EastEnders airs heartbreaking split as secrets exposed in early BBC iPlayer release

The BBC One soap has seen Kathy struggle in the aftermath of the fire that destroyed her cafe and left grandsons Peter (Thomas Law) and Bobby Beale (Clay Milner Russell) fighting for their lives.

Narrowly avoiding legal issues for the fire herself, Kathy had no idea that partner Tom "Rocky" Cotton (Brian Conley) was responsible for the fire in a bid to claim the insurance money and pay off Nish Panesar (Navin Chowdhry) who he took a loan from to pay off gambling and blackmail debts.

Nish agreed to keep these secrets for Rocky on the condition that he persuaded Kathy to sell the cafe to him.

On Monday, Kathy is persuaded to sell to Nish and she does so, with Nish then revealing that he hopes to build flats on the site of the cafe.

Following this exchange, Nish plants a seed of doubt in Kathy by addressing the prospect of an insurance scam and sarcastically praising Rocky as an honourable man.

Later, Kathy tracks down Rocky's estranged friend Harvey Monroe (Ross Boatman) and questions him about his fallout with her partner.

Harvey directed Kathy to speak to Rocky but she would not budge - so Harvey confessed Rocky's gambling habit, the debt with Nish, and the arson in an insurance scam.

Following this, a furious Kathy confronted Rocky at home and demanded the truth before smashing plates in the kitchen.

Rocky confessed his actions and Kathy furiously accused him of endless lies and cowardice.

The rest of the Beale family - including Peter and Bobby, plus Kathy's son Ian Beale (Adam Woodyatt) and his first wife Cindy Beale (Michelle Collins).

Despite Rocky begging Kathy to not end their relationship, she orders him to leave and ends their 'marriage', telling him she never wants to see him again.

Outside on Bridge Street, Rocky stood destitute and alone outside the burned-out cafe.

Back in the Beale house, Ian and Cindy want revenge and legal action against Rocky, but Kathy asks her family to just leave her alone.

Once on her own, Kathy threw hers and Rocky's wedding photo and broke down in tears.

Is this really the end of the road for Kathy and Rocky?

Read More:

• EastEnders cast: Who is joining, leaving and returning to the soap?
• EastEnders spoilers: Sharon and Keanu wedding first look photos
• BBC responds to complaints over EastEnders’ Linda Carter story
• EastEnders airs multiple surprise exits in early BBC iPlayer release

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