Phil and Ben Mitchell pulled off their daring robbery plot in EastEnders – but it came at a terrible cost for the latter.
Monday’s special episode of the BBC soap was told from the perspective of Ben (Max Bowden) and featured disrupted audio and subtitles to reflect his hearing loss.
It began with the Mitchells making final preparations for their robbery, only for a frustrated Phil to ban Ben from the job when he revealed he had acquired a gun.
Between a father and a son. #EastEnders pic.twitter.com/MBBsvI6OAt
— BBC EastEnders (@bbceastenders) June 1, 2020
Instead, Phil (Steve McFadden) decided to go it alone with gangster Danny, but Phil had been set up, leading to dramatic scenes.
During a showdown, Danny pointed a gun at Ben before firing it next to his ear, further harming his hearing, and a fight broke out, with the Mitchells escaping with the money.
The final scene appeared to confirm the heist had caused Ben to lose almost all of his hearing.
He had earlier almost been run over in Albert Square after not hearing a car driving past.
He was confronted in the street by Jay Brown (Jamie Borthwick) who told him he was the reason Lola had an abortion.
A furious Ben confronted Lola and threatened to reveal her one-night stand with Peter, but she tearfully begged him to keep quiet.
Ben headed to the Prince Albert and drowned his sorrows with a bottle of whiskey, which led to him spotting a van following Phil and Danny as they left for the robbery.
BBC bosses recently confirmed that EastEnders will resume filming by the end of June, after production was halted by the coronavirus pandemic.
EastEnders continues on BBC One.