London 2012: EastEnders' Billy Mitchell to carry the Olympic Flame through Albert Square
by Laurie Hanna, Mirror
EastEnders’ Billy Mitchell is to be part of the Olympic Torch relay team – in a dramatic episode that sees fiction merge with reality.
Next July 23, the BBC1 soap will feature live footage of Billy, played by Perry Fenwick, carrying the flame through Albert Square on its way to the Opening Ceremony four days later.
Walford’s famous residents will be seen cheering him on as he passes by iconic landmarks including the launderette and The Queen Vic.
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Sebastian Coe, chair of the London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games, said: “The announcement is a great addition to the Olympic Torch Relay Route. I’m sure the people of Walford will now start planning their celebrations.
"Along with people right round the UK, the residents of Albert Square will be getting involved to make this their moment to shine."
Perry, 49, who will be one of 8,000 UK residents to carry the torch, said: "When we first discussed the storyline, my initial thought was that I'll now have to get fit.
“While this may be a fictional one-off for Billy, it’s a real once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for me and I am thrilled that Walford and Albert Square will be part of this amazing event.”
The Olympic Park in Stratford, east London, will share Walford's E20 postcode after the Games.
Fenwick's character Mitchell and fellow EastEnders favourite Fatboy were nominated for one of the coveted spots to become a torchbearer - but Mitchell got the green light.
A total of 1,018 communities will be visited during the 70-day Torch relay, from Lerwick in the Shetland Islands, to St Helier on Jersey, and as far east as Lowestoft in Suffolk to Enniskillen, County Fermanagh, in the west.
It will travel about 8,000 miles and be carried by 8,000 inspirational torchbearers, London 2012 said.
It is designed to come within 10 miles of 95% of the population. It will go through every English county and every local authority area in Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales.
On the last day it will travel down the River Thames to Olympic Park for the opening ceremony.
The episode of EastEnders on July 23 next year will feature live footage of Mitchell carrying the Olympic Flame while being cheered on by the famous residents of Albert Square.
The episode will be largely filmed in advance but several minutes of the Olympic procession will be beamed direct to TV screens around the UK live