Episode 5820
They are unaware that the victim is their friend and neighbour Ruby Allen (Louisa Lytton), who is forced to listen to their views, while the men she has accused are also present.
Shortly after arriving at The Queen Victoria pub, Ruby Allen (Louisa Lytton) and her friend Stacey Fowler (Lacey Turner) notice Stacey's husband Martin Fowler (James Bye) drinking with his friends Ross Swinden (Ossian Luke) and Matt Clarkson (Mitchell Hunt), whom Ruby has accused of raping her.
Mel Owen (Tamzin Outhwaite) tells Sharon Mitchell (Letitia Dean) that the police took CCTV footage from their club as part of the investigation.
Linda Carter (Kellie Bright) also refuses to serve them, having realised that they are the men from the newspaper, and receives offers of help to throw them out.
Ross publicly defends himself, telling the locals that a woman accepted his drinks, kissed him, went back to his place, removed her clothes, and in the morning was hungover and went to the police.
After Matt and Ross leave, a debate starts between the locals, with several points of view being put across about sexual assault and consent, which causes arguments between Denise Fox (Diane Parish) and Kush Kazemi (Davood Ghadami), and Martin and Stacey.
A drunken Kat Moon (Jessie Wallace) accuses Glenn of being a rapist too, but he says that he has done nothing wrong and the only person who did is the liar his friends had sex with.
Following news that Louisa Lytton had reprised her role as Ruby Allen in July 2018, it was announced that her character would be at the centre of a sexual consent storyline.
[1] The serial's research team worked closely with charity Rape Crisis England and Wales, and EastEnders' executive consultant John Yorke hoped the storyline would "challenge the stereotyping and myths that can surround sexual violence and consent".
She thinks everyone will work out it's her when she hears things such as, 'These young girls who go out in short skirts...'"[2] On 19 November 2018, Duncan Lindsay of Metro reported that EastEnders would air a special episode as part of the consent storyline, focusing on the reactions and opinions of Ruby's friends and neighbours after they learn about the incident.
"[5] Reiss picked out a few examples of the debate, explaining that former police officer Jack Branning (Scott Maslen) supports survivors of sexual assault, while Mo Harris (Laila Morse) believes that it is easy to stop rape.
[3] "Episode 5820" is set entirely in The Queen Vic and features 20 main cast members, whose characters have differing opinions on consent and sexual assault.
[8] As "Episode 5820" comes to a close, another soul song – "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" sung by Nina Simone – begins playing over a slow-motion montage showing the "shattered peace" left by Ruby's revelation that she is the rape victim.
Barr also said, "The performances of Lacey Turner as Stacey Slater and Lytton as Ruby have been heavily praised by EastEnders viewers, as has the impactful writing of the dialogue.
[12] Harp's colleague Sophie Dainty later stated: "Authentic, unflinching, and thoroughly thought-provoking, EastEnders broke new ground with tonight's special episode (November 29) which centred around Ruby Allen's rape storyline.
"[14] Baillie praised the style of the episode, writing "The show is nothing short of spectacular, with the use of different cinematographic techniques such as one-shots to bring home the drama and heighten emotions.
The episode highlights the many differing opinions on consent, from the polarised to the murky middle ground, and viewers won't be able to help but stop and think about their own stances even if they were sure as a rock before.
They called the episode "sensational", and wrote "It was a thing of wonder with every character responding perfectly as themselves, and will have sparked vital discussion in living rooms across the country.
