EastEnders’ Michelle Fowler’s shock secret exposed as she reveals she enjoyed romance with a SCHOOLBOY

EASTENDERS' Michelle Fowler has finally revealed the "criminal secret" that triggered her swift exit from sunny Florida back to Walford.

Ever since her mysterious return to the Square just before Christmas, people have been wondering what it was that drove her back to her childhood home.

And tonight Michelle told her friend Sharon she had "broken the law" - by enjoying a year-long affair with a 17-year-old SCHOOLBOY.

"I fell in love, madly Sharon, like an idiot. It had been so long being ignored," she said.

The emotional scenes began when Michelle revealed how her marriage had fallen apart earlier in the show.

"I look in the mirror and there I am suddenly, 45 with bingo wings," she said. "And then I get the reason we ain't had sex for over two years, why my husband don't want me anymore."

The emotional character revealed her other half couldn't be intimate with her anymore, as he no longer fancied her now she's "middle aged".

She later explained: "Tim had left me in his head, you can't really call it cheating. It's like I'd woken up, I was half dead."

Eventually revealing her secret, Michelle told Sharon: "A whole year together, we were obsessed with each other, all I thought about was the next time. He felt it too, he couldn't keep his hands off me.

"It wasn't just about sex. It was the fun. He wanted me."

Michelle revealed she stopped being "cautious" and said: "His mum found his bag and came into school. They demanded my resignation, I'd broken the law.

"I moved into a hotel, but the things they said about me, my friends."

Michelle broke down in tears as she told Sharon: "They're all gone, there's no-one left to come home to."

It comes as it looks like Michelle is set to leave Albert Square just a couple of weeks after arriving.

Her friends and family throw Michelle a surprise party in the Queen Vic to say goodbye as they think she's jetting off to return to America, but Michelle's secret threatens to keep her in Walford for even longer.

Viewers have watched as Michelle tried to phone her son Mark Jr but couldn't get through to him, leaving them wondering whether he is part of the reason she returned.

Last year Mark arrived in the Square for a visit and discovered his biological father was Grant Mitchell before leaving to go back to America. He has yet to appear on screen with his mother.

Sharon's long-term BFF Michelle recently returned to the Square with a brand new face as actress Jenna Russell took over the part.

Soap executive producer Sean O’Connor said: “Of course if you’re considering bringing back Michelle Fowler you’d have to consider talking to Susan.

“But she is now a very well respected, hugely experienced TV director. Her acting career is part of her past.

“But of course I contacted her immediately. It was important to me to make sure she gave the idea her blessing, and it was really delightful when she did.

“I wanted to ask her if there was anything she could share with me and Jenna, and the writing team about Julia Smith and Tony Holland’s (the original producer and script editor) original ideas for Michelle.”

And Jenna is best known for her role of Dot in Sunday in the Park with George in the West End and on Broadway, receiving the Tony Award nomination and the 2006 Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical.

• EastEnders airs Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday nights on BBC One

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