EastEnders, BBC One, 16 & 17 July 2015

Complaint

We received complaints from viewers who felt the scenes between Ben and Paul in the Chapel of Rest were inappropriate.

Response

We do appreciate that for some members of the audience the scenes in the Chapel of Rest might have a particular resonance, but it wasn’t our intention to cause any distress or upset to our viewers with Ben and Paul’s storyline.

When the Cokers were introduced as funeral directors, it was inevitable that their work would feature in storylines, and that in keeping with the tone of the show, these would range from serious to light-hearted.  We try very hard to be true to our characters and keep their comments and actions as authentic as possible, sometimes this will include actions others find disagreeable.

We approach our portrayal of homosexual relationships in exactly the same way as we do heterosexual relationships; ensuring depictions of affection or sexuality between couples are suitable for pre-watershed viewing. In this case we were careful to ensure the scene was implied rather than explicit, but we appreciate all of the feedback we’ve received.