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Anger at burial alive in EastEnders
Last updated at 07:27am on 27.03.08The BBC has received 167 complaints about a scene in East-Enders in which a leading character was buried alive.
Viewers of the BBC1 soap were angry that the last moments of Max Branning were shown an hour before the 9pm watershed last Friday, when children would still have been watching.
Max (Jake Wood) was drugged by his wife Tanya (Jo Joyner), causing him to collapse. She and her lover Sean Slater (Robert Kazinsky) then drove him him to woodland where they buried him alive in a coffin, which was put into a grave dug by Slater.
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EastEnders: Sean Slater, played by Robert Kazinsky, carrying Max, played by Jake Wood, through the scrub in last week's episode. The BBC has received 167 complaints over the plot line
One viewer said: "The scenes were more suited to a late-night movie than a family soap broadcast over the Easter weekend."
A BBC spokesman said: "EastEnders is known for its dramatic and gripping storylines and, from a total audience of ten million, the number of complaints is relatively small."
Last month, Ofcom ruled that EastEnders had breached TV regulations in an episode featuring a gang attack on the Queen Vic pub.
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Revenge: Tanya Branning, played by Jo Joyner, orchastrated the burial of her philandering husband Max (actor Jake Wood)
Before the show aired, Jake Wood, who plays Max, said: "Being buried alive seems quite extreme when you first read it but the writers have done it justice.
"When they do something like this you just hope it's written well so it doesn't seem like it's just come out of nowhere - and I don't think this does.
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The Christmas episode in which Max and Stacey's affair was revealed has earned the show a Bafta nomination
The actor told the Sun: "It's been done sensitively in that it's the culmination of a year's story lines. It does make sense rather than being crowbarred in for shock value."
"Being buried alive is Max's greatest fear since his dad Jim did it to him when he was a child."
The revenge follows Max's affair with Stacey (Lacey Turner) - revealed at Christmas in a Bafta-nominated episode.
While Wood remains tight-lipped over his character's fate, the father-of-one has not been at work for the past seven weeks.
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Reader views (8)
My daughter and I have watched Eastenders for 10 years - she is now 16. However we only watched half of Fridays' episode and none of Monday's in protest against the burial alive storyline, for which their was no justification at all. This was completely inappropriate for pre watershed viewing.
- Susan, Moreton UK
Perhaps if it was well acted, or well written, or maybe well filmed it would have been upsetting, as it was it was more comedic.
- Daveb, London, UK
I've been a big fan of Eastenders for years and it has moved me before, however, I have never had to turn my head away while watching. Seeing Max buried alive really upset me but I do feel the story was played well by all the actors and it will not stop me watching it.
Its still the best soap on TV.
- Charlotte, West Yorkshire
I've been reading about Max being buried alive for weeks now. If I found it distressing, I would have complained before it was aired or not watched it!
- Moo, South London, UK
I think that it was the best episode of Eastenders for months.
- Ap, Devon, UK
I am a fan of Eastenders and all the episodes I have seen have been really good till the episode where Max got buried alive. I know Max did a lot of horrible things, but that as a story line of getting buried alive was very inappropriate for a soap.
- Kayle Glaister, Skipton
The BBC don't care about complaints and what the ordinary public think, this is shown in the response to the complaints that they did receive. I remember the amount of complaints that they received about jerry springer the opera (or musical or whatever the garbage was called) they just ignored them. I wonder how many complaints it would take for the BBC to take action over a show, I suppose if it was about racism they would act immediately. I am just surprised that they didn't come out with the usual rubbish that the show reflects real life.
- Dr Finlays Casebook, London, UK
Just turn it off permanently, I have. Such ridiculous story lines and poor acting.
- Monica, UK
