“Anything is possible.”
Former EastEnders star Michelle Ryan has teased a potential return to the soap as Zoe Slater in a cryptic post on her social media. The 40-year-old actress played the youngest member of the Slater family from 2000 to 2005.
Michelle reunited with co-star Kacey Ainsworth (who portrayed her screen sister, and aunt, Little Mo) for a dog walk, reflecting on their time on the show in an emotional post shared on Instagram.
“Just got back from a lovely dog walk with my friend Kacey,” she wrote, alongside a selfie of the pair. “We worked together many moons ago (no pun intended) on EastEnders as sisters, part of the Slater family.
“Our boss John Yorke took a huge gamble by introducing a family of women, and it paid off. One week when Zoe discovered Kat was her mother, viewers tuned in to BBC, with episode ratings of 19, 18, 20, and 21 million, plus the omnibus.”
Michelle went on to say: “The national grid even reported a surge in electricity as everyone rushed to put their kettles on after the credits. The early 2000s were such an exciting time. The thrill of knowing you had a two-hander written by Tony Jordan felt like unwrapping a Christmas present.
“You’d check your pigeonhole for scripts and fan mail, then rush back to highlight your lines. I will forever be thankful to John and Tony for giving me my first big break on primetime TV. They were a winning team.”
“Michelle Ryan hints at a possible EastEnders return, saying, ‘Never say never.'”
In the comments, fans quickly started speculating that this could mean Michelle might return to the soap.
“Love the show! My friend works as one of the directors, and I hope to visit the set one day. Would you ever think about returning?” one fan asked.
Michelle replied: “Never say never!”
When another fan called her potential return ‘epic,’ Michelle responded with:
“That’s for the producers to decide.”
Could Zoe Slater be making a comeback to EastEnders?
What became of Zoe Slater in EastEnders?
Zoe left Walford following the murder of Dirty Den. Initially, she believed she was responsible for his death after a confrontation in The Queen Vic, but later discovered the truth—that Chrissie Watts had been the one to kill him.
Seeking to escape the turmoil of Albert Square, Zoe departed in 2005, never to return. Since then, fans have been hoping for a comeback from Michelle, who went on to appear in Doctor Who, the sci-fi series The Bionic Woman, and the comedy-horror film Cockneys vs Zombies.
Although she had previously dismissed the idea of returning to EastEnders, telling The Daily Record she viewed her time there as an apprenticeship and was eager to explore other opportunities, she now hints that the possibility isn’t entirely out of the question.
As Michelle herself put it—never say never.
- Coronation Street casts Joe Layton and Farrel Hegarty as Chesney nightmare neighbours Mick and Lou Michaelis
- Coronation Street not on tonight due to rugby – here’s when soap will be back
- Coronation Street: Reece Bolton to return to soap for daughter Lauren
- Coronation Street: Seb visions need to be post-watershed, fans blast
- Eagle-eyed Coronation Street fan spots return of unique detail after 20 years
