EastEnders’ Debbie Bates makes a shock return to the BBC soap 30 years after her death in emotional scenes with Nigel.
EastEnders has revisited the story of Debbie Bates, marking her return to the BBC soap three decades after her sudden death.
Debbie, played by Nicola Duffett in the 1990s, was the devoted wife of Nigel Bates (Paul Bradley). Together, they brought up their daughter Clare (Gemma Bissix), forming a close and loving family on Albert Square.
Tragedy struck just two years into Debbie’s time in Walford when she was killed in 1995, leaving Nigel devastated. She stepped into the road and was struck by a passing car, dying instantly.
Following Debbie’s untimely death, Nigel later found comfort with Clare’s teacher, Julie Haye (Karen Henthorn). The pair eventually married and moved to Scotland in 1998 to begin a new chapter.
Fast forward to Christmas 2024, Nigel made a dramatic return to Walford, where he reunited with his old friend Phil Mitchell (Steve McFadden). He later revealed that he had been diagnosed with early-onset dementia, according to the Mirror.
On Tuesday, December 23, the BBC soap aired a special episode showing Nigel’s condition deteriorating as he slipped into memories from his past.
His fading memory transported him back to 1990, where he reconnected with familiar faces including Pat Butcher (Pam St. Clement) and Barry Evans (Shaun Williamson).
In an especially touching moment, Nigel was also reunited with his beloved Debbie, and the couple shared a slow dance together in The Queen Vic.
So, where is Nicola Duffett today?
Nicola Duffett, who played Debbie Bates, first rose to fame in 1992 after appearing in the Oscar-winning film Howards End. She later joined EastEnders, where she portrayed Debbie from 1993 to 1995.
Following her two-year run on Albert Square, Nicola — now 62 — went on to star as Cat Matthews in Family Affairs from 1998 to 2005. During this period, she enjoyed a high-end lifestyle thanks to a lucrative contract, taking multiple holidays each year, dining at exclusive restaurants, and splurging on luxury shopping at designer stores such as Harrods. However, when acting work began to dry up, her once-healthy savings quickly disappeared.
In 2005, Family Affairs was cancelled by Channel 5 after bosses decided the soap was no longer pulling in enough viewers, with the final episode airing in December of that year.
Reflecting on the experience, Nicola told The Croydon Advertiser in 2009: “I wish I had learned to save, but actors aren’t very business-minded. I really struggled when Family Affairs was axed.”
She went on to describe her transition from working regularly in television to signing on at the Job Centre. “I’ve gone from not worrying about prices at all to checking the cost of everything,” she said.
However, Nicola added that she found unexpected joy in the change, explaining: “I love finding a bargain now. It’s far more rewarding than constantly dining at expensive restaurants and simply paying the bill.”
She was declared bankrupt in 2007. Thankfully, Nicola’s acting career later recovered, and she went on to secure roles including Reet Ellison in Endeavour (2020), Amy Penketh in The Coroner (2016), Daisy Skelton in Waterloo Road (2013), and Eileen in Made in Dagenham, among others.
She also appeared in Coronation Street in 2020, playing Lucie Fernsby across four episodes of the long-running soap.
More recently, Nicola has featured as Bernice in Murder, They Hope and as Geraldine in the 2022 Amazon Prime series Agatha Raisin.
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