Although it had been known for some time that Michelle Fowler was set to leave EastEnders, fans of the popular BBC One soap were still in shock following her swift exit on Tuesday night. The episode saw the character say a quick goodbye to her best friend Sharon Mitchell as she revealed she was going back to America to see her children Mark and Vicki before going travelling. The mum-of-two told Sharon that she didn’t want her future to be in Albert Square, as she would be forever associated with her past following her affair with student Preston Cooper in 2017, after being falsely accused of seducing schoolboy Hunter Owen, who she had been tutoring.
Michelle Owen left Albert Square in a taxi
Taking to Twitter, viewers voiced their opinions over Michelle's exit, which saw her leave in a taxi. "I'm going to miss Michelle, her exit seemed so sudden," one wrote, while another said: "She didn’t even get a duff, duff, duff." A third observed: "Never mind Michelle…the real issue is the psycho that is Hunter Owen. Michelle is the first of many lives he is going to destroy. EastEnders do love an evil teenager." On Monday night, Hunter had lied to his mum Mel Owen and Sharon that Michelle had tried it on with him after he caught him and his girlfriend Louise Mitchell kissing, panicking that she would tell Louise's dad Phil Mitchell, who had banned the pair from seeing each other.
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The star had been accused of trying to seduce schoolboy Hunter Owen
Mel reacted by grabbing Michelle's hair and plunged her face into a sink filed with water in explosive scenes. Although his lies were originally believed on Tuesday, both Mel and Sharon started to realise that something didn’t quite add up, causing Hunter and Louise to finally admit the truth, albeit too late for Michelle to change her mind. Fans had already guessed that Michelle's exit would coincide with her being asked to tutor Hunter. One wrote on Twitter: "So it's obvious Michelle's exit storyline will be about her and Hunter #EastEnders," while another said: "Michelle is going to end up seducing Hunter and that’s how she’s leaving. Calling it now!"
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In March, EastEnders announced that actress Jenna Coleman, who took over the role of Michelle from original actress Susan Tully, was to leave the show after just 14 months of joining. A spokeswoman said: "Jenna is a terrific actress who has loved her time on the show playing Michelle and it was a mutual decision to write the character out. We wish Jenna all the best for the future."