EastEnders star Laurie Brett has broken her silence on her “intense, exciting, and emotional” Walford return.

Monday’s (July 15) episode featured Laurie reprising her legendary role as Jane Beale seven years after the character was driven out of Albert Square by Max Branning.

Cindy Beale came face-to-face with partner Ian’s old flame Jane when she secretly followed him to the Cotswolds, as he’d lied about attending a leadership conference.

Following her jaw-dropping return scenes, Laurie has addressed how she approached her return to EastEnders for a short stint.

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“I was quite nervous on the first day, thinking, ‘Gosh, do I remember how to be Jane?’ But even though I was nervous, I’d had quite a lot of time to think about it, having had the scripts for a while, so it was just about getting back into the swing of it,” she recalled.

“When I walked on set and saw Adam [Woodyatt] and Michelle [Collins], and also our director Karl Neilson, who directed the live episode in 2015, plus loads of the crew that I knew, all my worries melted away. There were so many familiar faces who were so welcoming. So, about half an hour in, it was like I’d never been away.”She went on: “It’s been so long since we last saw Jane that I was keen to know what the story would be to bring her back. So, I had a meeting with Chris Clenshaw (executive producer), and he laid out the story for me and why they’d love me to be a part of it. By the end of that chat, I was in.

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“I was excited to work with Adam again, as well as Michelle and Clay. It was also great to be reunited with Thomas Law [who plays Peter], who I’ve known since he was a child — although these days, I have to look up to speak to Tom, and I’m tall myself! It was just lovely.”

Monday’s episode featured a monumental moment in EastEnders history when Jane and Cindy Beale faced off for the first time.

“It is a bit of a shock,” Laurie said. “They’ve never met before, but Jane knows an awful lot more about Cindy than Cindy knows about Jane because of all those years she spent with the Beale kids. So, Jane is sideswiped by Cindy, but she’s also a bit indignant, thinking, ‘What are you doing in my house?’

“Seeing Cindy is almost like seeing a ghost for Jane. Jane’s head is spinning, which is only natural, given how bizarre this situation is.”

As expected, Cindy and Jane won’t exactly hit it off as they both compete for Ian’s affection.

“There is a lot of drama, certainly, between these two women,” Laurie teased. “But they are both mothers — funnily enough, of the same children — and most mothers would do anything for their kids. What Jane did in that terrible moment with Lucy is unfathomable, but before that, she spent 15 years being a great mum to Cindy’s kids.

“Cindy is angry with Jane, and she also feels guilty that she wasn’t there, so she’s lashing out for all sorts of different reasons. They have both made mistakes, and they both know that, so it’s quite complex.”

jane and bobby beale in eastenders

There are more dramatic scenes ahead as Jane reunites with step-son Bobby a decade after she tried to cover up his murder of sister Lucy.

“The minute Jane sees Bobby, it’s almost like an out-of-body experience for her. The whole world stops, and all she can see is him,” Laurie explained. “Her heart is exploding with love, and everything else fades to black.

“It’s a beautiful moment. I think there are a few scenes that are going to make people cry. No matter what Bobby has done to Jane in the past, a mother will always forgive. You only have to look at Dot and Nick back in the day to see that’s true.”

While these scenes were difficult for Jane on-screen, Laurie was thrilled to be working with Ian actor Adam Woodyatt again following their off-screen reunion in the play Looking Good Dead.

“We did a play together only a couple of years ago, and we travelled and performed together, so we haven’t been apart as long as Ian and Jane,” she recalled. “It was joyous because I find working with Adam really easy and we have a sixth sense of where we are going with our scenes.”

As for working with fellow soap icon Michelle Collins, Laurie said: “We didn’t stop laughing. Michelle and I get on so well, and we are very similar women off-screen. Michelle is nothing like Cindy, and I’m nothing like Jane, but we are very similar creatures to each other in many different respects.

“On-screen, it was like the new Pat and Peggy with Cindy and Jane because the dynamic was very old school, but Michelle and I kept getting the giggles.”