Who is Bobby Beale's mother in EastEnders?

THE past will be coming back to haunt Bobby Beale next week as Cindy Beale is due for an explosive return to the Square.

Portrayed by Clay Milner Russell, the EastEnders lad could face the wrath of his stepmother. But what happened to his own mother?

Bobby Beale first appeared in the BBC One soap in July, 2003, following his birth.

However, with so many ups and downs, heartbreaks and break ups in the Square and even within the Beale family, it's easy to lose track of who his parents are.

The Beale clan is particularly vast itself with patriarch Ian (Adam Woodyatt) being the father of multiple children throughout and away from Walford.

Many fans of the London-based program have sometimes fallen for the misconception that Cindy Beale (Michelle Collins) is Bobby's mother.

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Diehard fans of the long-running soap will remember that he was actually born during Ian's marriage with Laura Beale, making him Lucy and Peter's half-brother.

The identity of his father also caused trouble as it was initially believed that Bobby was the son of Garry Hobbs because of Laura Beale's drunken fling with him.

To make matters worse for Laura, Ian had a vasectomy as he didn't want anymore children.

But when Bobby needed a blood transfusion, Garry was revealed to be part of the wrong blood group, leading everybody to the conclusion that he must actually be Ian's son.

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Yet Ian rejected Bobby and Laura while Garry was happy being the Bobby's father.

Sadly, Bobby's birth certificate pushed Garry to admit he couldn't be the baby daddy and, heartbroken, he handed Bobby over to Ian.

Viewers will know that Bobby grew up with his siblings (including adoptive brother Steven) and was adopted by Ian's long-suffering wife Jane, until he was convicted for the murder of his 20-year-old half-sister Lucy.

Bobby bludgeoned her with a music box in 2014 and confessed to it a year later.

The youngster has had his redemption arc ever since, turning to Islam to find peace from his killer past.

But with Lucy's mother Cindy set to return to Walford, trouble may come to Bobby.

Spoilers for next week have confirmed Bobby will spiral as he grows terrified Cindy may seek retribution for the death of her daughter Lucy.

To top it all off, he finds out that his most recent love interest, Anna Knight (Molly Rainford) is Cindy's daughter and the product of her past union with George Knight.

As a result, Bobby is concerned Anna may grow to resent him for killing off her half-sister.

How will things play out between them all?

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What happened to Laura Beale in EastEnders?

Laura Beale was portrayed by Hannah Waterman and met a tragic fate in April, 2004.

She first appeared on our screens when she was employed by Ian Beale as a nanny for his children Peter, Lucy and Steven.

Although Ian didn't treat her fairly, Laura became attracted to him and was very protective of him.

After using her for sex, Ian was asked for more commitment by Laura but refused, which prompted her to call off their arrangement.

A distraught Laura found comfort in Gary Hobbs and kissed him, leaving Ian Beale furious.

When she resigned, Ian was declared bankrupt and Laura decided to stay to help him look after the children – and they soon became a couple.

Laura bent over backwards for Ian, trying to raise money to buy the fish and chip shop so they could run it together and borrowing money from his former wife Mel Owen.

Ian soon proposed marriage to Laura but her wealthy father refused and didn't approve of the relationship due to the Walford legend's bankruptcy.

The pair still got married but when Laura discovered Ian knew about an inheritance she received, she wondered if his heart was in the right place.

Things went from bad to worse when she learned that Ian had been paying Janine Butcher to have sex with him and Laura embarked on a nasty feud with the Albert Square villainess.

This involved Laura throwing hot milk at Janine and she, eventually, ended in Garry's bed which led to her giving birth to Bobby, as mentioned above.

Janine and Laura's feud took another turn when both women argued outside the Queen Vic.

Laura flew into a rage but was pushed over, crying as she felt humiliated.

Later on, Janine stopped her from getting a job by badmouthing her and Laura responded by ruining her business venture.

The women ended up confronting one another at Laura's home but the row escalated into a fight where Laura was overwhelmed and strangled by Janine.

But the blonde bombshell left before causing Laura real harm and, feeling emotional, the latter told Ian he was Bobby's father before being shunned by the businessman.

Laura wrote him a heartfelt letter as Ian began to feel guilty and decided to visit her.

But in her haste to answer the door, she ran down the stairs and tripped on one of Bobby's toys, breaking her neck as she fell.

She was found dead by Pat Evans and Janine was charged with her murder before being given an alibi.

Pat also found Laura's letter to Ian and blood tests confirmed Ian is Bobby's father.