Jamie Bamber has revealed what EastEnders fans can expect from his new character, Ned Hawkins, and the arrival of his family is set to cause significant disruption in Albert Square. The former Battlestar Galactica star joins the BBC soap as part of the Hawkins family, who arrive in Walford after their home is destroyed by a fire.
The family, carrying little more than suitcases and cardboard boxes, are immediately thrust into a drastically different life and turn to Nicola, played by Laura Doddington, for accommodation. According to Bamber, Ned is the one family member who remains remarkably composed despite the unfolding disaster.
Ned Hawkins: A Therapist with a Military Past
“The first thing you notice about Ned is that he is put together. He knows the cut of his cloth. He knows the impact he makes,” Bamber explained. “He’s someone who believes in discipline, making the most of your own opportunities in life. He is a failure when you first meet him, and yet he doesn’t behave like a failure.”
That confidence is likely to make Ned stand out from his family, particularly as they begin anew from scratch. “This family are essentially refugees from Essex. They rock up with cardboard boxes and suitcases with nowhere to go,” Bamber said. “We knock on the door and knock into her house like a tornado, like a hot mess of people whose lives are ruined.”
The Hawkins have gone from seemingly having everything to losing their home and possessions, leaving them with no choice but to rely on family. The character has a military background and has since trained as a therapist, specialising in PTSD. Additionally, he has experience diffusing bombs.
Calm Under Pressure in Albert Square
Bamber believes those skills explain why Ned is so composed when everything around him is falling apart. “He’s a former military man. He’s from nothing. He’s worked his way up through the ranks. He’s become a therapist, which is a strange pairing, but he’s trained in the army as a PTSD therapist.”
“He’s someone who can talk, someone who can listen. He used to diffuse bombs, so he stays calm in extraordinarily tense situations,” Bamber added. That composure could prove useful in Albert Square, as tensions quickly emerge within the family. Ned already has history with Nicola, and Bamber teased that their relationship will be particularly interesting to watch. “It’s quite apparent straight away that there is some tension between him and the only other character he knows on the square, which is his sister in law Nicola.”
The Hawkins may be united by the disaster they have endured, but Bamber says there is much more beneath the surface. “You’re seeing this family at rock bottom. They should be in bits. But they’re not. They’re something weird about that they’re able to function.”
Family Dynamics Under Strain
Before the fire, the family had been doing well, with Ned enjoying a successful business, a comfortable home and the sort of lifestyle that suggested they had plenty to look forward to. “The Hawkins have been doing fine. Ned has a successful business, the house, the cars, they probably had aspirations to build a pool. It all went south,” Bamber said.
Now, the pressure of starting again could put those family relationships under serious strain. “That can be super stressful. People can go for each other’s throats. They can blame each other, they can hold each other accountable for the crazy decisions, and believe me, they’ve made some crazy decisions to get to this point,” Bamber explained. Despite all of that, he insists there is a strong bond holding the Hawkins together.
EastEnders executive producer Ben Wadey also explained why introducing such a large family was something that had to be carefully considered. “It’s something that you don’t take lightly. It’s a big thing to do,” he said. “I deliberately waited quite a long time before bringing in a family of this size.” For Wadey, timing and storytelling were crucial to ensuring each member of the family had their own place in the Square. “You want to make sure that you have the space in story terms to actually give all of these characters stories in their own right.”
As Bamber puts it, there are some big questions surrounding the family: “Why does this work? What binds them together? Why is Ned not worried?” He added, “It’s really about what you do to survive and what you’ll sacrifice. Where does your moral boundary lie? Is it just the family or a bit beyond?” Those are questions EastEnders looks set to explore, and with Ned’s bomb-diffusing past, fans might want to keep a very close eye on what happens next.
