For the first time in the soap's 23-year history an episode of EastEnders featuring an all-black cast is to be broadcast. The programme, which centres around character Patrick Trueman - played by Rudolph Walker - focuses on his views about how attitudes to race have changed in Britain since he arrived from Trinidad in the Fifties.
In the episode, which airs on Tuesday at 7.30pm on BBC1, Patrick talks to younger character Chelsea Fox, portrayed by Tiana Benjamin, about racism after she discovers he was arrested in the 1958 Notting Hill race riots. Most of the 30-minute programme is set in the Trueman family home.
It's not clear whether the appearance of only black characters in the episode is deliberate. The BBC has not publicised the fact no white cast members will appear, and a synopsis of the episode on the official website does not mention the issue of race. It simply states: "A nostalgic Patrick reminisces about 1950s London."
Photo: BBC
