EastEnders star Thomas Law has teased that there is "chaos" ahead for Peter Beale and Lauren Branning amid her affair with Mark Fowler, as well as what could keep them together.
Speaking to Mirror at the Pride of Britain Awards, Thomas, who plays Peter, shared a little about what was coming up for Walford's resident Romeo and Juliet: "It's chaos, as per usual, and a lot of deceit. There's gonna be heartbreak."
Affair and a rocky marriage
In the past few weeks, Lauren (Jacqueline Jossa) has been having an affair with Mark Fowler (Stephen Aaron-Sipple). This comes after weeks of her and Peter's marriage being hot and cold. One minute, they're head over heels for each other, and the next, they're rowing and close to splitting up.
It's so on and off, some fans have wondered why they keep getting back together. Thomas has the answer: "Family is the strongest bond. Everything is deeply rooted in family with regards to the Beales."
Trauma-bonded couple
He added that Peter and Lauren are probably "trauma-bonded". The two grew up in Walford together, where trauma goes hand in hand with simply existing. Over the years, they've dealt with the death of siblings, including the murder of Peter's sister Lucy (Hetti Bywater), which Lauren's dad was wrongly accused of committing.
Thomas added that he feels Peter often does right by Lauren. He has his wobbles, like when he blamed her addictions for their son's blindness, but ultimately, he's there for her. "Peter seems to do things right for Lauren. He's got to reassess if things go wrong, but as long as he keeps Lauren, he's got to just be Peter. He makes her laugh."
Flashforward hints at future
This comes amid fan intrigue about the couple's future. Not only is Lauren having an affair, but earlier this year, EastEnders aired a flashforward to 2027 that raised some further questions about the health of Peter and Lauren's marriage.
In the flashforward, Peter and Lauren seemed to be frosty around each other, and he refused to attend her father's wedding. And yet, Lauren still referred to him as her husband.
The flashforward also served as the introduction of Stephen Aaron-Sipple's Mark. He was credited as 'Man' in the episode and later introduced as Mark, the brother of Vicki Fowler (Alice Haig). Stephen was also at the Pride of Britain Awards - which Thomas joked that he wasn't happy about.
"I'm representing tonight, I'm the only Beale here," he said. "I've seen Mark about. Not too happy about that!" 'Mark' was, in fact, with James Farrar, who plays Zack Hudson. Zack and Lauren previously had a fling as well, which was exposed at his wedding to Whitney Dean (Shona McGarty). When that was pointed out to Thomas, he jokingly shouted: "With Zack! It's fine, we'll get through it."
