Sonia and Tina's relationship in EastEnders has been on shaky ground this year. Cracks first appeared when Sonia helped her ex-husband Martin look after baby Arthur while Stacey was in hospital – leaving her with little time to spend with her lover.

Tina is further put out when Sonia decides to take Bex to the Pride of Walford awards, and a fresh row between the lovebirds leads to Tina kissing Soph…

Earlier, Kyle is preparing food for the Pride of Walford awards when Soph, his best pal, turns up.

With Ian short-staffed, but desperate to make the night a success, Soph offers to help out...

Later, tipsy Tina's well-meant speech during the awards ceremony backfires and upsets Sonia, and it's left to Soph to try to comfort Tina.

But one thing leads to another and the pair find themselves sharing a steamy kiss! How will Sonia react if she finds out about Tina's betrayal?

Watch EastEnders on BBC1 from Monday, April 25

EastEnders' Luisa Bradshaw-White talks about her passion for running, her charity work and celebrating two years on the BBC1 soap…

Congratulations Luisa on completing the NSPCC Color Run the other week!

"Thanks. I finished it! It was on a really, really hot day and past every kilometre marker, people would throw different coloured powder up into the air so we were running through these big clouds of pink, purple, yellow or whatever. At the end, we were given a pack of colour – about 19,000 of us in all. We counted to three, jumped up and threw the colour into the air. It was amazing – and so are the pictures."

How did you become involved?

"I usually look to help a different charity every year. Sometimes they contact me, but I approached the NSPCC. I feel that every child deserves to have a good and happy childhood. I have two adopted children myself and know how important the NSPCC’s Child Play therapy is. It encourages kids to open up in their own time. I’ll definitely be working with the NSPCC again. They do such brilliant work."

How far was the run?

"Only 5km. I really enjoy running. I go out with my dog and call it a walk run. If I call it that, it means it doesn’t matter if I walk some of it – although I usualIy do run most of it." 

Can you imagine your EastEnders character Tina Carter ever doing anything like it?

"I think she’d love it! She’s very colourful and a bit bonkers, and she’d love wearing crazy headgear and a tutu."

Are you still enjoying EastEnders?

"I’ll have been there for two years in December and I love it, love it, love it more than ever. I especially love my Carter family – everyone is really chilled and we have such a laugh."

What would you like to see happen to Tina?

"Well, obviously you want your character to be happy… but not for too long because it gets a bit boring!"

EastEnders on location in Ramsgate to film Mick, Shirley and Tina Carter scattering Stan's ashes

There's big trouble brewing in Albert Square when Sonia and Tina lock lips...

It's been on the cards for a while, but Tina Carter and Sonia Fowler are set to take their friendship to the next level in EastEnders.

The pals – played by Luisa Bradshaw-White and Natalie Cassidy – grow closer as they open up to each other about their family troubles and the girls end up sharing a passionate kiss!

Sonia and Tina share another kiss (BBC)

With emotions running high, Tina and Sonia seek comfort in each other’s arms.

The pair shared a kiss last year, when Tina was in a relationship with Tosh and Sonia was having marriage problems with her hubby Martin. But now that Tina's abusive girlfriend has left the Square and Sonia and Martin have realised that their marriage is over, the path is clear for a romance between the two women.

So will they finally admit that they have feelings for one another and agree to be more than just good friends?

These scenes will air on BBC One on Tuesday 17 March.

Tosh and Tina have always had a volatile relationship - but will Tosh's latest shocking attack spell the end for this troubled couple?

Tosh gets violent with Tina again… But it still may not the end for them, EastEnders’ Rebecca Scroggs tells Soaplife…

We’ve seen Tosh hit Tina before and she beats her up again because she thinks Tina has cheated on her with Sonia. And she hasn’t! “Tosh doesn’t know for sure if Tina and Sonia are having an affair,” Rebecca tells Soaplife. “But she thinks she’s seen enough. She really loses it and now everybody can see what she’s like.”

What will the Carters have to say about it when they see Tina’s bruises?

So what ignites Tosh’s violent temper this time?

“Tina [Luisa Bradshaw-White] says she’s thinking of giving Sonia some cash to help her out and Tosh is stunned. Money’s so tight for them because everything’s going towards the next set of fertility treatment, so the idea she could put Sonia first in the middle of that is just too much.”

Then Tosh sees Tina hugging Sonia…

“It’s her worst nightmare because, in that moment, she totally believes Tina’s been seeing Sonia [Natalie Cassidy] and she’s furious. She flips into thinking Tina’s definitely betrayed her and the red mist descends.”

