EastEnders star Larry Lamb reveals update about his future on the soap

The actor previously played Archie Mitchell in the long-running BBC soap but with Gavin & Stacey now finished, could he make a comeback?

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Larry Lamb at the 35th Book Awards (Image: British Book Awards)

National treasure Larry Lamb has revealed whether or not his character Archie Mitchell would ever make a comeback to Albert Square. The 77-year-old played the evil crook and rapist, father of Roxy and Ronnie, for almost 18 months before he met his grisly end at the hands of Stacey Slater and the bust of Queen Victoria.

However, just because Archie died doesn’t mean he couldn’t make a comeback – perhaps a long-lost twin brother? Or faked his own death with the help of Janine? The possibilities might be extreme, but not unheard of, after all, anything is possible in soapland.

The Express caught up with Larry at the annual British Book Awards 2025, held at the swanky Grosvenor House in Mayfair. Presenting the award for Book of the Year: Crime & Thriller, sponsored by the Daily Express, to Abir Mukherjee for his book, Hunted, Larry also discussed his new novel, All Wrapped Up.

Archie was smashed over the head with the bust of Queen Victoria (Image: BBC)

Asked if there was anything that could persuade him to return to Albert Square, a fat paycheck, perhaps, Larry said: “It’s not about that, people have got to be prepared to face the fact that stories come to an end. Archie Mitchell had his day. They wrote a character that was so strong, so powerful, what are you going to do? You can’t go back and pretend he’s come back to life.

While Larry’s days in two of the BBC’s most beloved shows might be over, the veteran star is keeping busy as a book author. His debut novel, All Wrapped Up, tells the story from behind the scenes of a movie following the path of a first assistant director who is determined to see his film get finished.

Larry described Archie as ‘strong and powerful’ (Image: BBC)

Drawing on his own experience on set, Larry said: “It’s about the crew, it’s not about the actors, it’s about the people who actually make the films and TV shows. They’re the brains behind it all. When I first got into this business, I was working in construction in the oil and electrical power line business, working with crews of guys distanced from their homes and families.

“When I got into this business, as I got into film and television, there was someone who did my job, which had been back then, which was the first assistant director. That’s when the idea came along about writing a story about the reality of making a show or film. I was so fascinated by them, I always watched them. I knew somewhere there was a story in this.

“I thought about [the story idea] about 30 years ago and carried it with me. I always thought of it as a film but then a friend was saying to me, you’ve got to be able to fictionalise part of your life and while I was telling her that I couldn’t, I thought hang on a minute, I could write that story as a novel