Christmas is a time of tradition, and it’s no different for EastEnders – which, in addition to the yearly deaths and explosive fallouts, always seems to find time to fit in a wedding over the festive period.

In the 40 years that EastEnders has been on air, the soap’s put on a wedding on New Year’s Day. It’s as much a part of the Walford tradition as drunk Kathy, a Mitchell blowout, or someone getting killed.

Join us as we revisit some of the couples who’ve tied the knot over Christmas in New Year over the past four decades.

Grant and Sharon in EastEnders
The rest, as they say, is history (Credit: BBC/YouTube)
EastEnders Christmas weddings: Grant and Sharon were the first to make soap history
Iconic soap couple Grant and Sharon were the soap’s first to marry over the festive period, on Boxing Day in 1991. Grant had put together the whole thing as a surprise for Sharon – who wasn’t overjoyed at having a wedding sprung on her out of nowhere.

However, once Sharon’s temper settled, the pair married in a service at the local registry office, followed by cake and fizz back at The Queen Vic.

Of course, we all know how that one ended… with Sharon falling into her brother-in-law’s arms as her marriage to Grant deteriorated. Their affair and the subsequent Sharongate reveal led to Sharon and Grant splitting in 1994.

Mel on her wedding day
Mel dumped Ian hours after marrying him (Credit: BBC)
EastEnders Christmas weddings continued
The double wedding of Ian Beale and Melanie Healy/Barry Evans and Natalie Price
EastEnders celebrated the Millennium with an unforgettable double wedding. Ian Beale felt like the luckiest man in London to be marrying the gorgeous Melanie, but she was only doing it out of guilt after he’d made her believe his daughter Lucy was dying of cancer.

Mel discovered the truth hours after after becoming Mrs Beale and dumped Ian as Big Ben rang in the Year 2000. Meanwhile, Barry and Natalie’s big day was blighted by a series of clumsy mishaps, including a ruined wedding suit and dropped cake. However, their marriage did last a little longer than Ian and Mel’s. A whole two years in fact!

Billy Mitchell and Little Mo Morgan
Domestic abuse survivor Little Mo got her Christmas miracle when she married Billy Mitchell on Christmas Day 2002. Who can forget how Billy proposed by spelling out ‘Marry Me’ in alphabet spaghetti. It was plain sailing for the soulmates for one whole year before Little Mo was raped by Graham Foster.

She fell pregnant and decided to keep the baby. Little Freddie was born, but Billy and Mo’s marriage never recovered. They divorced and promised to stay friends, which is a rarity in Soapland!

Alfie Moon and Kat Slater
Christmas Day 2003 saw former maneater Kat Slater tie the knot with love of her life, Alfie Moon. The road to the altar had been littered with obstacles for the couple, which made their wedding worth the wait.

Kat looked beautiful in a festive red frock as she and Alfie exchanged vows in The Queen Vic. And as a final romantic touch, Alfie made Kat’s dreams of a white wedding come true by hiring a snow machine.

Janine killed Barry in EastEnders
Janine murdered Barry on their honeymoon (Credit: BBC)
Barry Evans and Janine Butcher
Barry signed his death warrant the day he fell for scheming Janine Butcher. She was only after his money, and arranged a quickie ceremony in Scotland after doctors wrongly informed Barry he was dying. The pair married on New Year’s Eve 2003, but then Janine discovered Barry wasn’t terminally ill after all. During a fateful walk on the Scottish moors, Janine confessed to Barry their marriage was a sham. He begged her not to leave, but she pushed him away in disgust. Barry tumbled down a hill to his death and Janine just stood there and watched. If only he hadn’t worn slip-on shoes.

Janine as Judith Bernstien
Janine Butcher aka Judith Bernstein (Credit: BBC)
EastEnders Christmas weddings continued
David and Janine Butcher’s Jewish marriage
“And she’s about as Jewish as a bacon sandwich,” declared Pat Butcher as she crashed stepdaughter Janine’s marriage to a rich, elderly Jewish man. This gullible gent went by the name of David and had been tricked into thinking he was marrying a lady called Judith Bernstein. The discovery that his new wife was a fraudster caused David to suffer a fatal heart attack. And Janine didn’t get a penny.

Zainab on Syed’s wedding day
Zainab discovered Syed’s secret on his wedding day to Amira (Credit: BBC)
Syed Masood and Amira Shah
EastEnders kicked off 2010 in style with its first Muslim wedding. Syed was marrying Amira, but had been having a gay affair with Christian Clarke behind her back. Christian outed their secret to Syed’s mum Zainab on the morning of the nuptials. Zainab forced her son to go through with the wedding, and Syed obeyed. But he couldn’t give up the man he loved. Four months later, Syed confessed everything to Amira and their marriage ended.

Charlie Cotton and Ronnie Mitchell
Ronnie’s second husband was Dot Cotton‘s grandson, Charlie. The couple got hitched on January 1, 2015, in one of EastEnders most dramatic weddings. After saying I do, Ronnie (who was heavily pregnant at the time) went into labour. The newlyweds jumped into their car to drive to hospital, not realising Charlie’s dad Nasty Nick had cut the brakes. The car crashed in the middle of the Square. Ronnie’s son Matthew was delivered safely, but she remained in a coma for weeks.

Mick and Linda Carter get married