Composite image of Zoe Slater and Greg Dolan on EastEnders (Credit: BBC/Composite: ED!)
Soaps

Who’s Zoe’s tormentor? All we know about the terrifying Greg Dolan

Zoe's made a dangerous enemy

In EastEnders last night, (Thursday, September 4) the soap revealed the identity of the man who has been tormenting Zoe Slater – and it’s not Max Branning after all.

When Zoe first returned to the soap earlier this year, she told Alfie and Kat that she owed money to some dangerous people. She may have been lying about a lot of things, but that wasn’t one of them.

In a flashback, we learned that Zoe has been trying to track down the son she gave up at birth. In doing so, she had hired a Private Investigator, although things turned nasty when he demanded a further £5000, and then tried to assault her.

But what exactly do we know about Greg Dolan?

Zoe Dolan EastEnders
Zoe’s attempt to track down her son backfired (Credit: BBC)

Who is EastEnders villain Greg Dolan?

In the episode, Zoe’s Private Detective is named as Greg Dolan. After taking Zoe’s money, he demanded more cash and then tried to assault her. Hitting back, Zoe whacked him over the head with a lamp, leaving him for dead.

Back outside, she joined a waiting Max Branning, who was shocked to learn that she might have killed a man. It appears that she didn’t actually kill Dolan though, if her later claim that ‘he’s alive’ is anything to go by.

Dermott in Kat and Alfie: Redwater
Kat’s other twin, Luke Slater, was adopted by the Dolan family (Credit: BBC)

EastEnders fans spot Redwater connection

In the wake of last night’s episode, eagle-eyed fans spotted a connection between Zoe’s detective and the EastEnders spin-off, Redwater. In the (now forgotten) Kat and Alfie miniseries, it was revealed that Zoe’s twin brother (now also forgotten) had been adopted and was living under the adoptive name Dermott Dolan.

“Oh here’s one for you to chew over…. The guy that Zoe hit was called Greg Dolan…guess who he shares a surname with…!” pointed out one fan on X.

“it just a coincidence that the man who she hit’s last name is Dolan, the same last name as her twin brother Dermott Dolan?” asked another over on Reddit.

“Probably a coincidence or a cheeky little reference but did anyone else notice in the credits that the last name of the guy who Zoe attacked after asking her for more money is Dolan…” said another.

Is EastEnders setting up a future return for Dermott Dolan/Luke Slater? Or is it merely a wink to the soap’s past?

Greg Dolan talking to Zoe on EastEnders
This isn’t the actor’s first soap role (Credit: BBC)

Who played Greg Dolan on EastEnders?

Dolan was played by actor Dean Williamson, making his EastEnders debut. Dean previously appeared on Coronation Street in two roles, first appearing in 1998 as the biological father of Toyah Battersby.

He returned in 2012 and 2013 as Tez, the best friend of Karl Munro.

Other TV roles include episodes of Brookside, Holby City, Doctors, Dalziel and Pascoe, Casualty and Silent Witness. He has also appeared in the films Revenge of Billy the Kid and Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget.

Read more: EastEnders spoilers next week: Julie’s hiding something, Callum’s dad returns, and Jack tries to stitch up Ravi

7 exciting EastEnders spoilers for next week (Sep 8-12)


Joel Harley
Freelance Writer

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