EastEnders fans were in tears during last night’s episode (Monday, Feb. 14) as Jada Lennox (Kelsey Calladine-Smith) and Sharon Watts (Letitia Dean) shared a heart-warming moment on the anniversary of Denny Rickman's (Bleu Landau) death.
Sharon’s son, Denny, died in a boat crash on the Thames in 2020. Last year, Sharon made the mammoth discovery that Denny had a daughter called Alyssa, with classmate Jada. Currently, Jada, Alyssa, Zack Hudson (James Farrar), and Sharon have all moved in together after Jada ran away last year when she learned that Sharon was planning to take custody of Alyssa.
Zack finally found Jada and convinced her to come back, and since then, Sharon has been helping Jada secure a job and get back on her feet so that she can provide for Alyssa.
During last night’s episode, Sharon, Zack, and Jada had a touching moment bonding over Denny’s memory after Jada had given back a keyring he had given her. When Sharon noticed the gesture, Jada said: “That was Denny’s. I just thought, for his anniversary, it should be here.”
“I didn’t think you’d remembered,” Sharon responded, as Jada had not mentioned anything about it throughout the day, so Sharon assumed she had forgotten.
“Course I do. I’ll never forget the day they told us. There was this big assembly. People who didn’t even know him were crying. All the teachers he proper hated. I bunked off and, when I got home, I still had that on my keys. I remember looking at it and thinking…’You’re never going to see him again,’” Jada reflected.
“Denny got this from the pier in Southend. He was playing one of those drop coin machines, trying to nudge it over the edge. He was really proud when he finally got it," Sharon remembered.
“Yeah, well, he threw it at my head in Year Eight, so I kept it,” Jada quipped, to which Sharon thanked Jada.
Jada then went on to say: “I know I’m not doing everything perfect yet…but I really am trying. For Dennis and for Alyssa, I’m trying.”
Emotional fans took to social media to talk about the “wholesome” moment and how much they loved the scene…
I loved the scene of Jada and Sharon today, so wholesome I cried 😭😭 #EastEndersFebruary 15, 2022
i love these sharon zack and jada scenes #EastEndersFebruary 14, 2022
Sharon and Jada bonding over Denny ♥️♥️♥️😭😭💔💔#EastEndersFebruary 14, 2022
9/12 #EastEnders. The scene where Jada; Zack & Sharon were sharing memories of Denny was also lovely. It's good that she remembers what day it was and when she was told about Denny's death. This needs to be the thing that spurs her on in life.February 14, 2022
EastEnders continues tonight at 7:30pm on BBC1 — see our TV Guide for full listings.
