Ruth Aitken (also Fowler) is a fictional character from the popular British BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Caroline Paterson from 1994 to 1999.

Ruth was Mark Fowler (Todd Carty)'s ex-wife and she is far more comfortable with his HIV status than many of his other girlfriends.

However, their marriage eventually disintegrates due to Mark's habit of shutting her out and his inability to give Ruth a child.

Ruth, who is from Edinburgh, Scotland, comes from a strict Presbyterian family headed by a minister father.

[2] Ruth comes to Walford to visit Mark and soon moves in with him and his sister Michelle Fowler (Susan Tully).

Ruth and Mark start a relationship and she gets a job at the local community centre as a nursery assistant.

In 1995, they get engaged, and Ruth's father, Hugh Aitken (Donald Douglas) insists that they marry in Scotland but her family are not welcoming when they discover Mark's HIV status.

Ruth gets drunk and tries to seduce Conor but he turns her down, admitting to finding her attractive but he says he cannot have sex with someone whose previous partner is HIV positive and berates her for being irresponsible.

Her wild behaviour attracts barman Huw Edwards (Richard Elis), but she rebuffs his advances.

Ruth was introduced in 1994 by Series Producer Barbara Emile as a former love-interest for Mark Fowler (Todd Carty), who was HIV positive in the serial.

[6] In 1998, executive producer Matthew Robinson axed a large number of characters from EastEnders, among them Ruth Fowler.

[8] In the storyline, Ruth had an affair with Mark's cousin Conor Flaherty (Sean Gleeson), which left her pregnant.

In the storyline, the character Pat Evans (Pam St Clement) was dressed in clothing with "Scotland" printed on it, to signify her support of the Scottish football team's participation in the tournament.

"[9] Actress Caroline Paterson was also critical of her character upon leaving, denouncing her as dreary and saying "Good riddance, Ruth.