What does Tosh do to Tina?

“She goes into a blind rage. What happens to Tina is very violent. We actually went beyond what was in the script. Tosh attacks Tina physically and verbally. She goes ballistic.”

What state is Tina in afterwards?

“She has bruises all over her body. It’s a sustained and vicious beating. It’s domestic abuse and Tosh is an abuser.”

What will the Carters make of what Tosh has done?

“Tosh is very sorry afterwards, but there’s no hiding from this. Everyone in the family is going to know what she’s done and they have a concrete reason to dislike her and keep Tina from her.”

Does Tosh think Tina will forgive her?

“She’s confident she can win Tina back, but it will be a lot harder with the family against her. There is hope for them, but this is definitely a watershed moment. Until they’ve dealt with this, they won’t be able to go any further.”

EastEnders, BBC1. Click here for dates and times.

EastEnders’ Tina Carter has colourful street style - and scrubs up a treat in a frock - but show bosses conceived a very different image for her.

The soap’s producers changed their ideas, though, after auditioning Luisa Bradshaw-White.

“The character they’d devised was really fat, 50 and past it,” reveals Luisa. “I turned up for my audition looking pretty and wearing his heels and said: ‘Look, I don’t look anything like the part, but I wondered if you could find me another one’,” Luisa told the Sun. “They laughed and then changed the character.”

That was a wise move as loveable lesbian Tina is fast becoming one of the most popular characters in Albert Square.

Discussing EastEnders’ portrayal of gay and lesbian characters, Luisa continued: “EastEnders is showing real life. That’s why I said I’d do the show, because Dominic Treadwell-Collins was creating a character in Tina that has a lot to her and she’s gay.

“Not just, ‘That’s the Asian one, that’s the lesbian one’…. That’s what I think the other shows are still doing. We’ve got to move forward. There has to be a story. You can’t just be gay. And there is a lot more to Tina.”

Luisa, 39, would be happy to stick around on EastEnders for a good while, too.

“Dominic has talked about Dot Branning when he’s mentioned me being in the show for a long time. That’s a long time, but I do really love the job. Plus, the EastEnders studios aren’t far from where we live and I’m a lazy actor,” adds Luisa.

But she's not interested in being famous.

"Years ago, people in EastEnders were very, very famous and I never wanted that. But now you've got all the reality TV stars taking that place so actors can just get on with doing their job," Luisa says.

"'Of course, if you want to be a celebrity you can, but when it comes to walking down the red carpet, there's a whole generation of EastEnders stars younger than me who can do that.

"I can just be like a mum. The pressure to be beautiful is off me. I feel at ease as I'm not trying to be somebody I don't think I've ever been."

Luisa - who joined the soap last year - also revealed that she "can't let go" of her role as a parent and partner.

"I've got a partner, Annette, and we've been together 15 years.

"I was a stay-at-home mum for eight years and now Annette's taken a year out for the [two] girls.

"But I can't let go of that role - I get home and still try to control everything."

Tina’s current storyline sees her planning to start a family with girlfriend Tosh (Rebecca Scroggs). But their plans are about to fall apart when Tina’s sideline in hash brownies at the cafe is exposed…

EastEnders, BBC1, Monday, July 21, 8.00pm.

EastEnders’ Luisa Bradshaw-White explains to Soaplife why Tina sticks with terrible Tosh…

Tina’s all loved up, but with Tosh itching to start a family while demonstrating a fuse so short she’s making Shirley look laidback, the future doesn’t look bright. “Tina has never been treated amazingly well and there is emotional abuse there, but she loves Tosh and wants to keep her,” Luisa tells Soaplife.

We all saw Sonia kiss Tina… What’s happening between them?

“Tina and Sonia have made friends again, but it all explodes when Tosh finds out about the kiss. Tosh confronts Sonia in a really messed up way, saying she’s all right about it when she’s not. Sonia is a bit intimidated by Tosh, so she starts to back off.”

But Sonia tells Tina that Tosh knows about the kiss…

“Tosh starts playing with Tina’s mind and it’s even hard for me to work out what is real and what is her twisting things. It’s not at all straightforward. The relationship will destroy a lot of Tina’s confidence, but the reason she stays in it so long is because she feels as if she is the one in the wrong and ends up apologising.”

Do you think viewers would like to see Tina get together with Sonia?

“People like the idea of it, but I think there is also some really good stuff with Tosh. They have got something really good when it is going right.”

How does Dean get mixed up in all of this?

