Letitia Dean has become a staple of EastEnders, playing the feisty and formidable Sharon for over thirty years.
First joining the BBC soap in 1985 at the age of 17, Letitia’s character has been at the centre of major plot points throughout the show. Fans who tuned into the highly-anticipated Christmas Day episode saw her nearly strangled to death by her raging groom Keanu.
Luckily for Sharon, Linda Carter came to the rescue by stabbing the mechanic in the back. Fans have been sharing tons of theories about Sharon and the rest of The Six – which also includes Linda Carter, Denise Fox, Suki Panesar, Stacey Slater and Kathy Beale.
READ MORE: Inside EastEnders’ Danny Dyer’s stunning home – DIY gym, huge igloo and sprawling garden
READ MORE: Join the Daily Star Soaps WhatsApp for all the latest spoilers and exclusives
As Sharon, Letitia has been embroiled in multiple love scandals, including an infamous love triangle with Grant and Phil Mitchell – as well as her recent affair to Keanu Taylor. But once the cameras stopped rolling, Letitia’s love life has been anything but plain sailing.
(Image: BBC / Jack Barnes)
Having grown up in the public eye, joining EastEnders at a young age, Letitia was slammed several times for her weight and looks, affecting her ability to get out onto the market. She admitted that her self-confidence had been torn down as a result of the constant barrage of hate, which resulted in her getting breast reduction surgery.
Due to her lack of confidence, she struggled to keep a solid relationship, going through multiple flings throughout the 1990s. However, when she met Holby City star Jason Pethers in 2001, Letitia believed it was love at first sight.
(Image: Alpha-Steve Finn)
Then aged 35, Jason and Letitia got engaged after just months of knowing each other. The pair officially tied the knot the following year in September 2002, much to the happiness of the lucky couple, and their families.
Amongst the lucky guests to go to the wedding were Susan Tully, who played Michelle Fowler on the soap was a close friend of Dean’s at time. As well as this, several of the cast and crew from the show, both from the past and the present, were invited along for the celebrations.
(Image: WireImage)
But despite the initial whirlwind romance the pair enjoyed, after the honeymoon, problems began to arise between the pair. Primarily, the pair began to grow apart after they realised they had different opinions on having children.
Whilst Letitia was keen to have children as soon as possible, Jason had more of a desire to wait until he could afford to look after the child. The pair continued to argue on the point, and after five years together, the couple officially cut ties in 2007.
Speaking at the time, Letitia’s mother-in-law Joan admitted that Pethers wanted to wait until he was able to look after his wife and child financially. She added: “I guess they just fell out of love for the time being,” before insisting that they both still loved each other – even though Letitia was heartbroken.”
(Image: BBC/Jack Barnes/Kieron McCarron)
However, despite the high-profile divorce the pair went through due to extensive media coverage, Letitia explained that the pair were still on good terms. Speaking to the Mirror years later, Dean reflected on her time together with Jason, saying: “I do not regret one minute of my time with Jay. I was in love – desperately in love – and I can’t reiterate enough how thankful I am that I did get married to that man.”
Since then, Letitia has kept her love life extremely private, with Dean giving no information away as to whether she has a new beau. She also avoids the topic where possible, instead choosing to focus on her acting work and her charity drives.
EastEnders airs every Monday to Thursday at 7:30pm on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.
For more of the latest showbiz and TV news from the Daily Star, make sure you sign up for one of our newsletters here.
Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
