Gary Lucy defends EastEnders gay kiss: ‘Get with the times!’

Gary Lucy has addressed the complaints made about his recent on-screen gay kiss in EastEnders.

The BBC received two official complaints from viewers following the December 30 episode of the soap, which saw newcomer Johnny Carter (Sam Strike) kiss Danny Pennant (Gary Lucy) in Albert Square.

Gary told The Sun: “I think, ‘Get with the times!’ Reaction was, on the most part, positive. There were a few on Twitter still living in the dark ages but on the whole, people were okay.

“I got one message on the internet from a guy saying, ‘Thanks for that storyline because it gave me the courage to come out and tell my parents’. If you can do that, you as an actor and the show has done its job.”

The kiss was featured as part of a storyline which saw Johnny finally speak about his sexuality with his father Mick (Danny Dyer).

As well as appearing in EastEnders, Gary Lucy is currently competing on the final series of Dancing on Ice on ITV.