Kat and Alfie reunion to save Square

EastEnders' favourite couple, Kat and Alfie are to be reunited in a bid to save the ailing soap.

08:21 31 January 2005

EastEnders' favourite couple, Kat and Alfie are to be reunited in a bid to save the ailing soap, The Sun reports.

Plans to resurrect the relationship between the fiesty Slater sister and Walford's most charismatic chancer are reportedly part of a huge-shake up of the show masterminded by returning executive producer John Yorke.

The man responsible for a string of top plots during his time on Eastenders has been brought back along with writer Tony Jordan to revive the crisis hit show following the departure of executive producer Kathleen "The Hatchet" Hutchinson.

Hutchinson was axed earlier this week when TV bosses found themselves with no scripts and storylines - only 48 hours before filming was due to begin.

Meanwhile, Eastenders is facing a fresh crisis following reports that two of its most glamorous stars have quit.

The Mirror says the youngest member of the Mitchell clan, Sam Hunter, will be departing from our screens in May following the decision of 29-year-old actress Kim Metcalf to leave the show.

Medcalf will reportedly be joined by Michelle Ryan, 21, whose character Zoe Slater is set to leave Albert Square after months of talks. An unnamed "insider" told the paper the actress has been "inundated" with other offers of acting work and has also been approached with lucrative modelling deals.

Eastenders bosses - who announced yesterday that matriarch Peggy Mitchell would be returning to the Square after more than two years away - are said to be unfazed by the news.

"Morale is high and already it feels as if the show is turning the corner," a source told The Mirror.

"Losing very popular characters is obviously a blow - but if anyone can handle it well, John and Tony can."

Eastenders' ratings have sunk to an all time low, with the show pulling in only 6.4 million viewers in September - a far cry from its 1986 heyday when more than 30 million tuned in.