Frank makes his first appearance on-screen as a guest character in 1987, but due to a positive viewer reception, he is reintroduced in 1988 as a regular.

Following Reid's death in July 2007, Frank died off-screen and the character was celebrated with a special week of episodes in April 2008.

He is a smooth-talker and full of charm, but his actions are often thoughtless and he tends to run instead of facing up to his responsibilities, leaving his loved ones to pick up the pieces.

Frank and June had four children: Clare (Lucy Foxell/Caroline O'Neill) in 1959, Ricky (Sid Owen) in 1973, Diane (Sophie Lawrence) in 1974, and Janine (Rebecca Michael, Alexia Demetriou, Charlie Brooks) in 1983.

They take over the tenancy of The Queen Victoria public house soon afterwards, and the following year Frank also opens a car lot on the square.

In a lucid moment, she writes Frank a letter asking him not to let her end up like her grandmother, who had gone senile, saying she would rather die than suffer the same fate.

In desperation, Frank coerces Phil Mitchell (Steve McFadden) to set fire to his car lot in March 1994, so he can claim on the insurance.

Peggy calls off her engagement, and Roy speeds off in his car on a suicide bid, but Frank manages to convince him that his relationship with Pat is now platonic.

In January 2002, Peggy receives news that Frank has died in a car crash in Spain, and travels there for his funeral, where she is stunned to see him in attendance.

Several irate conversations reveal that Frank has faked his death to con expatriates in a property scam with his new girlfriend, Krystle (Rula Lenska).

In the special 2003 episode "Perfectly Frank", he returns to England, where he has set up a seedy nightclub and a car valeting service in Somerset.

Problems arise when Frank receives a visit from council officer, Douglas Payne (Steve Elder), telling him that they have rejected his license to open a lap dancing club.

Later, Frank's assistant, Kevin (Marc Jordan), is sent a car to valet by the local gangster, named Reg Priest (Gilbert Martin), and finds the body of Payne in the boot.

Frank and his club staff try to find a way to avoid the police asking questions, and fall foul of Reg, so they throw the body into the water over the side of the pier.

The casting of a comedian in a dramatic role was highly controversial at the time, but over the years, the wisdom of that decision was proved correct, as Frank became one of the show's most popular and iconic characters.

Following Anita Dobson's (Angie) and Leslie Grantham's (Den) decisions to quit the show in 1988, Frank was reintroduced as a full-time character and installed as the new Landlord of The Queen Vic, which he ran with his future wife, Pat, before opening a used car-lot on the Square.

[3] The episode was scripted to portray a strong sense of community spirit and a feel-good theme, as until that year, EastEnders had come under attack from critics who suggested the show had become too depressing.

[4] However, as is customary in EastEnders, their marriage did not remain happy for long, and after an array of family and monetary problems, Frank began to sink into deep depression.

[5] On-screen, his character attempted an insurance scam by having his car-lot torched and was unable to cope with the resulting guilt after the fire claimed the life of a homeless man.

[6] His stay was brief, lasting only a few months, but it drew a line under his relationship with Pat, and after failing to win her back, Frank was forced to move on too.

However, Frank's affinity with Pat remained an underlying theme for both characters, and despite being separated, viewers were regularly reminded of their lustful connection.

"[8] Upon his return, Frank was once again pivotal to many explosive storylines including accidentally killing Tiffany Mitchell (Martine McCutcheon) with his car, his marriage to Peggy, and a battle to regain control of The Queen Vic from Dan Sullivan (Craig Fairbrass).

After suffering with nervous exhaustion, which he attributed to EastEnders' gruelling filming schedule, Reid was forced to take an unplanned break from the show.

Penned scripts and plots had to be completely rewritten to account for his absence, including the departure of Sid Owen, who played Reid's on-screen son Ricky.

[9] Upon Reid's return, further problems arose, allegedly regarding the producers' decision not to allow him to attend a charity function that was being held in his honour.

[5] Following the sudden death of Mike Reid in July 2007, executive producer Diederick Santer announced in November 2007 that the character would die off-screen; this occurred at the end of March 2008, when it was revealed that Frank had succumbed to throat cancer.

"[15] In a Radio Times poll of over 5,000 people in 2004, 13 per cent chose Frank Butcher as the soap character they were most happy to see return.

A term "dry slap" that Reid introduced into the character's dialogue has transitioned, and is now utilised in British culture as a noun to describe a punch.

In the advert, Reid was dressed as Frank and initially roamed around with an uncharacteristically sunny disposition, until he drank the beverage and trod in a cow pat.