Kathy Beale

Kathy Beale
EastEnders character
Portrayed by	Gillian Taylforth
Duration	1985–2000, 2015–present
First appearance	Episode 1 "Poor Old Reg" 19 February 1985 (1985-02-19)
Classification	Present; regular
Created by	Julia Smith and Tony Holland
Introduced by	Julia Smith (1985) Matthew Robinson (1999) Dominic Treadwell-Collins (2015)
Spin-off appearances	Dimensions in Time (1993) The Ghosts of Ian Beale (2014) The Queen Vic Quiz Night (2020) TV Soundtracks EastEnders: The Six (2023)
In-universe information Other names Kathy Hills Kathy Mitchell Kathy Sullivan Kathy Richards Kathy Cotton Occupation Samaritans volunteer Barmaid Launderette assistant Market trader Café owner Chip shop owner Businesswoman Family Beale/Mitchell Father Dennis Hills Mother Brenda Hills Brothers Ted Hills Colin Hills Jonathan Hills Sisters Stephanie Hills Husband Pete Beale (1968–1991) Phil Mitchell (1995–1999) Gavin Sullivan (2001–2016) Tom "Rocky" Cotton (2023; void) Sons Ian Beale Ben Mitchell Daughters Donna Ludlow Stepsons David Wicks Zack Hudson Stepdaughters Sharon Watts Grandsons Peter Beale Bobby Beale Granddaughters Lucy Beale Lexi Pearce Nephews Tony Hills Nieces Sarah Hills Other relatives Louie Beale

Kathy Cotton (also Hills, Beale, Mitchell and Sullivan) is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Gillian Taylforth. Portrayed as "an attractive, bright, caring and highly moral woman", Kathy is one of the serial's original characters, appearing in the first episode of EastEnders on 19 February 1985. She is created as the second wife of Pete Beale (Peter Dean) and mother of their son Ian Beale (Adam Woodyatt). Taylforth was originally dismissed for the role of Kathy due to her young age, but was reconsidered when she impressed show bosses. The actress opted to leave the serial in 1997 and Kathy departed on 10 April 1998 after deciding to move to South Africa with her second son Ben. Kathy returned for two separate guest stints in 1999, making her departure on 6 January 2000. Despite reports that Taylforth would be returning to the serial, Kathy was supposedly killed off-screen in a road collision in 2006 to facilitate Ben's reintroduction to the serial. Taylforth reprised the role for a charity special in 2014. In the episode broadcast on 19 February 2015 to celebrate the show's 30th anniversary, Kathy made a surprise return to the serial - despite being presumed dead. It was confirmed that Kathy would be making a permanent return, and – after a guest appearance on 19 May 2015 – Kathy returned permanently on 17 August 2015. Taylforth was initially hesitant about her reintroduction storyline, which was inspired by the John Darwin disappearance case. In May 2019, it was announced that Kathy would open Walford's first gay bar.^[1] Taylforth appeared in her 2,000th episode on 22 May 2023.^[2][3] On 29 July 2024, it was announced that Taylforth would be going on a temporary break in the episode aired that night.^[4] Kathy returned to the serial on 19 August, after just three weeks off-screen.

Kathy remained in a prominent role throughout her original stint on the serial, including a friendship with Angie Watts (Anita Dobson), and featuring in high-profiled storylines involving her rape at the hands of James Willmott-Brown (William Boyde) and the discovery of a long-lost daughter, Donna Ludlow (Matilda Ziegler), after she was sexually assaulted as a teenager. In 1993, after the character's marriage with her husband Pete ended with the latter's departure from the square, Kathy developed a romance with Phil Mitchell (Steve McFadden). Their relationship suffered when Phil had an affair with his sister-in-law Sharon Mitchell (Letitia Dean) — a storyline popularly dubbed "Sharongate". Kathy and Phil later had a son, Ben, who caused Kathy turmoil when he contracted a rare form of meningitis. The relationship between alcohol abuse and domestic violence was explored through Kathy and Phil in 1997, which led to their separation and Kathy's departure. In her subsequent return, she later had a brief fling with Phil's brother and Sharon's husband Grant (Ross Kemp).

Following her return in 2015, Kathy's husband, Gavin Sullivan (Paul Nicholas), was introduced and their turbulent marriage was explored. Kathy later had an affair with Buster Briggs (Karl Howman), and became critical in the events surrounding Max Branning's (Jake Wood) revenge campaign Albert Square – in light of the "Who Killed Lucy Beale?" saga – when Willmott-Brown returned in his plan to recoup his relationship with Kathy by taking control of the square for her. Additionally, Kathy has had relationships and flings with Masood Ahmed (Nitin Ganatra), Harvey Monroe (Ross Boatman) and Tom "Rocky" Cotton (Brian Conley) and feuds with both Max and his wife Rainie Branning (Tanya Franks) over the custody of her adoptive grandson Steven Beale's (Aaron Sidwell) daughter, Abi, with Sharon over her relationship with Ian, and Rocky’s niece Dotty Cotton (Milly Zero) who attempts to con her with Rocky. In July 2023, Kathy and Rocky marry, but Rocky ends up committing bigamy in the process, as his divorce from his first wife, Jo Cotton (Vicki Michelle), was never finalised. Kathy and Rocky later split when she discovers that he burned her café in an insurance scam which nearly killed her grandsons Peter (Thomas Law) and Bobby Beale (Clay Milner Russell). On Christmas Day 2023, Kathy helps to cover up the murder of Keanu Taylor (Danny Walters) in "The Six" storyline. In the process, she has Rocky arrested for his insurance scam.