EastEnders fans BAFFLED after spotting THIS celeb lurking in Ian Beale's house

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What is HE doing there?

A bizarre moment from last night's instalment of EastEnders left fans of the BBC One soap seriously confused.

In the strange scene Ian Beale could be seen arguing with Sharon Mitchell and his mum Kathy over his son Bobby's latest violent act.

During Friday night's episode, Bobby, who killed his sister Lucy Beale back in 2014, lashed out and pushed Sharon's son Dennis Rickman over, causing him to bang his head on the coffee table.

EastEnders Ian Beale

EastEnders fans spotted a familiar face lurking in Ian's house last night (Picture: BBC)

As Ian, Sharon and Kathy discussed Bobby's aggressive episode, viewers were taken aback by a far from fitting photo of a familiar face on Ian's shelf.

Taking to Twitter, hordes of eagle-eyed fans pondered why the Albert Square resident seems to be the proud owner of a large image of South Africa's former President, Nelson Mandela.

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'How come Ian has a framed picture of Nelson Mandela in the living room? #EastEnders,' one asked, while a second continued, 'Since when has Ian Beale has a framed photo of Nelson Mandela on his sideboard? #Eastenders.'

'Obsessed with the fact In has a picture of Nelson Mandela in his house #eastenders,' laughed a third. 

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One more hilariously stated that a reverse situation would be even more odd, posting a doctored image of Nelson Mandela relaxing in an arm chair beside a framed snap of Ian.

'That photo of Nelson Mandela looking over Ian and judging him. ,' another cheekily chipped in.

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Meanwhile, other watchers were fixated on pregnant Walford icon Sharon's sheer enjoyment of a jar of pickled gherkins, despite the drama going on in the rest of her life.

'I aspire to reach Sharon’s level if extra, despite homelessness and a b*****d child she is still living her best life with her pickles,' joked one Tweeter.

EastEnders airs Monday and Friday at 8pm and Tuesday and Thursday at 7.30pm on BBC One.

Caitlin Elliott

Caitlin is Junior News Editor for woman&home, covering all things celeb, fashion, beauty and lifestyle. 


Having set her sights on becoming a magazine journalist when she was a child, Caitlin took on work experience stints at local papers and titles such as Cosmopolitan, Now, Reveal and Take a Break while studying for her Multimedia Journalism degree and has interviews with celebs, reality stars and the Archbishop of Canterbury under her belt (of course, she couldn't resist asking him about Meghan Markle and Prince Harry). After leaving uni, she dabbled in fashion PR as a Press Assistant for Topshop before becoming a part of the Now team at Future for her first real job in the world of online journalism, joining the ranks as a Digital Writer in 2019. Caitlin went on to add the likes of Woman, GoodtoKnow, WhatToWatch and woman&home to her writing repertoire before moving on to her current role. 


When she's not working you'll find Caitlin sipping bubbles at brunch with her besties, thinking about her next iced coffee, trying to close the rings on her Apple Watch, scrubbing up on her royal family knowledge or scrolling through the Zara app, trying to resist tapping 'check out' again.