‘Eastenders’ defends gay funeral parlour sex scene after complaints
By Will Stroude
Eastenders
bosses have defended a recent implied sex scene between Ben Mitchell (Harry Reid) and Paul Coker (Jonny Labey) after complaints from viewers.
Ofcom has received almost 50 complaints about scenes aired in last Friday’s episode of the BBC One soap, which saw the pair strip off and have implied sex in a funeral parlour next to an open casket.
Viewers saw the secret lovers make out next to an old lady’s corpse, before later getting dressed.
Responding to the complaints, a BBC spokeswoman said: “The millions of regular EastEnders fans who tune in each week know and expect dramatic storylines.
“We are always mindful of our time slot in which we are shown and the scenes in question were implied and not explicit.”
A spokesperson for Ofcom added: “We will assess these complaints before deciding whether to investigate or not.”
After bosses promised a “summer of gay romance” following Paul Coker’s onscreen arrival last month, viewers have seen him embark on a secret relationship with Ben, who remains in the closet and in a relationship with Abi Branning (Lorna Fitzgerald).
On a related note, we couldn’t help but notice that Ben’s new man is a bit of a dish – take a look at our in-depth picture special of actor Jonny Labey here.
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