With the furore surrounding Danny Dyer’s temporary departure from EastEnders still rumbling on, they may have just revealed his exit storyline.
It looks like his character Mick Carter is facing time in jail after Babe set him up for serving alcohol outside of licensing hours and he can’t raise the cash to pay the fine.
Backed into a corner when he was questioned by the cops, Mick couldn’t find another way out so admitted the crime and accepted a fine as punishment.
But £20,000 is a lot of money to find when you’ve just paid off your son’s debts and have a leaking pub roof that urgently needs fixing.
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The work to sort the roof out begins next week, and thanks to Shirley’s romance with Konrad, Mick’s got it for knock-down prices.
Things begin to look up even more when Mick informs the police Babe’s disappeared and they reduce his fine.
It’s good news, but it’s still a lot of money to find – especially as the insurance company aren’t paying out for the roof repairs.
Whitney steps in to help and organises a pancake day race at The Vic, going out and about drumming up trade, but one successful venture just isn’t enough.
Mick knows he has to do something quick smart, so he sets up a meeting with the bank.
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When the bank manager arrives for a home visit, suited and booted Mick and a smart Whitney team up to impress him.
But as he sets about assessing them and their reliability will he give them the money they need?
An EastEnders source told Inside Soap that this really is the last chance for Mick to sort the mess out:
“Mick needs to find the cash. His biggest headache now is that massive fine – and if he can’t cough up for it, he’s off to prison.”
PRISON? Does that mean Mick’s going to be carted off to the slammer? Is that where he’ll be while Danny Dyer takes his ‘break’ from the show?
How will Mick cope inside? Can The Vic survive without the Carter patriarch at the helm? And what will Linda say when she finds out?