June Brown hints at Bardon return

EastEnders veteran June Brown has hinted that John Bardon is to make a return to the soap in June as her screen husband Jim Branning.

The 82-year-old BAFTA nominee, who plays Walford's Dot Branning, yesterday spoke of her Bardon's ongoing improvement since his stroke in June 2007.

She told The Mirror: "John is coming back in June and he is improving all the time. You just keep all your fingers crossed that Jim will be back. He won’t be grumpy and he will talk as much as he can."

Bardon has since filmed three brief appearances as Jim, who has also suffered a stroke in the soap's storylines. Jim first returned to the Square for his birthday on August 11. On December 4, his son Jack (Scott Maslen) paid him a visit in the care home and later that month, he surprised Dot by turning up on her doorstep on Christmas Day.

Speaking of Bardon's potential return, executive producer Diederick Santer yesterday told DS: "I saw John last week and he's in good form. He's keen to come back and we just have to work around him to make sure that he's comfortable when he's here."

He added: "All things being equal, we'll definitely be seeing him again in the show before too long."