EastEnders viewers 'solve' Shireen mystery - and it's nothing to do with Teddy

EastEnders viewers reckon they've cracked the case of who actually murdered Shireen Bashar - and it's not Teddy Mitchell.

In Wednesday's (March 12) episode, available on BBC iPlayer, Nicola Mitchell (Laura Doddington) dropped a bombshell that her ex-spouse Teddy was behind the demise of their son Harry Mitchell's (Elijah Holloway) girlfriend Shireen.

The BBC One soap is currently unravelling a clandestine paternity plot as Nicola conceals the fact that Zack Hudson (James Farrar) is the biological father of her teenage son Barney Mitchell (Lewis Bridgeman).

Nicola had intended to keep Barney's real dad under wraps, aware of Zack's half-sister Sharon Watts (Letitia Dean) having an affair with Teddy's cousin Grant Mitchell (Ross Kemp), her ex-husband.

However, when Sharon – now privy to Barney's paternity – sat down for a chat with Teddy, Barney unexpectedly spilled the beans about Sharon's unfaithfulness to his dad, reports Plymouth Live.

Teddy was left reeling in recent scenes after Sharon confessed about her fling with Grant and apologised, labelling it a mistake.

Teddy's anger escalated when Nicola walked in visibly distressed – fearing the truth about Barney's paternity had been revealed. However, Teddy was instead livid at Nicola for being aware of Sharon's infidelity and keeping him in the dark.

Zack arrived and lashed out at Teddy, branding him a "bully" with "little man syndrome" and brought up Sharon cheating again, which led Teddy to hit Zack down to the ground and kick him.

The confrontation was cut short by a troubled Barney who pleaded for Teddy to stop, resulting in Teddy saying sorry and taking off, while Nicola consoled Barney and Sharon tended to an injured Zack.

At Sharon's place, Sharon implored Zack to stay over and also pressed him not to confess to Barney about the risk to his safety, yet Zack ignored her plea. As he was about to leave, Nicola turned up at Sharon's and eavesdropped on the siblings' conversation, realising that Sharon had discovered Barney's true parentage, alerting them that this revelation spelled trouble for everyone.

Nicola cautioned them against revealing Teddy's secret, hinting that the menacing side of Teddy they witnessed was just a peek at his former self – the ruthless Teddy she once loved.

Attributing Barney for the transformation in Teddy, Nicola voiced her fear over what might happen if Teddy were to lose Barney, alleging that Teddy had killer instincts and was behind Shireen's demise.

Asserting that the truth would endanger them all, Nicola urged them to remain silent or face the same fate as Shireen, but viewers are sceptical of her version of events.

Fans have taken to social media to express their doubts: One wrote: "I think Nicola killed Harry's ex."

Another concurred: "Did Teddy really do that to Shireen or was it Nicola?". Another viewer remarked: "I'm not convinced Teddy is a killer. Perhaps someone in Nicola's network was involved, and she's covering for them."

One social media pundit speculated, "I'm convinced it was actually Barney who killed Shireen and Nicola covered it up and Barney is blissfully unaware."

Viewers are left on tenterhooks, wondering whether Teddy is truly to blame for his son's girlfriend's demise or if another twist is set to unravel.

EastEnders airs Monday to Thursday at 7.30pm on BBC One and available to stream on BBC iPlayer from 6am

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