EastEnders star Nicholas Bailey shares heartfelt tribute after Anthony Trueman's passing

EastEnders star Nicholas Bailey has shared his thoughts on the passing of Anthony Trueman, describing the experience as a "bittersweet" moment. Fans of the BBC soap were excited to see Anthony return to Walford earlier in the year. His last appearance had been after his father Patrick Trueman suffered a stroke in 2014.

Anthony first appeared in Walford in 2000 and was involved in several key storylines. One of the most notable was his love triangle with Kat and Zoe Slater. In one of the show's more controversial plots, he cheated on Zoe, who he was engaged to, with her mother.

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Anthony initially left Albert Square in 2003 after accidentally causing the death of a pregnant patient and decided to travel. He made occasional appearances over the years. However, this changed in August when he returned permanently ahead of his father and Yolande’s wedding. Upon his arrival, Anthony was shocked to learn that Patrick had been hospitalized following an attack.

After it was revealed that Osar Branning had not intended to harm Patrick and was trying to get money to pay off some thugs, Anthony turned his attention back to Zoe. Michelle Ryan returned to the soap in September for the first time since 2005.

There were signs that things were not going well for Anthony, as it was revealed that he and his wife had a restraining order against him and he kept many photos of Zoe on his laptop. He soon discovered that he was the father of Zoe’s twins, and their daughter was the mysterious Jasmine.

Unfortunately, Christmas Day saw Anthony die under unusual circumstances. After a fight with Zoe where he hit his head, he was found dead by Kat.

Speaking about his time on EastEnders coming to an end, Nicholas said: “A Christmas storyline is a huge moment in soap, so to get that and a big Christmas Day exit was a real honour! Obviously, it was bittersweet because it meant I was leaving, and I’ve felt really at home since I came back to EastEnders. But the storyline itself is tremendous, and it gave me much more to do than I expected. It’s been great to come out of my comfort zone and play some spectacular scenes full of spectacular lines.”

He added: “I was sad things were coming to an end, but I wanted to lean into the excitement of this story being a launch pad for some incredible stuff heading into 2026. I love EastEnders and I love seeing the show thrive. So, while I’m sad to be saying goodbye to Anthony, I’m happy it means my friends are going to have some incredible stuff to play following his death.”

One thing the actor wasn’t expecting was that his character would begin showing a darker side. He noted that he “didn’t think Anthony was the father” of Zoe’s babies and that the show’s bosses “concealed it so well.”

“But it was a pleasant surprise because you always know that when there’s a big revelation like that, you are going to get some great stuff to play. My jaw hit the floor when our producer Ben Wadey told me where this was going and what was going to happen. But I think it was a masterstroke because when I look back, Anthony was always a bit like a pressure cooker, and he let things build and build before the steam escapes. This time he couldn’t keep the lid on it,” he stated.

He continued: “There are so many [moments] – my first scenes back with Rudy (Walker) and Jessie (Wallace), Patrick and Yolande’s wedding, the feud with Howie and Anthony exposing him to Kim and Patrick, and many, many more. I was over the moon to discover I’d be working with Michelle Ryan again. I didn’t know she was coming back when I was offered the job, so that was terrific because she’s a good friend and a tremendous actor.”