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EastEnders’ Bonnie Langford on harrowing funeral of Shakil

It's going to be emotional...

If you have a heart, you’ll be sobbing during tonight’s EastEnders.

On Friday (6 July), the BBC1 soap will air a special episode around Shakil Kazemi’s funeral, featuring real-life people who have been affected by knife crime.

And we predict viewers will be in bits, as heartbroken mum Carmel says a final tear-jerking goodbye to her beloved son.

Shakil’s family say goodbye (Credit: BBC)

Read more: EastEnders fans feel sad for Rainie Branning after baby confession

Actress Bonnie Langford, who plays the grieving matriarch, has warned fans that Carmel’s pain will carry on forever.

In an interview with The Sun, she reveals her character will be “forever broken” and will be pushed to the edge over her son’s brutal murder.

She said: “Carmel will never be the same again, you can’t be.

“I think she wants to be positive, she tries every way to make sense. This is half the thing, even if something happens to somebody you’ve got to try and make sense of it and this seems completely senseless.”

Denise gives Carmel a much-needed hug (Credit: BBC)

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The 53-year-old actress goes on to explain what it meant to meet the contributors, those who have been affected first-hand by knife crime.

She said: “For me it gave me more importance and more weight. I felt more responsible, I felt more determined to get this as accurate and as more emotional and meaningful as possible and as raw and as authentic as possible.”

She added: “What is so amazing about this story is that all you normally see of these real people is just after the moment or outside a court or in a press conference.

“With the form of a soap, you can see behind those closed doors when it’s really hurting. […] Everyone else is getting on with their lives but these people are broken and will always be broken and that’s what you can see so much in the special contributors.”

Viewers have felt Carmel’s pain throughout (Credit: BBC)

Viewers will hear parent after parent speak of their loss after losing a child to knife crime.

In quotes printed in The Mirror, Yvonne Lawson explains: “The moment you decide to carry a knife you are taking a whole family into that grave with you. Godwin was just one person but my whole family’s life died with Godwin on that night.”

George Kinsella, father of former EastEnders actress Brooke, said he will never comprehend why his son Ben was murdered a decade ago.

He explains: “He was stabbed 11 times in about eight seconds. I’ll never understand why.

“They’ve wasted my son’s life, they’ve wasted their lives, they’ve wasted their families lives. We’ve all got to live with this now.”

The episode will air on BBC1 on Friday 6 July at 9.15pm.

Will you be tuning in to this special EastEnders episode? Leave us a comment on our Facebook page @EntertainmentDailyFix and let us know what you think!


Helen Fear
TV Editor

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