Ruth Lyons (EastEnders)

The following is a list of characters that first appeared in the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'' in 1985, by order of first appearance. They were all introduced by executive producer Julia Smith. The first episode of ''EastEnders'' was broadcast on 19 February 1985, and twenty-three main characters were already created for their first appearance. The first character to be seen was Den Watts, followed by Ali Osman and then Arthur Fowler, all of whom find Reg Cox dying in his flat. Ethel Skinner, Harold Legg and Pauline Fowler appear, after Den alerts them of Reg's death. With Ethel is her pug Willy along with Lou Beale. Saeed and Naima Jeffery are seen working in the local shop whilst Angie Watts is seen in The Queen Victoria, Walford's local pub. Nick Cotton and Sue Osman are next seen, whilst Pete and Kathy Beale work at the fruit and veg stall and Hassan Osman is seen with his parents in the café. Sharon Watts, Ian Beale and Michelle Fowler are next seen and Mark Fowler is seen going into the bookies. Lastly, Roly the dog is seen in the pub when a fight breaks out.

Lofty Holloway is introduced on 26 February along with Terry Rich, and Tony Carpenter is introduced on 28 February. Mary Smith and her daughter Annie are introduced on 5 March. Tony's son Kelvin is introduced on 12 March. Andy O'Brien is introduced on 21 March along with Debbie Wilkins. Chris Smith was introduced on 7 May and Mehmet Osman was introduced on 13 June as a recurring character. Hannah Carpenter arrived on 25 June as Tony's wife and Dot Cotton was introduced on 4 July followed by Ernie Mears on 16 July. Detective Sergeant Roy Quick was introduced on 20 August as Walford's detective. Martin Fowler was born on 30 July and Simon Wicks arrived on 5 October. Lastly, the wife of Mehmet, Guizin Osman arrived on 22 October, and Cassie Carpenter arrived as the daughter of Hannah and Tony.

Den Watts

Den Watts, played by actor Leslie Grantham, is the original landlord of The Queen Victoria. He became well known for his tabloid nickname, "Dirty Den". He is perhaps best remembered for his stormy love-hate relationship with his alcoholic first wife Angie (Anita Dobson), as well as his devoted interaction with their adopted daughter Sharon (Letitia Dean). After nearly 20 years of marriage, he hands divorce papers to Angie in the 1986 Christmas Day episode that was watched by a record-breaking 30.15 million viewers, more than half of the UK population at the time. The character soon departed from the show after getting involved with his local's criminal organization, The Firm – which sparked the events of an attempt on Den's life. For 14 years, it was believed that he had been killed, but he returns to Walford in September 2003. Seventeen months later, his character is killed off again – this time for good – at the hands of his manipulative second wife Chrissie (Tracy-Ann Oberman), on the show's 20th anniversary episode that was watched by over of the UK population at the time. Den was described by ''EastEnders'' executive producer Louise Berridge as being arguably one of the most iconic characters ever portrayed in a soap opera.

Ali Osman

Ali Osman, played by Nejdet Salih, is a happy-go-lucky, easy-going chap, in stark contrast to his highly strung wife, Sue ( Sandy Ratcliff). He has a compulsive addiction to gambling, which gets him into trouble on more than one occasion and his marriage ends in disaster after he has his wife sectioned. He is a member of the original ''EastEnders'' cast, appearing in the first episode on 19 February 1985, and remains with the show for nearly five years afterwards, making his final appearance on 10 October 1989. Ali Osman was one of the original twenty-three characters invented by the creators of ''EastEnders'', Tony Holland and Julia Smith. Ali, a Turkish Cypriot, was originally intended to be named Chris. His name was changed to Ali when it dawned on Holland that he had given a Christian name to a Muslim. Ali was a well-intentioned attempt to represent the proportion of Turkish Cypriots who had immigrated to England and settled in the East End of London. Holland and Smith knew that for the soap to succeed there needed to be a varied group of characters, so that several different sections of the audience had someone to identify with.

