Jean Slater

Jean Slater (also Walters) is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Gillian Wright. Her first appearance is in the episode first broadcast in the United Kingdom on 16 December 2004. Having only been introduced for one episode, Wright was reintroduced for four more episodes the following year and became more of a regular character in the following two years. The character is introduced as the mother of Stacey Slater (Lacey Turner) who suffers with bipolar disorder. Her disorder strains her relationship with her children, Stacey and Sean Slater (Robert Kazinsky). Wright researched the disorder to prepare for the role. In April 2010, it was announced that Jean would be written out of the series, however, Wright was awarded a reprieve in late 2010. Jean departed on 13 January 2011 and returned on 29 March 2011. On 11 December 2023, Wright appeared in her 1,000th episode as Jean.

Jean began an unlikely relationship with Michael Moon (Steve John Shepherd) in April 2012. Michael begins conning Jean in a storyline tackling investment fraud. Ollie Walters (Tony O'Callaghan) was introduced as a love interest for Jean in 2013. Wright announced her intentions to leave the series in July 2013. Jean departed on 17 September 2013, moving to Brighton with Ollie. Following her departure, Wright reprised the role for 15 episodes between 2014 and 2017, including for a storyline which saw Jean and Ollie marry. In December 2017, it was announced that Jean would be reintroduced as a regular character, along with Kat Slater (Jessie Wallace) and Mo Harris (Laila Morse). She returned on 20 March 2018. The following year, producers placed the character in an issue-led story as she is diagnosed with ovarian cancer.