Kirkwood: 'New family may join Enders'

EastEnders' executive producer Bryan Kirkwood has revealed that a new family may be introduced to the soap within the next year.

The programme's showrunner disclosed the news on yesterday evening's special edition of Points of View, on which he fielded questions that had been submitted by viewers of the Walford drama.

One fan enquiry questioned the recent return of Kat and Alfie Moon to Albert Square, asking whether their places on the show should be filled by new characters instead.

Speaking in response, Kirkwood explained: "I love seeing Kat and Alfie back on screen and acting alongside icons like Phil, Carol and Bianca, and new stars like the Masood family.

"We are always looking for new characters and great new actors, and that's going on behind the scenes. We may unveil a new family in the next year or so."

Meanwhile, Kirkwood also spoke of how much the BBC soap values viewer feedback, explaining that the opinions of fans are discussed by the show's team on a daily basis.

He said: "The first thing I do every day is to read the duty log, which is a reflection of the audience's reaction to the previous night's episode. We take a huge interest in [feedback], we discuss it every day and take feedback as an opportunity to learn lessons."

Kirkwood began heading up production at EastEnders earlier this year following the departure of previous exec Diederick Santer.