Arthur Fowler

Arthur Fowler, played by Bill Treacher, is the father of the Fowler family. Arthur is essentially a good man, but makes some foolish choices and always ends up paying dearly for them. Bossed to the brink of insanity by his wife Pauline (Wendy Richard) and mother-in-law Lou Beale (Anna Wing), Arthur falls into the arms of another woman. During his time in Albert Square he suffers with a mental disorder, is sent to prison twice and eventually dies of a brain haemorrhage in 1996. Arthur Fowler was one of the original twenty-three characters invented by the creators of ''EastEnders'', Tony Holland and Julia Smith. Arthur is a member of the first family of ''EastEnders'', the Beales and Fowlers, and Holland took the inspiration for some of the series' earliest characters from his own London family and background. Arthur's original character outline as written by Smith and Holland appeared in an abridged form in their book, '' EastEnders: The Inside Story''.

Reg Cox

Reg Cox, played by Johnnie Clayton, is a resident of Albert Square. The first episode of ''EastEnders'' on 19 February 1985 centres upon pensioner Reg's death. According to scriptwriter Colin Brake, the creators of ''EastEnders'', Tony Holland and Julia Smith, wanted to start the serial "with a bang, throwing the audience into the middle of life in he fictional setting ofWalford". The Reg Cox storyline was deemed as a good starting point, allowing various members of the community to be involved with or comment on the circumstances of the old man's murder.

In the first ever scene of the programme, the characters of Den Watts (Leslie Grantham), Arthur Fowler (Bill Treacher), and Ali Osman (Nejdet Salih) are shown breaking down the door of Reg's flat. In Holland and Smith's book, ''The Inside Story'', the authors have outlined their original interpretation of the scene: " 'EastEnders''starts with a bang, as a size ten boot kicks down the door that's locked from the inside. The tiny, dirty and foul-smelling council-flat behind the battered door belongs to Reg Cox (known locally as "the-old-boy", and a cantankerous bastard at the best of times) who hasn't been seen around [Albert Square] for days.... Once the door's down, three men rush into the gloomy main-room.... They find the old boy sitting in his favourite armchair beside the gas fire (which isn't on) – and he's very nearly dead.... By the end of the episode the old boy will have been removed from the square and taken to Intensive Care, and the entire community will be rife with gossip, which spreads round the houses like the plague. Via the gossip we're able to piece together the events leading up to the discovery of Reg."

Reg lived alone at 23b Albert Square. On the morning of 19 February 1985, Naima Jeffery ( Shreela Ghosh), who runs the shop on Bridge Street, becomes concerned about Reg after he has failed to make his daily milk purchase for the past three days, and her husband, Saeed Jeffery (Andrew Johnson), mentions this to Den Watts (Leslie Grantham), publican of the pub next door. Den and Arthur Fowler (Bill Treacher) rouse Ali Osman (Nejdet Salih), who lives downstairs from Reg, to let them into the house and the three of them kick in the door to Reg's room when he fails to answer their knocking. Den speaks the opening lines of the first episode, "Stinks in here, dunnit?", followed by the discovery of an unconscious Reg slumped in his armchair in the lounge of his neglected flat. Den runs to get the local doctor, Harold Legg (Leonard Fenton ( John Altman) was behind the beating when he was attempting to steal Reg's war medals.

Reg, who was 59 years old when he died, was not a popular figure in Albert Square. He is referred to as a 'cantankerous old man' by Arthur, called a 'miserable so and so' by Ethel Skinner (Gretchen Franklin) and a 'nasty old man' by his downstairs neighbour, Sue Osman ( Sandy Ratcliff). However, despite this, Lou Beale (Anna Wing) causes havoc around the Square, accusing Sue of neglect for allowing him to lie dying in his flat for days, without checking up on him. The character also appears in the Christmas special "CivvyStreet", set during the Second World War, shown on 22 December 1988.

In 2014, Reg's murderer, Nick, uses the name 'Reg Cox' as an alias after faking his own death. In 2015, Nick dies in the same place that Reg died exactly 30 years earlier, after admitting to his mother, Dot Branning (June Brown), that he killed Reg.

Ethel Skinner

Ethel Skinner played by Gretchen Franklin, is an elderly resident of Walford. An ''EastEnders'' original character, Ethel came in the soap's early years often found wandering the square with her adored pug Willy. She and Dot Cotton (June Brown) are lifelong friends, and although they wind each other up they are dependent on each other. In fact Ethel trusts Dot so much that she even asks her to help her die in 2000, after she is diagnosed with inoperable cancer. Ethel's original character outline states that she was born in 1920. However, during the series this was altered to 1916 and for many years her birthday fell on 19 February. When Ethel comes back to Walford to die in 2000, she reveals to Dot that she had lied about her age for many years.

