Julie Bates (Karen Henthorn) was left in tears in EastEnders after discovering a goodbye letter from her beloved husband Nigel (Paul Bradley), who died in emotional scenes last week. Nigel passed away following a near-two-year battle with dementia, which saw him return to Walford to reunite with his best mate Phil Mitchell (Steve McFadden) after three decades.
His comeback led to him discovering that Phil was struggling with his mental health, and he proved a great source of support for the former mechanic, who attempted to take his own life during his struggles. In return for Nigel's friendship, Phil offered to be right by his side until the very end following his dementia diagnosis. He also became a rock for Julie, who subsequently arrived on the Square. Both she and Phil looked after Nigel until his death last week.
Nigel died after a bout of pneumonia, with his loved ones gathering by his bedside to say goodbye. Phil and Julie were with him at the care home at the end. The residents of the Square, including Julie, worried about Phil's mental health in the wake of his best mate's passing, but – much like he promised his dear Nige – Phil was determined to live every moment.
Julie, however, struggled to hide her grief. Not wanting to risk disrupting Phil's positive outlook on life, she decided to head to the care home on her own to pack up the last of Nigel's things. Kat Slater (Jessie Wallace) saw her in the Minute Mart and, realising she was undertaking such an emotional task alone, she railed at Phil and Sam (Kim Medcalf), who were taken aback to learn of Julie's plight.
Without wasting a second, the two followed Julie to the care home and provided her with the emotional support she needed. Julie was appreciative and shared another moment with Phil as they talked about life without their beloved Nigel. But as Julie cleaned up the last few bits in the room, she stumbled upon a letter addressed to her, written by Nigel prior to his death, which left her taken aback.
‘Night, night sweetheart,’ she said as she left the care home one last time. When back at No. 55 Victoria Road, where she resides with Phil, she claimed that the letter was just a list of people Nigel wanted contacting for the funeral. But as Phil left the kitchen, Julie removed the still-sealed letter from her pocket. Emotional, she put it away in the cupboard. The question is: just what does Nigel's final message to her say? And will Julie be able to open it?
EastEnders airs Mondays to Thursdays at 7:30pm on BBC One or streams from 6am on BBC iPlayer.
