Tasteless baby swap twist to follow EastEnders’ cot death scenes

EastEnders is to air a harrowing cot death storyline over the holiday period.

In what are being talked up as some of the most emotional scenes in soap history, Ronnie Mitchell (Samantha Womack) will lose her baby son to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDs).

However, in a rather tasteless turn of events the upcoming plot will see Ronnie swap her son’s lifeless body for Kat Moon’s (Jessie Wallace) healthy newborn baby.

“When Ronnie loses the one thing she’s always wanted she acts on impulse in a moment of sheer desperation.” – Executive Producer Bryan Kirkwood quoted by various outlets

A show source added: “It will not make for easy viewing, but the makers wanted to work on this subject.”

Bosses say they are looking to raise awareness of the 300 babies claimed by cot death every year.

EastEnders previously tackled cot death back in 1985 when Sue (Sandy Ratcliff) and Ali Osman (Nej Salih) suffered the loss of their son, Hassan, but soaps 25 years ago didn’t have to sensationalise serious subjects to keep audiences gripped.

“We are very grateful for their accurate depiction of the devastating effect the sudden death of an infant can have on a family.” – Joyce Epstein, Cot death charity FSID

The other Christmas story is the exit of Stacey Branning played by Lacey Turner.