Ethel, like Reg Cox, also features in the 1988 "CivvyStreet" special, in which the character is played by Alison Bettles.

Pauline Fowler

Pauline Fowler played by Wendy Richard between 1985 and 2006 is the wife of Arthur Fowler (Bill Treacher). Pauline was created by scriptwriter Tony Holland and producer Julia Smith as one of ''EastEnders'' original characters. She makes her debut in the soap's first episode on 19 February 1985, and remains for twenty-one years and ten months, making her the second longest-running original character, surpassed only by Ian Beale (Adam Woodyatt). Pauline was a staple in the UK press during her time in ''EastEnders'', representative of the symbiosis between Britain's soaps and tabloid newspapers. Widely read tabloids, such as ''The Sun'' and ''Daily Mirror'', would routinely publish articles about forthcoming developments in Pauline's storylines. Critical opinion on the character differs. She has been described as a "legend" and a television icon, but was also voted the 35th-"most annoying person of 2006" (being the only fictional character to appear on the list). The character is well known even outside the show's viewer-base, and away from the on-screen serial, Pauline has been the subject of television documentaries, behind-the-scenes books, tie-in novels and comedy sketch shows.

Harold Legg

Dr. Harold Legg, played by Leonard Fenton's original GP. He is widely trusted within the community, and is always on hand to dish out advice. Dr Legg appears as a regular character between 1985 and 1989, but continues to appear in a recurring role until 1997. He was officially retired in 1999 by executive producer Matthew Robinson, though he has made cameos since this time in 2000, 2004 and 2007 and returned one final time in late 2018, before the character was killed off in early 2019. Dr. Harold Legg is one of the original twenty-three characters invented by the creators of ''EastEnders'', Tony Holland and Julia Smith. Dr. Legg is an attempt to represent the successive wave of Jewish immigrants that had settled in the East End of London between 1881 and 1914 in order avoid the persecution that they were being subjected to in Europe. The second generation of East End-born Jews (as Dr. Legg was meant to represent) prospered in the area until the 1930s when Oswald Mosley's British Union of Fascists was formed, and used violence to instil fear in the Jewish population.East End Jews
", BBC. Retrieved 23 September 2006. As the Jewish community grew wealthier, many moved out of the East End to more affluent areas of London, just as the character of Dr. Legg had done on-screen when the show began; living in Islington, but commuting to his practice in Walford.

Saeed Jeffery

Saeed Jeffery, played by Andrew Johnson, is the original owner of the First til Last grocery store. He is never truly accepted in Walford, and his arranged marriage ends in divorce after it is discovered that he had been making obscene phone calls to women. He leaves Walford in disgrace, leaving his business to his wife. Saeed Jeffery is one of the original twenty-three characters invented by the creators of ''EastEnders'', Tony Holland and Julia Smith. Saeed and his wife Naima ( Shreela Ghosh) are the first Asian characters to appear in the soap. Black and Asian characters were two ethnic minorities that had previously been under-represented in British soap before ''EastEnders'' aired. Holland and Smith knew that for the soap to succeed there needed to be a varied group of characters, so that several different sections of the audience had someone to identify with.

Pete Beale

Pete Beale, played by Peter Dean, makes his first appearance in the programme's first episode, on 19 February 1985. The character was created by Tony Holland, one of the creators of ''EasEnders''; he was based on a member of Holland's family. Pete features in the soap for eight years as the local fruit and veg trader of Albert Square; he is a member of the original focal clan in the serial, the Beales and Fowlers. Pete is portrayed as a macho and somewhat insensitive individual who struggles to cope with emotion. Pete was axed from the soap in 1993 and departed in May that year after over eight years on-screen. The character was killed off-screen later that year following Peter Dean's public criticism of the BBC.

