Ross Kemp 'set for EastEnders return as Grant Mitchell'

Ross Kemp could return to EastEnders as Grant Mitchell early next year, according to reports.

Kemp, 51, will head back to Albert Square to save his alcoholic brother Phil, who falls off the wagon amid a bitter feud with Kathy Beale's estranged husband Gavin Sullivan, according to the Mirror.

Show bosses are said to have made Kemp's return a "priority" so iconic characters - Grant, Phil, Sharon and Kathy - can be reunited.

Kemp last appeared on the show in 2006 and has since gone on to make an award-winning documentary series.

Ross Kemp, Gillian Taylforth and Steve McFadden. Credit: PA Wire
Kemp with Barbara Windsor and McFadden. Credit: PA Wire
Ross Kemp has not appeared on the show in nearly 10 years. Credit: PA Wire

EastEnders Executive Producer Dominic Treadwell-Collins is reported to have "put out discreet feelers" to see if Kemp would be interested in a return.

"He has been quite encouraged by the response -storylines don’t get much bigger than getting the Mitchell brothers back together,” a show insider told the Mirror.

ITV News has reached out to BBC EastEnders for comment.

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