Former EastEnders star Shaun Williamson has revealed how his iconic exit from the BBC soap changed.
The actor starred in the show as Barry Evans from 1994 to 2004, being involved in some of the soap’s most popular storylines including his double wedding to Natalie Price alongside Ian Beale and Melanie Healy.
But Barry’s time in Albert Square came to an end after 10 years when he fell head over heels for Janine Butcher, who in turn left him to die after pushing him from a cliff edge.
Shaun has since revealed that Barry’s grisly death at the hands of his new wife was never meant to be, and the fan-favourite character almost met an entirely different fate.
“Barry was originally supposed to end Janine on Valentine’s Day that year,” he told The Sun. “But then I’d decided I wanted to leave after being there for 10 years.
“[The producers] then re-wrote scripts and flipped things around so that I would die instead.”
It might not be the last EastEnders fans have seen of Barry, however, as Shaun revealed he’d like to return to the Square as a ghost.
“I’d definitely love to go back as a ghost, who knows,” he continued.
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After leaving EastEnders, Shaun landed roles in the likes of Inspector Morse, London’s Burning, and Waiting for God as well as a stint in Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant comedy Extras.
In 2007, he came third in Comic Relief Does Fame Academy and later went on to appear in Celebrity Big Brother in 2017, becoming the eighth housemate to be evicted.
More recently, Shaun appeared in BBC Two sitcom Mister Winner as Chris Smith, the future father-in-law of the titular character played by Spencer Jones.
EastEnders airs on Mondays – Thursdays at 7.30pm on BBC One. The show also streams on BBC iPlayer, where most episodes drop early at 6am ahead of their TV broadcast.