Lou Beale

Lou Beale played by Anna Wing, is the matriarch of the Beale family. Lou Beale was the first ''EastEnders'' character to be created by series co-creator Tony Holland, taking the inspiration for some of the series' earliest characters from his own London family and background. Lou is the archetypal East End matriarch throughout ''EastEnders'' first three years. An intimidating force within the local community, she is the dowager of Albert Square's central family, the Beales and Fowlers. Never afraid to speak her mind, and woe betide anyone who manages to get on her wrong side, Lou has the respect of her friends and family, even if they do find her a bit of a nuisance at times. Born in the East End, Lou lived in Walford all her life. Albert and Lou came to their house on the corner of Albert Square, number forty-five, on getting married during the 1930s. Lou remained in the house throughout the Second World War and brought up her children there. Her affinity and ties with the area mean that she tends to view Albert Square as her own and that gives her an excuse to intrude into people's business as she sees fit.

The character is played by Karen Meagher in the 1988 ''EastEnders'' special, "CivvyStreet", set during the Second World War.

Naima Jeffery

Naima Jeffery, played by Shreela Ghosh, is the wife of Saeed Jeffery (Andrew Johnson). Naima tries to embrace Western culture, but this is not easy since her family constantly try to force her to adhere to their ancient customs. Sick of being forced to live in an arranged marriage with a husband she loathes, Naima makes a stand and shames her family by filing for a divorce. Naima Jeffery is one of the original twenty-three characters invented by the creators of ''EastEnders'', Tony Holland and Julia Smith. Naima and her husband are the first Asian characters to appear in the soap. Black and Asian characters were two ethnic minorities that had previously been under-represented in British soap before ''EastEnders'' aired. Holland and Smith knew that for the soap to succeed there needed to be a varied group of characters, so that several different sections of the audience had someone to identify with.

Angie Watts

Angie Watts played by Anita Dobson, appears from the first episode of the show until 1988 when the actress decided to quit and the character was written out. Angie is well known for her cheeky banter, her huge shaggy perm and turning to alcohol during her stormy marriage to cheating Den (Leslie Grantham) which ends when he hands her divorce papers on Christmas Day, in an episode watched by a record-breaking 30.1 million viewers. Despite being the loud and feisty lady of Walford, and having a close relationship with her beloved adopted daughter Sharon (Letitia Dean), she has little real happiness during her time in Albert Square and alcoholism finally claims her life in 2002 when she dies of cirrhosis of the liver. Angie Watts is one of the original twenty-three characters invented by the creators of ''EastEnders'', Tony Holland and Julia Smith. The character of Angie was originally going to be named Pearl and she, her husband and adopted daughter were to be the occupants of the soap's local pub, now famously known as The Queen Vic. Holland, who had worked as a barman in his youth, called upon his own personal experiences to invent the Watts family and the pub they lived in. Holland and Smith had always been critical of the way pubs had been portrayed on television feeling they lacked vitality and life, so they were determined that their pub and occupants were going to be more 'real'. The Watts were seen by Holland as integral to the show's success, partly because he had already guessed that the pub was going to be a monstrous battleground where emotions would run high on a regular basis, and also because the occupants would be providing the majority of the drama.

Willy

Willy is a Pug, who appears in the first episode of the programme and remained in the show until 1992. Willy was cast less than a week before the filming of ''EastEnders'' began. From the beginning it was decided that the pensioner Ethel Skinner (Gretchen Franklin) was to have a Yorkshire Terrier named Willy (after her dead husband). The company Janimals, who specialised in providing and training animals for television and films, was contacted by ''EastEnders'' co-creator/producer Julia Smith, and informed her that they could provide an experienced pug for the part (he had previously starred in an adaptation of ''Swallows and Amazons''). The dog was brought to the studio to meet Gretchen Franklin, the actress who played Ethel. She took a shine to him straight away and so the pug was cast as Willy. Willy and Roly the poodle shared a dressing room at Elstree Studios.

Roly

Roly is an apricot-coloured Standard Poodle, who appears in the first episode of the programme and remains in the show until 1993. Roly was cast less than a week before the filming of ''EastEnders'' began. From the beginning it was decided that the occupants of The Queen Victoria pub, Den, Angie and Sharon Watts, were to have an Alsatian named Prince. However, finding an Alsatian that was light enough in colour not to merge into the background of the set proved to be difficult. Eventually, the co-creator/producer of the show, Julia Smith, was contacted by a company named Janimals, who specialised in providing and training animals for television and films. They had found a seven-month-old Poodle, called Roly, who might still be young enough to be trained. Training was said to take three weeks, and as the Poodle was a similar size to an Alsatian, Roly got the part. Roly was made the property of the BBC, given an ID card, and taken to live with Julia Smith at her home in London. Roly and Willy the pug shared a dressing room at Elstree studios.

