Hi guys, it’s been a while since I wrote a post! The wait is nearly over for new EastEnders. And it’s not a second too soon. Since Max and Tony’s SFTS episode, we’ve had little in the way of content. But there are a few things I thought worth mentioning before we start getting proper spoilers for the return in a week or two.
First, Max (plus his dad and some friends) took part in a 72 hole golf challenge for Macmillan Cancer at the start of August, with a fundraising page for donations (which is still up – so if you still wanted to donate, you can!) The original target was £1500, and they’ve ended up at over £6000, which is pretty amazing. Loads of EE cast donated which I found really sweet – including Tony of course, with a cute message to go along with it.
I decided to hold a little raffle on Twitter for a signed Ballum print at £2 an entry with the money going to the fundraising page – well, the original idea was for a little one anyway! But just like with the quizzes, the generosity really came through from those who entered and we ended up with a total of £386, which I made on the page on behalf of us all, with £4 extra on my end to round it up. I go on about the power of fandom a lot but this is evidence of what can be done when fans are given an opportunity to channel the existing kindness and passion (and perhaps a hint of competitiveness) they have for a good cause; and I feel lucky to have been able to facilitate that on this occasion! And Max was clearly in awe of the generosity as well, and I’m very happy that everyone who contributed got that unexpected but deserved recognition!
Tony’s birthday was on the 8th, and we were treated to another siege selfie when Max wished him a happy birthday ❤
EastEnders finally confirmed their return date – Monday 7th September – with a press release about some of the stories we can expect when they’re back. And Ballum get a mention!
“Meanwhile trouble for the Mitchells is never far away but now with Callum Highway’s new job in the force, things are set to get a whole lot trickier for the loved up duo. Torn between his role in the police, Ben and the Mitchells – Callum finds himself in hot water.”
Nothing we didn’t already suspect, but the focus shifting to Callum’s POV is interesting, as is the ‘hot water’ comment – sounds like he’ll end up doing something that’s at odds with the police. It’s really the first time his morals will be tested in this way and I’m looking forward to it!
Onto some polls! The week after SFTS, my good friend @queerlyautistic and I organised and ran a Kiss poll twitter to determine the best Ballum kiss of 2020 (you might remember we did one for 2019 back in January, which was won by First Kiss.) There ended up being a dead tie in one round, between Heartbeat kiss and Car Lot kiss – resulting in a bit of campaigning when I extended the vote, between the Bleaters and the Rotters. It was all very Brexit-like, and Heartbeat ended up edging it the second time around to come second to ILY kiss.
Then a few weeks back, I decided to hold an activity for the Digital Spy crew – Scene ranks! Everyone was encouraged to post their top ten Ballum scenes, and points were assigned according to their rank. I found it fascinating to see the range of scenes chosen – we’re definitely not short on quality or quantity! And the mutual ILY ended up coming top in this as well; clearly a very popular scene!
And finally, we got some unexpected content in the form of an unseen photoshoot from 2019 – low quality, but still very nice to look at. Maybe one day the HQ versions will be unearthed!
I think that’s everything. I can’t wait to have the show back when we’ll have more to discuss and finally get to see Ben and Callum again, twelve weeks after we last saw them onscreen. We’re nearly there!
Jenn's Ballum Blog 