Sharon Watts (also Rickman, Mitchell and Beale) is a fictional character from the BBC One soap opera EastEnders, played by Letitia Dean. Sharon is one of EastEnders' original characters conceptualised by creators Tony Holland and Julia Smith. She first appeared in the first episode broadcast on 19 February 1985 as the teenage adopted daughter of pub landlords Den (Leslie Grantham) and Angie Watts (Anita Dobson). The character became prominent in the 1990s due to her becoming the landlady of The Queen Victoria public house, and her romantic pairings with brothers Grant (Ross Kemp) and Phil Mitchell (Steve McFadden). In a storyline dubbed Sharongate, Sharon married to Grant, has an affair with Phil, climaxing in 1994 with Grant's discovery of the affair, which remains one of EastEnders' highest viewed episodes - the storyline was reinvented in 2018 when Sharon began an affair with Phil's young employee, Keanu Taylor (Danny Walters). She was named the best EastEnders character of all time by the Daily Mirror in 2020. Dean originally quit the role in 1995 after ten years, with Sharon departing following the breakdown of her marriage. In May 2001, Sharon was reintroduced by producer John Yorke. Dean took a break from the show in late 2004, with the character departing on 25 December 2004, returning for one episode to tie in with the shows 20th anniversary and Den's departure before returning in June 2005. Dean departed in January 2006. However, she was later reintroduced by executive producer Bryan Kirkwood in 2012 and later made her on-screen return on 13 August 2012 in a special week of episodes. In her second stint, Sharon featured in storylines that included a feud with Phil and Grant's mother Peggy (Barbara Windsor); the return of Sharon's father Den, thought long dead, bonding with his second wife Chrissie (Tracy-Ann Oberman) until it has emerged that she killed Den in retribution for his affair with her friend Zoe Slater (Michelle Ryan); and a forbidden relationship-turned-marriage with her adopted half-brother Dennis Rickman (Nigel Harman), which culminated with his death after the couple ended up feuding with gangster Johnny Allen (Billy Murray). Sharon’s most recent stint on the show has featured an aborted engagement to Jack Branning (Scott Maslen); battling a painkiller addiction; a reunion and tempestuous marriage to Phil; being attacked in her own bar, meeting her biological father Gavin Sullivan (Paul Nicholas) and her affair with Keanu, sparking the events of the character having a late in life pregnancy; being blackmailed by her business partner Mel Owen (Tamzin Outhwaite) and witnessing her death, her split and divorce with Phil, giving birth to Keanu's son Albie on the same night her other son, Dennis, dies in a boat accident because of Ian Beale (Adam Woodyatt) and attempting to kill herself before later becoming the landlady of The Queen Vic once again, marrying and later divorcing Ian after he is attacked when she finds out his part in Dennis’ death, poisoning Ian, finding out she has a half-brother, Zack Hudson (James Farrar), a fling with Kheerat Panesar (Jaz Deol) and finding out she has a granddaughter, Alyssa whom she decides to raise.