Tracey

Tracey (known to fans as Tracey the barmaid) is played by Jane Slaughter. She has appeared as a background character since the first episode on 19 February 1985, when she was seen working on the flower stall in Bridge Street Market. Slaughter was not credited in the role until episode 126 (1 May 1986), which was the first episode in which she spoke. She is the longest-serving character and cast member in the show as Slaughter has been part of the show from the beginning without taking any breaks. She is also the longest-serving female member of the cast in terms of continuous appearances, as other original female cast members who are still in the cast have taken long-term breaks from the show.

Nick Cotton

Nick Cotton, played by John Altman, is a recurring character who appears in the soap's debut episode in February 1985, through to his last appearance, in which he dies, in 2015. Nick is the son of characters Charlie (Christopher Hancock) and Dot Cotton (June Brown), and the father of Charlie Cotton, Ashley, and Dotty Cotton (Molly Conlin). His storylines saw him twice committed murder of Reg Cox and Eddie Royle respectively, succumb to a heroin addiction, and attempt to poison his own mother, causing the death of his son Ashley amongst numerous other misdemeanors. Nick is also the subject of a special spin-off episode, '' The Return of Nick Cotton'', which aired in October 2000. He has been voted one of television's all-time most villainous characters in a Channel 4 poll. He is seen as the show's original villain. Nick dies of a heroin overdose on 13 February 2015 in the house in which he killed Reg Cox 30 years earlier.

Sue Osman

Sue Osman, played by Sandy Ratcliff, is the wife of Ali Osman (Nejdet Salih). Sue is one of the serial's original characters, appearing in its first episode on 19 February 1985 and departing on-screen in May 1989. Created by Tony Holland and Julia Smith, Sue is portrayed as argumentative, insecure and tragic. A pivotal storyline in the character's narrative is the cot-death of her son, which is one of the show's first controversial plots. During her four years on-screen, the character contends with a phantom pregnancy, marital breakdown and finally insanity.

Kathy Beale

Kathy Beale (also Mitchell, Sullivan and Cotton), played by Gillian Taylforth between 1985 and 2000, and then from 2015 onwards, is the mother of Ian Beale (Adam Woodyatt). Though it was never used on screen, in 2010 the BBC website named the character as Kathy Sullivan due to a marriage after she left the show in 2000. Kathy Beale is one of the serial's original characters, appearing in the first episode of ''EastEnders'' on 19 February 1985. One of the longest-running original characters, Kathy remains in a prominent role, covering issues such as rape and domestic violence until April 1998, when Taylforth quit. A year later, in 1999, Taylforth returned for a temporary stint to aid the departure of actor Ross Kemp who played her brother-in-law Grant Mitchell, and later in December 1999 for the wedding of her screen son Ian. She made her final appearance in January 2000. Despite various rumours of a possible return for Kathy in the press, this did not occur and the character was supposedly killed off-screen in a road accident in late February 2006 in a storyline to facilitate the return of her son Ben to his father Phil (Steve McFadden). In tribute to the character, the soap's café is named "Kathy's". Kathy returned for the 30th anniversary episode in February 2015, when it was revealed that Kathy never died in a surprise showdown with her ex-husband, Phil.

Hassan Osman

Hassan Osman, played by Michael Evangelou, is the first son of Ali Osman (Nejdet Salih) and Sue Osman ( Sandy Ratcliff), who is only a baby during his short time in ''EastEnders''. Hassan dies in his sleep on 20 June 1985; no official causes of death are given. Sue is left in a state of shock after her son's death. She remains in a trance-like state for weeks and refuses to eat, sleep, cry or acknowledge her grief. She later begins blaming herself unfairly for her son's sudden death. Her mental health continues to deteriorate and she becomes despondent towards Ali and their marriage disintegrates in a welter of depression. Sue eventually manages to come to terms with Hassan's death with the help of Harold Legg (Leonard Fenton