EastEnders boss Ben Wadey on whether he’s bringing back another Branning legend

When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission.

Has the EastEnders boss set his sights on a Tanya Branning return?. | Credit: BBC

EastEnders executive producer Ben Wadey has revealed if we can expect Tanya Branning (Jo Joyner) to return after her ex-husband Max Branning (Jake Wood) made a bombshell return to the soap after four years.

Over the past two years, the soap has seen the iconic Branning family expand. First, we saw the return of Lauren Branning (Jacqueline Jossa) and her cousin Penny (Kitty Castledine) in 2024. Now, in 2025, we’ve had Oscar Branning (Pierre Counihan-Moullier) and most recently, the legendary Max make an explosive comeback.

Max’s shock return this week revealed that he was in a relationship with Zoe Slater (Michelle Ryan) and he had given her £5,000 to help track down her long-lost son.

With both Tanya’s son and ex-husband now back on the scene, surely it would only be right to bring her back and sort out her chaotic family.

Tanya and Max with their son, Oscar Branning. | Credit: BBC

During an EastEnders press event, Wadey touched upon the possibility of Joyner returning as the beloved Branning matriarch.

“We’ve just given you Max and Zoe, let’s enjoy that!” he joked. “I mean, Jo is amazing, isn’t she? We’ve also got an amazing cast, brilliant performers that all deserve and need stories.”

While it looks like Tanya won’t be returning anytime soon, we did get an update on her whereabouts when her teenage tearaway son Oscar returned to the Square after eight years.

Tanya moved to Exeter with Oscar in 2013 after her turbulent marriage to Max ended. She has been living there ever since, but Oscar was forced to return to Walford after Tanya kicked him out when his gangster friend tried to petrol bomb their home.

With his on-screen ex-wife nowhere to be seen, Jake Wood has since teased a romantic reunion for one of the soap’s most iconic couples.

EastEnders airs Monday to Thursday on BBC One at 7.30pm. Episodes are also released on BBC iPlayer at 6am on the morning they are broadcast.

All the latest episodes are also available to stream on BBC iPlayer