EastEnders viewers were on the edge of their seats on Christmas Day as Lauren Branning tore both the Knight and Beale family apart as she uncovered Cindy and Junior’s affair

Cindy Beale’s attacker has been uncovered after her brutal EastEnders Christmas Day attack.

The love rat was left horrified when daughter-in-law Lauren Branning revealed to the whole of Albert Square that Cindy had been sleeping with her ex-husband, George Knight’s son, Junior – behind her fiancé, Ian Beale’s back. As the drama continued to unfold, Cindy unleashed hell as she lashed out at her family including son Peter Beale and daughters, Gina and Anna Knight.

But the drama was far from over, after the affair was revealed in a dramatic way, Cindy pleaded with Ian to take her back and hoped the pair could make a new life in France. But Ian had a crafty trick up his sleeve, the local businessman had played Cindy at her own game and rejected her when she went in for a kiss.

He later launched her out of the family home, leaving her flat on her face in the snow as her life continued to crumble. However, as the episode came to a dramatic end, an anonymous attacker whacked Cindy over the head with a snow shovel from behind – leaving her unconscious in the middle of the Square.

Anna Knight was caught washing her hands moments after Cindy’s attack was revealed ( 
Image:
BBC)

As Cindy lay out cold, she was discovered by Kathy Beale and her former husband, George, who confirmed that she was still alive, although she was bleeding from her head. But seconds after the discovery, Elaine walked in to the kitchen to find Cindy and George’s daughter Anna rapidly washing her hands. In a state of shock, Anna claimed her dog, Tyson, had thrown up on her hands in an attempt to cover her tracks.

However, it emerged that Cindy’s fate was “not looking good” as she was rushed for a CT scan on her head. Gina, Kathy, George and Gina started discussing who the attacker may be, with George falsely claiming he had an alibi when Cindy was attacked. When Gina suggested that Ian was responsible, Elaine instantly leapt to the chippy owners defence.

George rushed to help Cindy – but later shared some incriminating evidence ( 
Image:
BBC)
Who do you think attacked Cindy? Click here to let us know in the comments below!

Kathy explained to Peter that Ian had taken off in a rage moments after kicking Cindy out of the house, with him later admitting he went “for a walk” to Lucy’s grave after suffering from palpitations. Cindy’s daughter Gina was also thrown into the mix as she returned home as Elaine was rushing to take blankets outside. When questioned on her whereabouts, she told her step-mum that she had been “nowhere” and had snuck off for fresh air.

Junior was also missing, with Peter and Kathy suggesting that Junior may have been responsible. “You better prepare yourself – for the worst,” Kathy told Ian. It emerged that Cindy had suffered “blunt force trauma to the head,” and was later taken in for surgery. Medics revealed that the extent of Cindy’s injuries were so brutal she was required to be placed in a medically induced coma as she was “not out of the woods.”

Junior was seen suspiciously lurking watching people attempt to help Cindy ( 
Image:
BBC)
Denise Fox dropped a major bombshell to George, revealing that she saw Junior “lurking in the shadows” as people gathered around Cindy in the Square, acting suspiciously as people attempted to help her. George later caught Junior rapidly packing a suitcase and gathering his passport before an apparent attempt to escape the country to Dubai.

George confessed to Kojo that he didn’t have an alibi for while he was at the boxing den before asking his brother to lie to the police for him. Fans have since expressed their theories on who may have attacked Cindy due to many local residents having issues with her. Taking to X, one said: “It makes sense that Anna Knight whacked Cindy,” as another penned: “Her mother is exposed as sleeping with her brother, and Anna reacts with a degree of nonchalance. What is this?”

“It makes sense, Anna Knight whacked Cindy,” commented a third. But others believe that two other characters may be behind the attack. Some believe Bobby Beale, the son of Ian may be behind the attack. Fans will remember that Cindy and Bobby had a volatile relationship after she returned, knowing Bobby had killed her daughter, Lucy in a similar attack in 2014.

Cindy’s attacker will be revealed in February as part of the upcoming 40th anniversary episodes ( 
Image:
BBC/Jack Barnes/Kieron McCarron)“Who hit Cindy? I’ll say Bobby. Jewellery box, lacrosse stick… snow shovel?” asked one. A second echoed this, penning: “EastEnders Bobby whacked Cindy over the head with a shovel.” But some also believe it may have been Kojo, George’s brother. Before the affair was revealed, Kojo had found out, causing him distress as he fled from Cindy.

As Cindy followed Kojo up a flight of stairs, he became even more distressed and eventually fell, leading him to spend time in hospital due to the severity of his injuries. After he regained consciousness, Cindy threatened Kojo, saying if he spoke about the affair, George and Elaine would send him back to Ghana – resulting in him staying silent and isolating himself from his family.

But fans will have to wait several weeks to find out who attacked Cindy. Bosses have now confirmed that the attacker will be unmasked during the upcoming 40th anniversary episodes. Executive producer, Chris Clenshaw said: “Our 40th anniversary storylines have been in the works for some time, but even at the very start of planning, we knew that we wanted to reveal the identity of Cindy’s attacker as part of this. Many characters currently find themselves in the line of question, but over the coming weeks, the audience can look out for clues themselves to who may be the culprit.

“Cindy’s attacker reveal is just one of many stories we have planned for the anniversary as it is set to be a week of explosive drama for the audience to remember.”