'EastEnders' Max Branning has named his grandchild Abi, after his tragic daughter.

Lorna Fitzgerald

Lorna Fitzgerald

Although the sneaky businessman (played by Jake Wood) was blamed by his family for causing Abi's (Lorna Fitzgerald) death, when she plunged from the roof of the Queen Victoria pub on Christmas Day (25.12.17), Max has been left to raise the tot, who he called Abi in a tribute to his daughter.

And he vowed: "This time I'm going to get it right."

Viewers were left gripped to the edge of their seats last month when Abi and her sister Lauren (Jacqueline Jossa) tumbled off the roof - the same way their half-brother Bradley Branning (Charlie Clements) died in 2010 - while trying to persuade their father Max not to take his own life after he plunged into depression.

Although Abi never regained consciousness, doctors did manage to save her unborn baby girl - who was born at 28 weeks - as they wanted to make sure the tiny tot was delivered quickly and safely in case the young mum went into cardiac arrest.

Lauren, on the other hand, was rushed into theatre to have emergency surgery on her back and, although the operation was a success, she still can't walk.

Meanwhile, Lorna recently admitted that she's sad to be leaving the soap after a decade on the square but she is "excited" about the future.

She said: "I've had a fantastic 11 years here, so I'm looking forward to what the future holds. I'm going to miss playing Abi though ... I keep getting tagged in things on social media - like clips where Abi sings to a gerbil!

"Then there was a period when I was about 14 years old where I tried a side fringe and it just didn't work! It was so bad I had to gel it down!"


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