Eastenders stalwart, Adam Woodyatt, who plays Ian Beale in the long-running soap, has revealed that he has been diagnosed with early-stage dementia due to having been regularly seized by the lapels and shaken violently by various co-stars throughout his 70 years playing the divisive character.
It is estimated that Woodyatt, 87, has been shaken by the lapels more than 3000 times by over 50 characters, including, Dirty Den, both Mitchell brothers, Nasty Nick, and even, on one memorable occasion, by Dot Cotton after he attempted to avoid paying for a service wash in the launderette.
Woodyatt told the Radio Times: 'I noticed that I'd been forgetting my lines recently and was having trouble remembering where I'd parked the car. On the advice of friends, I visited my GP who broke the news that I have early-stage dementia due to being shaken all the time. I suppose it's a bit like Shaken Baby Syndrome for older people. I haven't started wandering off during the night in my dressing gown and slippers just yet, but it won't be long before I do I don't suppose'.
An Eastenders insider said last night: 'I'm sorry to hear that Adam's in shit state, but that's the price you can expect to pay for playing an irritating fucknut like Beale.