Lauren Branning (Jacqueline Jossa) was rushed to hospital in tonight’s episode

of EastEnders after being caught up in a crowd crush at Peggy’s. The ordeal only

occurred as a result of Chelsea (Zaraah Abrahams) messing with the booking

system because she felt angry at Penny (Kitty Castledine), who had stolen her job. Because of this, it allowed more people to buy tickets, despite the fact the event was nearly at full capacity anyway. As more people made their way into Peggy’s, the situation very quickly became chaotic and dangerous. In the instalment of the BBC One soap that aired tonight, everyone trapped inside were desperately trying to escape. With exits blocked, Lauren and Freddie (Bobby Brazier) realised the only available exit was inside an office.

However, the door was locked due to Cindy (Michelle Collins) and Junior (Micah Balfour) being inside and continuing their affair. Just as the door was opened, Junior rushed out with the sea of people to decrease the chance of being spotted with Cindy. In this same moment, Lauren saw Cindy in the office but was knocked to the floor by the crowd filing through. Because of how quickly this was happening, Lauren was stuck on the floor, forced to try and protect herself as she was trampled on.

In the hospital, a doctor confirmed Lauren had suffered a chest wall injury, broken ribs and a damaged lung. As Peter tried his best to support Lauren, she suddenly became overwhelmed and started to cry. Lauren then revealed that the last time she was at Walford General Hospital was when her sister Abi died. Played by Lorna Fitzgerald, Abi died in 2018 after falling off the Queen Vic roof alongside Lauren.

However, just as Lauren slipped on the wet surface, Abi grabbed her hand, resulting in them both falling. In hospital, the family discovered Abi was brainstem dead and had no chance of regaining consciousness. Her life support was switched off at 8:32pm, the same time of Abi’s birth. After Abi’s funeral, Lauren left England for a new life in New Zealand with her son Louie. She then moved to France before returning to Albert Square alongside Penny (Kitty Castledine) at the start of the year.