Because Jo Bacon showed us that you don’t need to be a headline-grabbing villain like Janine Butcher to make an impact. Sometimes, the best villains are the ones who serve you tea with a side of emotional sabotage. She was memorable, frustrating, and absolutely essential to the Carter family drama.
Plus, her name is Jo Bacon. Come on—that’s a name that sounds like she’s either a butcher’s apprentice or a rock star’s backup dancer. It’s impossible to forget. And in a show full of Mitchells and Beales, that’s a superpower.
EastEnders and Love Actually legend dies at the age of 72 following
What We Learned
If you ever meet a character named Aunt Babe in a soap opera, run. If you meet a character played by Jo Bacon, grab your popcorn. She delivered drama with a capital D, and she did it while looking like she just popped in from a village fête.
Also, we learned that family is complicated. Shirley and Babe’s story is a messy, heartbreaking, and occasionally hilarious reminder that people can be terrible—but also that we should never, ever trust an aunt who talks about “helping” while holding a kettle. Ever.
