EastEnders viewers spot big change to episode for first time in three years as Lola dies

Eastenders fans are flooding to social media over the soap's change to the episode preempting Lola's death.

I may have stopped watching Eastenders a good few years ago - my hardcore addiction to the soap while studying for GCSE's leading me to fear I would flop the exams - but even I couldn't help but watch last night's episode (Wednesday, 31 May).

The episode saw Lola Pearce-Brown (Danielle Harold) pass away after a battle with a glioblastoma brain tumour - and it left viewers in pieces.

While fans already knew the episode would be Harold's last - the 31-year-old actor having starred in Eastenders for a total of eight years - the soap also made a big change to the episode, which helped warn and prepare viewers further for the sad ending to Lola's story.

In the episode, Lola's husband, Jay Brown (Jamie Borthwick) walks into their bedroom to find the young mum having passed away.

Lola's lying on the bed, her daughter, Lexi (currently played by Isabella Brown) - from her one-night stand with Ben Mitchell (currently played by Max Bowden) - having fallen asleep next to her.

Jay breaks down, devastated he wasn't with Lola when she passed away, but he's soon heartbreakingly reassured by Lexi, who tells him Lola passed away when they were both unaware 'on purpose'.

Ahead of the final moving scene, Eastenders made a big change to the episode. However, as some diehard fans will know, it's a change which has taken place before.

Eastenders adapted the opening sequence of the soap - the aerial shot across London's East End and the Thames.

The colour scheme of the shot in Lola's final episode was made a lot darker than the usual opening.

The darker intro was similarly used in the episode of Eastenders which saw Dennis Rickman Jr pass away in 2020. It could be seen as a sort of content warning for viewers of the upcoming upsetting - and potentially distressing - content of a character passing away.

It didn't take long for viewers to flock to social media upon noticing the change.

One Twitter user said: "When #EastEnders change their opening titles to dark mode you know you’re in for an emotional ride. That’s Putting it lightly."

"Nah can I really watch this episode of Eastenders? Even the opening scene was black and white," another wrote.

A third commented: "You know #Eastenders means business with the dark opening titles."

"The opening credits already got me sad," a fourth added.

And a final resolved: "I didn't know how long I could hold it in for going into tonight's #Eastenders turns out putting the opening title sequence into dark mode was enough."

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