EastEnders bad boy Nick Cotton set for return to Albert Square.. months after his 'death'

DOT Cotton thought she’d seen the last of her villainous son Nasty Nick when she buried him in March.

But now she is in for a nasty surprise when EastEnders’ original bad boy comes back from the dead.

Producers yesterday revealed John Altman, who played Nick from the start of the soap, would be returning to Albert Square.

And Nick’s voice was heard on son Charlie’s phone in last night’s episode as a taster for his return later this year.

It is Altman’s fifth return to Walford, with his last departure coming five years ago.

When Dot, played by June Brown, was given the news he had died from a heroin overdose, it looked as if there might be no way back.

He isn’t the first EastEnders villain to come back after apparently being dead and buried.

Dirty Den, played by Leslie Grantham, also made an unexpected return.

Altman, 62, said yesterday: “After a five-year break I’m very pleased and much looking forward to returning to EastEnders.

“With the promise of some hard-hitting and gritty storylines, I’m sure the residents of Albert Square will be none too pleased to see Nick Cotton back on the streets of Walford.

“I’m also looking forward to working alongside Declan Bennett and Pauline McLynn. And of course being reunited and working once again with my ‘dear old Ma’, the wonderful June Brown.”

Show boss Dominic Treadwell-Collins has made a habit of getting popular old characters back on EastEnders as he tries to woo back former viewers.

Letitia Dean (Sharon Watts) Sonia Fowler (Natalie Cassidy) and Stacey Branning (Lacey Turner) are among the others who have returned to the soap under his guidance.

Treadwell-Collins said: “As we approach EastEnders’ 30th anniversary, it’s only fitting that our original bad boy – and soap’s most iconic villain – returns to Albert Square to cause more trouble for his Ma.”

A show source said: “Did he fake his own death and what was the motive? There are also big question marks around his son Charlie and if he has been telling the truth in the Square.

“With Nick back on the scene, nothing is going to be straightforward.”

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