“He is stirring between Tosh and Tina. I think he is very protective of Tina and is trying to get in between them.”

Tosh is keen for them to start a family. Is Tina?

“Tina goes along with it, but she doesn’t want it. She talked about how she was an awful mum to Zsa Zsa and she had this relationship but messed it all up, which makes sense because she was off her face on drugs at the time. Part of her wonders if it could be different this time. She is not confident about the idea of having children, but goes along with it to keep Tosh.”

What reaction are you getting from fans?

“When I started, Linda Henry [Shirley] told me that people never approached her because they are scared, ‘But they will be all over you’, she said and she was right. People want to touch me because Tina is so endearing. People have never been this nice about anything I’ve ever done before, so I’m very happy.”

EastEnders, BBC1. Click here for listings details.

Tina Carter's ex-girlfriend is due to turn up in Albert Square and cause some trouble, it has been revealed.

Rebecca Scroggs has been cast in EastEnders as firefighter Fiona 'Tosh' Mackintosh in the BBC soap.

Tosh is described as a "troublesome ex" who arrives in Walford to try and get back together with Tina (Luisa Bradshaw-White).

She is described as strong, feisty and bright, and is set to clash with Tina's sister Shirley Carter (Linda Henry).

Rebecca said: "I'm very excited to be joining EastEnders in my first major television role. I grew up watching the show and it feels amazing to actually be a part of it now!

"I'm really going to enjoy working with the Carter family, they've brought such great energy to the Square."

Rebecca - who has previously appeared in Death In Paradise - will appear on screen later this month.

Luisa Bradshaw-White tells TV Times magazine why it was a role in EastEnders that persuaded her back to acting…

It's great to see you back on screen – we used to love 1990s hit This Life!

"I was only 19 when I was in This Life and all the attention was mental. There were all these parties. It was full on and it was very difficult to keep grounded. From the age of 15 I’d been recognised a lot and whoever I was with had to put up with it too!"

After starring in Holby City as nurse Lisa Fox, you seemed to disappear for a while…

"I took a massive break after Holby and that was my plan. It was even longer than I expected – I was off for eight years being a mum. I did do the odd thing, but so much stuff is filmed in Manchester and Cardiff and I wouldn’t leave my family. Being a mum was a good part, and I am not handing it over now I am in EastEnders."

Had you always wanted a role in the show?

"I’d never wanted to do EastEnders. I always thought 'God no, I can’t cope with that sort of fame' or 'They work too hard.' But all of a sudden, I got older and felt more chilled out."

You're coming into the soap as Shirley Carter’s sister, Tina…

"The casting director said she had me in mind as her wild card for Shirley’s sister – but then, the character was a 50-year-old who was overweight and past it. I turned up looking lovely to ask them if they had anything else for me and they rewrote the part! It is such a good part. Tina is really funny and has some brilliant one-liners. She and Shirley spend a lot of time shouting, but there is real love there."

Is their relationship tempestuous, then?

"They don’t shout through anger, it’s just what they do and the next minute they are talking normally or giggling. Tina has been living in Greece. Her daughter is Zsa Zsa, who has already been in the show. Shirley is older than Tina and brought her up alongside their brother, Mick, who is played by Danny Dyer."

Has the experience of being on the show been good so far?

"It flows and feels so right. I am amazed at how chilled out I have been. It feels lovely to have a little bit of my life back. Also, I always learn my lines at work, so that when I am at home, I can give my children my undivided attention. They are both at school and at the moment, it is working out very well. We can all cope with it and if there is ever a time when we can’t, then I won’t do the show any more."

What do your family think of you being in the show?

"They haven’t bought into this. I am happy to publicise the show and talk about the role, but as much as I can, I want to keep my personal life out of it. So far, I am feeling really excited. You know how you get your phases in life, the big moments where you start all over again, it’s like you are shedding your skin. I’ve just shed my skin and I have got a new layer."

Former Holby City star Luisa Bradshaw-White is to join the cast of EastEnders, playing the cheeky sister of hard-nosed Shirley Carter.

The actress - also known for her role in BBC drama This Life and more recently ITV's Home Front - will head to Walford to join EastEnders in November.

She has already begun filming scenes ahead of her arrival on screen.

Tina - younger sister of Shirley, who is played by Linda Henry - is described by the BBC as 'cheeky, full of energy, loud, brash and can be very, very naughty'.

The 37-year-old actress said: "I am so excited to be joining EastEnders to play Tina as she is such a brilliant character to play. Linda is an amazing person to work with and the energy between Shirley and Tina is explosive."