Two new faces – Maggie Steed and Christopher Timothy – join EastEnders on Friday night.

The stage and screen stars play married couple Joyce and Ted Murray, who have been together for nearly 60 years and have been rehoused to Albert Square from a nearby estate.

Timothy, 76, said he was happy to say that the soap’s casting director thought he might not be old enough for the role of 80-year-old Ted.

The Murrays
Maggie Steed and Christopher Tommy as Joyce and Ted Murray (BBC/PA)

He said of the show: “It feels like a family, but that’s the integral thing about EastEnders.”

The actor added: “One cast member said it’s not a question of learning your lines, it’s a question of remembering your lines. I thought that was quite clever.”

Steed, 70, said: “It’s always strange walking into a set that you recognise so much, but you very soon get used to it is all I can say, and then you just carry on.”