While Joel (played by Calum Lill) masquerades as the happy-to-help lawyer, there is a dark side to him that was finally shown to fans in a series of flashbacks.

The scenes revealed how Joel cosied up to a vulnerable Lauren when he represented her after her arrest and he began to groom her.

In disturbing moments, Lauren stood up to Joel, but he snapped and beat her over the head multiple times.

After Lauren played dead, she made a run for it, and she has been in hiding ever since – but it was recently revealed she was alive, much to the annoyance of Joel.

While all of this has been going on, Joel has been in a relationship with Dee-Dee Bailey (Channique Sterling-Brown), and while they’ve had their bumps in the road, they are now engaged!

But is danger on the horizon for Dee-Dee as she prepares to marry Joel?

Well, speaking exclusively at the RadioTimes.com Soap Awards 2024 sponsored by Inspired Villages, Lill lifted the lid on how Joel really feels about Dee-Dee.

“Joel is genuinely head over heels in love with Dee-Dee, and he will do whatever it takes to protect that and to try and get married,” he confirmed.

He continued: “I think he’s a very nasty person as well, and I don’t know how bad that’s going to get. I don’t think we’ve seen the worst yet.”

And it’s clear viewers certainly haven’t seen the worst yet as Joel continues to manipulate those around him, but he will get his comeuppance soon enough, with Sterling-Brown telling RadioTimes.com: “Eventually, what’s in the dark will have to come to light, so we’ll see what happens.”

The RadioTimes.com Soap Awards 2024, sponsored by Inspired Villages, took place on 13th July. Find out more about the winners!

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