A grand total of six different actors have played Ben Mitchell (currently played by Max Bowden) since his on-screen birth in 1996, but one thing that definitely hasn't changed about the EastEnders character is the big - and often traumatic - storylines he's given.
This is no surprise as his dad is hard man Phil Mitchell (Steve McFadden), who is notorious for criminal activity, surrounding himself with gangsters and his stiff upper lip approach to life.
But poor Ben hasn’t just had his dad to deal with. From losing his hearing to being raped by Lewis Butler (Aidan O'Callaghan) last year, Ben's life has definitely been a turbulent one. Here are some of his saddest storylines over the years...
Being abused by his step mum Stella
In 2006, Ben moved back to Albert Square to live with his dad Phil after his mum Kathy Beale (Gillian Taylforth) and her partner Gavin Sullivan (Paul Nicholas) ‘died’ in a car crash in South Africa (though, of course, Kathy later famously returned in 2015). Upon his arrival, he discovered that his dad had a new girlfriend, Stella Crawford (Sophie Thompson) and the two took a disliking to one another almost immediately.
Stella felt that Ben was intruding on her relationship with Phil and began to abuse him. One of the most shocking and well-known incidents was when she burned him with the back of a hot spoon. She also mentally tormented him and even tried to convince a young Ben that he caused a car crash that he and his dad were involved in. She was a nasty piece of work and it all came to an end after a showdown on her and Phil's wedding day when she killed herself by jumping from a roof.
Dealing with hearing loss
As a newborn, Ben became ill with meningitis and was left partially deaf in one ear. Viewers have seen him deal with his disability over the years, but it was revisited during the show's 35th anniversary when a boat crashed due to a fight between Ben, his dad, and Sharon Watts’ (Letitia Dean) toyboy lover Keanu Taylor (Danny Walters). Ben hit his head and became permanently deaf. We even got a special episode that showed us just what it was like to be Ben that contained muffled audio and captions.
Grappling with his sexuality
Ben has been figuring out his sexuality since returning to our screens in 2006. He was caught dancing around the living room to Lady Gaga’s Love Game with his sister Louise (Tilly Keeper) by their dad and developed a love of dancing that could rival Billy Elliot.
He also had a relationship with good friend Abi Branning (Lorna Fitzgerald), who tried her best to get Ben to like women, to no avail. He then slept with his cousin (yes, we know) Lola Pearce (Danielle Harold) and she fell pregnant and gave birth to their daughter Lexi (Isabella Brown).
His dad had a hard time accepting that his son is gay and caused Ben to be ashamed and try to quash the feelings, though they always seemed to creep back into the open. From trying to kiss Jay Brown (Jamie Borthwick) to his first gay sexual encounter. However, things began to look up when he met Paul Coker (Jonny Labey).
Death of Paul
Paul was definitely Ben's first love, although their relationship was kept under wraps at first. It was eventually discovered after Phil found them in the car lot being more than PG and Ben ended their relationship. However, the two eventually reconciled and they were happy for a while before tragedy struck. Paul died in an off-screen homophobic attack and left Ben devastated. Viewers watched the toll it took on him and his grieving for his boyfriend.
Eating disorder
Viewers have seen Ben’s mental health decline with the news of Lewis’ arrest and Lola's death, which has resulted in him developing bulimia.
EastEnders producer Chris Clenshaw said, "It was vital for us to work alongside Beat to accurately present, and sensitively portray Ben's bulimia storyline.
"Max's [Bowden] performance has thoughtfully portrayed the isolating reality of an eating disorder with compassion and understanding as we explore how the traumatic events of Ben's past have affected his mental health."