Bets on who killed Derek Branning have almost all been reimbursed due to the character dying from a heart attack rather than being - as previously expected - murdered.
© BBC
© BBC Pictures
[Derek Branning and brother Max, who was wrongly rumoured to be Derek's murderer]
The bookmakers, rather than reimbursing, did pay out for bets on Derek being his own killer, with odds for that option going from 33/1 in October to 5/2 by the time the show started.
A spokesman for William Hill, Joe Crilly, said: "Derek had enough enemies to justify his murder but it seemed that nature did everyone a favour. Years of tough living took their toll and so we paid out on him and refunded on everyone else."
© BBC
Bets are already being taken on next year's EastEnders Christmas episode, with William Hill offering 10/1 that someone gets killed on Christmas Day next year.
This year EastEnders won the Christmas day ratings battle against Coronation Street.
