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The show’s original producer, Julia Smith, based Albert Square on real-world Fassett Square in Hackney. It was chosen because it reflected the sort of social issues that were everywhere in the East London of the 1980s, from housing and welfare to race and crime. But most of all because it was the intimate context for family stories – from birth to death and everything in between – that dominate the show.
Every nook and cranny of Albert Square, Victoria Road, Bridge Street, Turpin Road, George Street, Turpin Way and Edward Road has been translated into dramatic action on air. And sometimes interesting patterns emerge - here are just a few locations with surprising story statistics.

Queen Victoria pub

Right at the heart of Albert Square and EastEnders itself, the Queen Victoria public house has seen more than its fair share of drama and disaster. It’s where the community comes together and divides: the classic soap point of encounter, as defined immortally by Peggy Mitchell’s territorial cri de coeur Get out of my pub!

But one section of the pub is especially treacherous - and that’s the staircase! Mitchell family members and Carter relatives have plummeted to the hallway behind the bar, yet luckily, all have lived to tell the tale.

Tiffany Mitchell plummets down the stairs – did she fall or was she pushed? EastEnders, Tuesday 1 December 1998, 19.30, ´óÏó´«Ã½ One.

Near deaths apart, the Vic is the place that’s actually hosted the most births! Bianca Butcher delivered her and Ricky’s son Liam in one of the main bedrooms on Christmas Day 1998, and over a decade later in December 2010, Tommy Moon arrived much to his mum Kat’s surprise in the barrel store! Plus, Pearl Fox was born in the ladies loos (live for EastEnders’ 30th anniversary!) in February 2015 and Annie Carter popped out in the living room in September 2021.

Meanwhile, although some would believe that the Vic is the place that’s seen the most deaths in Walford, this would be incorrect because it’s actually hosted the most births! Bianca Butcher delivered her and Ricky’s son Liam in one of the main bedrooms on Christmas Day 1998, and over a decade later in December 2010, Tommy Moon arrived much to his mum Kat’s surprise in the barrel store! Plus, Pearl Fox was born in the ladies loos (live for EastEnders’ 30th anniversary!) in February 2015 and Annie Carter popped out in the living room in September 2021.

23 Albert Square

Originally flats until the year 2000 when it became a house, then in 2015 it was converted back to flats. A perfect setting to observe the lives of its shifting inhabitants and revel in its close proximities.

And one warning that all occupants of 23 Albert Square should heed is – watch out for fire hazards! This address has seen more flames than any other on the Square, putting the lives of multiple residents in grave peril over the years.

EastEnders opened its first ever episode with Reg Cox’s death at this location in February 1985 – and since then, in both of its guises as flats and a house, it has witnessed the most gripping death scenes.

Reg’s killer, Nick Cotton, met his maker of a drug overdose in February 2015 and Reg’s old downstairs neighbours Sue and Ali Osman were devastated to discover their infant son Hassan had died by sudden infant death syndrome in June 1985.

Fast forward to March 2017, Joyce Murray passed away in her sleep and in the same room, Dinah Wilson then took her own life in May 2019. And above, Trevor Morgan and Tom Banks were killed in the ravaging blaze that Trevor caused on Halloween night 2002.

31 Albert Square

There are various residences that could be described as a TARDIS (as in bigger on the inside than it appears to be on the outside), but No 31 takes the crown as the most hospitable and generous space on the Square! It has been filled to the rafters with Mitchells, Wickses, Butchers and Slaters. And more beds for them has meant more bedlam for us.

And let’s take a moment to appreciate the décor. Interior design by the one and only Pat Evans, and her wallpaper in the hallway and signature bar of the living room has stood the test of time since 2005 – half of EastEnders’ existence!

45 Albert Square

This address has one of the longest backstories of any EastEnders location, and holds the record for the residential address with the most screen time on the show, across its 40-year history. The Beales have lived here since 1935 when grandparents Albert and Lou moved in. Since then, it’s been a constant in the Beale/Fowler family, enabling generations to play out themes of continuity and difference.

It also provides an excellent vantage point for EastEnders’ action because of its position at the corner of Albert Square/Bridge Street, with front and back perspectives on the busy goings on.

And danger is never far away from No. 45. If anyone crosses the threshold of 45 Albert Square, they’d be wise to wear a helmet! The inhabitants inside have suffered blows to the head in the most weird and wonderful ways with a variety of household objects, from a jewellery box to a frying pan . Some have survived, others haven’t been so lucky.

No. 45 also holds the record for the residential address with the most screen time on the show. It’s been featured with characters living and breathing in it for every single one of the 40 years that EastEnders has been on television and has been kept in the Beale/Fowler family throughout.

10 Turpin Road

The shifting world of the high street is captured in microcosm in 10 Turpin Road. Ask anyone who’s lived in Walford long enough, they’d tell you that a business has to constantly evolve to stay current and economically viable.

The variety of enterprises that have existed within the walls of 10 Turpin Road shows how adaptable one set of premises can be – in the past four decades, it’s been a couple of wine bars, two iterations of catering company The Meal Machine, a furniture store, discount store, various hair and beauty salons and presently in 2025, a vegan café by day and a LGBTQ+ bar at night.

Plus, this building has a dark history of violence. It’s been the venue for arson, beatings, rapes, break-ins, a bomb scare, balcony mishaps, slaps, spats and a savage revenge hair cut!

Written by Mark James Lowe