Johnny gets an earful

Albert Square gangster Johnny Allen finds himself in the unusual position of being on the wrong end of someone's temper when he finally tells all abou

12:43 15 April 2005

Albert Square gangster Johnny Allen finds himself in the unusual position of being on the wrong end of someone's temper when he finally tells all about his mistress.

The EastEnders hardman wasted no time in putting his stamp on the Square when he arrived, throwing Andy Hunter off a bridge almost immediately.

And his behaviour since then - which includes booting out the unpopular Ferreiras - has shown him to be every bit as ruthless as Walford's previous fiends Dirty Den and Phil Mitchell.

But when he finally gets the courage to tell daughter Ruby, played by Louisa Lytton, about his long-standing affair with Tina, he is the one in the firing line for a change.

The decision to come clean should go down well with viewers, however, according to a BBC poll that found 29,000 viewers wanted Johnny to be more of a family man.

Fans think the tough-guy, whose wife and older daughter died in a fire last year, should be nicer to Tina, played by Charlotte Avery, and stop lying to Ruby about his affair.

"Johnny's wife knew all about Tina and was very happy with that," Billy Murray, who plays the arch villain, told the Press Association.

"She understood the situation. So in a very strange way, he's monogamous. He might have had a wife at home but he's not had many mistresses, he's only had one.

"But Ruby explodes when she find out. It's what we're filming right now, it's very emotional stuff.

"And if we get it right, and we are, it's going to be amazing. It's going to satisfy all those critics that have been chipping away at EastEnders' reputation."