that it was Sharon who organised this latest gesture of love with his kids.

After everyone else had left and the party was cleared away, Sharon was upset to learn that her best friend Michelle Fowler (Susan Tully, Jenna Russell) would not be coming to her brother Martin’s funeral, leading an upset Sharon to question how she would get through this without her.

Phil affirmed that he would be there for Sharon before professing his undying love for her, and the pair shared a tender kiss. Sharon also revealed that she felt the same way about Phil.

As Phil began to talk of them being together again, Sharon slowed things down, worried things were escalating too quickly given Phil’s recent release from the mental health unit.

However, Sharon then realised that it was time to come clean and she revealed her mistake - she had cheated on Teddy and slept with Grant amid her grief for Martin and near-death experience.

Phil was devastated to learn of Sharon and Grant’s revisiting of passion and felt it was a huge betrayal. Despite Sharon’s pleas and profession of love, Phil ordered her to leave.

Sharon gathered her things and left Phil’s house in tears, as Phil followed her. Outside on the street, Sharon pleaded with Phil for them to be a family again, but he responded that Sharon did not deserve a family.

A woman’s voice then shouted from behind Sharon: "Oi, leave my sister alone! I’m her family!"

Sharon turned around and emotionally exclaimed to her half-sister: "Vicki!"

As Vicki Fowler (Alice Haig) smiled at Sharon, she was also flanked by two strangers, who have already been announced by the soap to be her new partner Ross Marshall (Alex Walkinshaw) and his teenage son Joel Marshall (Max Murray).

So, what brings them to Watford? And is a future for Sharon and Phil now truly out of the question?

Read more:

• EastEnders star confirms upcoming exit scenes following dramatic return last year
• EastEnders at 40: Best ever scandals from Pat and Frank to Sharongate
• EastEnders at 40: Best ever villains from Nick Cotton to Nish Panesar
• EastEnders at 40: Best ever whodunnits – From who shot Phil to who killed Archie?

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

Visit our dedicated Soaps 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.