'EastEnders' star to take a break from the soap next year

EastEnders logo
(Image credit: BBC)

EastEnders star Heather Peace, who plays Eve Unwin, has revealed she’ll be taking time out from Walford next year to go on tour.

Heather Peace Eve Unwin

Hitting the road: Heather is to showcase her musical talents at venues across the country. (Image credit: BBC)

The 46-year-old actress is an accomplished singer-songwriter, best known for her jazz recordings, and will play a series of dates in the Spring.

The tour will follow the release of a new EP.  

Peace tells us, “I had almost finished the EP when I got the job at EastEnders. I will release that in January. I won’t do it now because it’s all Christmas songs being played. 

“It’s really dancey - think Kylie disco album. I’ve gone down a much dancier route. 

“And I’ve got a tour in April - it’s the April 2020 tour that is now April 2022! Those were all prior commitments before signing on the dotted line.”

The first gig will be in Stockton-on-Tees on 21st April. It will be followed by dates in Hebden Bridge, Manchester, Birmingham, London, Southend, and Brighton. 

Full details can be found at heatherpeace.com.

Eve Unwin supports Stacey Slater in EastEnders

Trouble and strife: Eve and Stacey met in prison and are now married. (Image credit: BBC)

Peace arrived in Albert Square in October and her character was soon revealed to be the wife of show favourite Stacey Slater; Eve and Stacey having wed whilst in prison together in a bid to show the authorities that Eve had a solid family unit to support her on her release.

She previously had roles in the likes of London’s Burning, Ultimate Force and Waterloo Road, as well as rival soaps Coronation Street and Emmerdale.

Heather Peace London's Burning

Fighting fires: Heather as Sally 'Gracie' Fields in ITV drama hit 'London's Burning'. (Image credit: ITV)

Emmerdale was my first ever TV job and I was Andy Sugden’s teacher. Kelvin Fletcher was 13 then, and now he’s got massive muscles!” she adds.

“In Coronation Street, I was part of a mountain rescue team, rescuing Liam Connor.” 

This week, EastEnders fans will see Eve getting one over on the Panesars, while in future episodes, Eve is set to become involved with the square’s secret killer, Gray Atkins.

“There are scenes coming up with Gray,” Peace confirms, “and there are more scenes with the Panesars. 

"And someone enters Eve’s life that we might not expect her to have dealings with...”

EastEnders airs Mondays at 8.05pm, Tuesdays and Thursdays at 7.35pm and Fridays at 8.30pm on BBC One - see our TV Guide for full listings. You can also catch up on episodes on BBC iPlayer now. 

Alison Slade
Soaps Editor
Alison Slade has over 20 years of experience as a TV journalist and has spent the vast majority of that time as Soap Editor of TV Times magazine.  She is passionate about the ability of soaps to change the world by presenting important, issue-based stories about real people in a relatable way. There are few soap actors that she hasn’t interviewed over the years, and her expertise in the genre means she has been called upon as a judge numerous times for The British Soap Awards and the BAFTA TV Awards.

When she is not writing about soaps, watching soaps, or interviewing people who are in soaps, she loves going to the theatre, taking a long walk or pottering about at home, obsessing over Farrow and Ball paint.