He’s flash, loaded and cute with it. Ex-Bill star Scott Maslen reveals all about EastEnders new boy Jack Branning! Who is Jack? "He’s another Branning – Max’s younger brother." What’s he like? "He’s one of life’s winners. He’s got a lot of charisma and he’s very successful." What does he do then? "He’s a Detective Inspector in the Met where he’s very well respected." So how did he make his money? "You’ll find that out later..." What kind of relationship does he have with Max? "He loves his brother, but they’re very snipey with each other." He’s turned up for Bradley and Stacey’s wedding. Was he invited? "No, Max crossed him off the list! But Mo sent him an invite. Max isn’t happy about it and doesn’t want him staying at his house because he winds him up. Max worries Jack is after Tanya." And is he? "He might play on Max’s fear, but Jack wouldn’t do anything like that." How does Jack feel about Tanya? "He has a lot of time for her and I think he’s happy Max has married her. For that reason I don’t think he’d be impressed if he heard about Max messing around with Stacey behind her back." Would he tell Tanya if he found out about Max and Stacey? "I don’t think he’d want to interfere. He might give Max a piece of his mind though." Is he close to his dad Jim? "Yes, much closer than Max is. Max and Jim have a very troubled past but Jack was always seen as the golden boy. He was the one who got all the attention from their dad." What does Jack make of Walford? "He can see that there are plenty of opportunities there for him. But the truth is he’s not only in Walford for the wedding... there’s another reason and that will come out soon..." And he takes a fancy to Ronnie... "He sees her jogging in this little lycra number and he’s hooked. He doesn’t get off to a good start with her because the first thing he does is drench her in water by driving through a blocked drain in his car. I think he does it on purpose – and so does Ronnie. That’s how he makes his entrance in the Square." Why did you want to play Jack? "This was a chance for me to cut my teeth doing something new after being in The Bill for so long. I’ve never worked for the BBC before and I like what they have in store for Jack over time." Is it strange not being Phil Hunter any more? "It is because I didn’t have a break. I went straight from The Bill into EastEnders and it was like, ‘Right, I’m talking to Dot now and my name is Jack!’"
