EastEnders' boss Kate Oates has said there was "only ever one candidate" that the planned to kill off in the show's 35th anniversary celebrations.

The popular BBC soap is marking the massive milestone with a week of episodes around a tragedy at the Carters' boat part, which will see a major character get killed off. Earlier this week, Mick and Linda Carter were both left fighting for their lives - and there are a number of other beloved characters who may be finding themselves in danger this week. Ultimately, the identity of the unlucky victim will be revealed on Friday, February 21 - but both Kate and executive producer Jon Sen admitted there was only one candidate as to who it could be. "There is something almost like a tragedy about this particular person who dies and it could be argued that it's been set up for some time. It is like a Greek tragedy." Kate told DigitalSpy.  "In retrospect you'll see that there is only ever one candidate really who can generate the story we wanted to tell going forward for months and months," Jon added. Danny Dyer, who plays Mick Carter, previous admitted that the identity of the boat party victim was a "total shock". “It was a real shock to everyone, honestly,” Dyer told RadioTimes at the NTAs, as he discussed the scenes. “It’s really powerful stuff, and we’re trying to get a message across, and sometimes when you do that, you’ve really got to go full throttle with it.”