EastEnders has a rich well of historic characters to draw upon when it comes to creating a memorable, awe-inspiring and, most importantly, audience-grabbing return. The only problem? A lot of them are dead.

Still, death doesn’t have to mean the end in soapland, particularly in EastEnders, which has seen not one, not two but three characters rise from the grave, and not in an icky, Resident Evil type of way.

Den Watts (Leslie Grantham), survived the gangland hit that had supposedly killed him, returning years later. Kathy Beale (Gillian Wright) was another death-faker, alongside her former daughter-in-law, Cindy Beale (Michelle Collins), who’s undoing was reversed when it was revealed that she’d entered witness protection upon her own pretend demise.

In an exclusive interview with Metro entertainment reporter, Emily Bashforth, star Martine McCutcheon, who’s recently partnered with Costa to spread festive warmth this Christmas, discussed whether or not she’d be up for reprising (and resurrecting) her role as Tiffany Mitchell.

Martine would be ‘up for’ an EastEnders return

‘I’ve never even really had a chance to think about it because I’ve been so busy with the opportunities it gave me in the first place to keep going and keep evolving,’ Martine started.

‘Honestly, if they approached me and the time was right and the storyline was something believable and really amazing, I think it would have to be amazing for me to justify it, because if it wasn’t, so many people would be disappointed.’

Martine elaborated further: ‘It would be a big pressure because Tiffany was such an icon, and it would be so easy to do her a disservice. But I would definitely do it if it was right, because I just loved playing her so much.

‘She just had no rules. She was fearless and feisty and an amazing character to play. For that reason alone, for selfish reasons, I’d love to do it, but it would have to be right.’

Who was Tiffany Mitchell?

While some younger ‘Enders fans may not recognise Tiffany, long-time viewers of the soap will remember she was introduced as a school friend of Walford icon Bianca Jackson (Patsy Palmer), before becoming a prominent part of the show in her own right.

Tiffany had a one night stand with Grant Mitchell (Ross Kemp), which lead to a classic ‘who’s the daddy’ saga when she fell pregnant soon after while also dating Tony Hills (Mark Homer) (who was also knocking off her brother, Simon).

Upon marrying Grant, he quickly turned into a controlling an abusive monster, with their marriage becoming a volatile mess, only coming to a definitive end when poor Tiff discovered Grant was sleeping with her mum.

Yup, both of her partners cheated on her with a member of her immediate family. Poor girl.

After she attempted to frame Grant for pushing her down stairs, she changed her mind and decided to flee Walford with her and Grant’s daughter, Courtney. When Grant was released on bail, he got to Courtney first and, upon learning of Tiffany’s plans, tried to depart the Square. In hysterical pursuit, Tiffany ran into the path of Frank Butcher’s (Mike Reid) car and was killed, bringing her reign as Walford’s sweetheart to a close.

In her autobiography, Who Does She Think She Is?, Martine spoke of displeasure upon learning that Tiffany was to be killed: ‘What I wanted to do was come back, no matter what happened.

‘To come back, walk into the Vic and say, `Hello Grant’. I told them that even if I had a number one single I would sign a contract to say I’d turn up in the Vic one last time because people would love it.’

Martine felt it was a punishment for her wanting to pursue a singing career: ‘I knew the BBC producers had given time off to other cast members. I thought they might do the same for me. But they wouldn’t budge.

‘They just said: `No – you either stay with it as it is or we’re going to kill you off’. I said: `Don’t you think that’s a little drastic? We’ve got the best writers in Britain. There are loads of wonderful, dramatic things we can do.

‘It doesn’t mean you have to kill her off forever. That leaves no hope for me, for the public as far as the character goes, and no hope for the show as far as Tiffany is concerned.’