EastEnders spoilers follow.

EastEnders star Thomas Law has shared his thoughts on what the future holds for Peter Beale and Lauren Branning ahead of their dramatic split.

Peter’s relationship with Lauren became further strained this week when he discovered that she nearly relapsed after their row about baby Jimmy’s diagnosis, leading him to make the bold choice to fight for custody of their two kids.

Next week’s scenes will see tensions escalate as Peter decides to officially end their relationship for good, with Law explaining his character’s motives as he shared: “Peter just wants to protect his boys, and he believes that Lauren could relapse at any minute.

“The fact that Lauren went out all night and won’t tell him where she was totally breaks Peter’s trust in her. He’s had enough and thinks Louie and Jimmy are safer with him.”

lauren branning, peter beale, eastenders

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As for whether he thinks Peter and Lauren can find their way through this rough patch, the actor said: “I don’t know because it’s such a difficult situation. It would take a lot of compromise from both of them.

“Lauren would need to forgive Peter for what he said to her during their row and Peter needs to stop blaming Lauren for what’s happened. What’s sad is that they really need each other – if they stuck together, it would be worth it because they’ve been through so much.

“All Peter wants is a simple, happy family life with Lauren but who knows if that’ll ever happen… It’s really stressful for them both and so tempers and emotions are running high! There’s a lot of water under the bridge between them after so many years of being together.”

peter beale, eastenders

BBC
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Peter and Lauren’s row came after being told that their newborn baby is severely sight impaired, with Peter blaming Lauren for his condition.

“Peter is coping with it as best he can, but I think what they are going through would be difficult for anyone to handle,” said Law.

“Peter is finding it very hard to get past the fact that Lauren was taking drugs while she was pregnant with Jimmy, and he can’t help but blame her for this – even though there is absolutely no proof.”

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.