Her storylines have mainly focused on her relationship with her family, a teenage pregnancy after a one-night stand with her third cousin once removed Ben Mitchell (Joshua Pascoe/Harry Reid/Max Bowden), fighting to keep newborn daughter Lexi out of care, her friendships with Abi Branning (Lorna Fitzgerald), Dexter Hartman (Khali Best) and later Frankie Lewis (Rose Ayling-Ellis), relationships with Peter Beale (Ben Hardy/Dayle Hudson) and Jay Brown (Jamie Borthwick), improving her situation by becoming a hairdresser, having an abortion after becoming pregnant by Jay, and being diagnosed with a glioblastoma brain tumour which resulted in her death.

She takes a liking to Jay's friend, Duncan Willis (Steven France) but later vandalises Grace Olubunmi's (Ellen Thomas) flowers.

Lola steals towels from the Booty beauty salon and tries to sell them but is caught by Roxy Mitchell (Rita Simons), who threatens to call the police.

Peter begins developing feelings for his ex-girlfriend, Lauren Branning (Jacqueline Jossa), despite her relationship with Dean Wicks (Matt Di Angelo).

When helping Johnny Carter (Sam Strike) at The Albert, Lola insists she has nothing to do with Abi and Jay's break up and begins making friends with her.

After Ben's plans to swindle Phil are exposed, Lola decides to remain in Walford and starts working as a hairdresser for Denise Fox (Diane Parish).

During The Queen Vic siege where Hunter Owen (Charlie Winter) takes the residents hostage, Lola and Jay are locked in the bathroom together where they admit their feelings for each other and reconcile.

However, Jay notices tension between a flirtatious Peter and anxious Lola at Stuart (Ricky Champ) and Rainie Highway's (Tanya Franks) wedding in September 2020.

In February 2021, Lola is set up on a date with Isaac Baptiste (Stevie Basaula) by Kim Fox (Tameka Empson), which is met with opposition from his mother, Sheree Trueman (Suzette Llewellyn).

Initially believing Sheree's hostility is because she does not think she is good enough for her son, Lola is later stunned when Isaac reveals that the real reason is because he has schizophrenia.

It later transpires that a devastated Ben committed credit card fraud in the United States to try and save Lola's life and he is later arrested, extradited, and sentenced to six years in prison.

The storyline was summed up in Inside Soap by Kate Woodward who commented "Although I love Abi and Jay together, it's great to see them face serious obstacles thanks to her meddling.

"[23] She found it "quite difficult" to imagine what it would be live to act out as she has no children, but had watched Channel 4 show One Born Every Minute to help, as she did not want to "overdo the scene or make it look really fake.

They announced that Harold would be filming her final scenes within the following months and that show bosses are not killing Lola off, leaving potential for a return in the future.

"[27] Kate Oates, the senior executive producer of EastEnders, said that she "admired Lola's feisty, fiery spirit" and looked forward to her return.

[30] A spokesperson for EastEnders told Radio Times that Harold was reportedly "teary" at the decision to write Lola out of the show; however, she accepted the news like a professional and was looking forward to her exit storyline.

[31] In October 2022, it was officially announced that Lola would be killed-off after being diagnosed with a brain tumour,[32] in a storyline that drew inspiration from the death of The Wanted singer, Tom Parker.

[33] EastEnders announced that they would be working closely with Brain Tumour Research, Macmillan Cancer Support and other experts in the field to portray Lola's illness accurately.

[35] Dany Bell, Strategic Advisor for Macmillan Cancer Support for Treatment, added: "Storylines like Lola's play a crucial role in raising awareness and can genuinely save viewers' lives, so we are really pleased to be helping EastEnders ensure a realistic experience is being portrayed on the show.

We know that what Lola and her fictional family are going through on EastEnders is a daily reality for many people around the UK right now, and Macmillan is here to offer advice and support to anyone who needs it.

[41] The plot then examines the complexities of Lola's relationships with her boyfriend Jay, daughter Lexi, grandfather Billy and his partner Honey, close friend Ben and his husband Callum Highway (Tony Clay), and her close colleagues Denise Fox (Diane Parish) and Kim Fox (Tameka Empson), as they all come to terms with the prospect of losing Lola.

[59][60] During the scenes in Margate, Borthwick displayed his personal talent for music, and performed the song "Wonderful Tonight" by Eric Clapton playing the guitar, as Jay serenaded Lola on the beach.

[62] However, before being unable to communicate, Lola decides that she wishes to be baptised by Reverend Irene Mills (Melanie Kilburn), to ensure her pathway to heaven.

[81] The scenes were also condemned by the British Association of Social Workers (BASW), calling the BBC "too lazy and arrogant" to correctly portray the child protection process, and saying that the baby was taken "without sufficient grounds to do so".

Bridget Robb, acting chief of the BASW, said the storyline provoked "real anger among a profession well used to a less than accurate public and media perception of their jobs".

She stated: "It is disgraceful to see a publicly funded broadcaster deliberately spreading misinformation about the child protection process because it is too lazy and arrogant to get it right.

"[81] The BBC responded to BASW by saying: " • We understand you're unhappy with the current storyline concerning Lexi and Lola as you feel it portrays social workers inaccurately.

We consulted with the programme's production team in writing our response and we'd like to assure you our intention is not to portray social workers in a negative light.

• Whilst the audience has seen how much Lola loves Lexi and how responsible she can be with her baby, we were careful to ensure that when the social worker was visiting, she generally saw only more worrying behaviour.

"[82][83]In November 2012, Irish politician Robert Troy expressed concerns that the storyline could influence the result of an upcoming referendum on children's rights.