“EastEnders” Launches Bisexual Love Triangle As Oscar Branning And Josh Goodwin Share Their First Kiss
EastEnders has officially started its most talked-about storyline of the year, and it began with a kiss.
In the Monday 23 March episode of the BBC soap, Oscar Branning (Pierre Counihan-Moullier) crossed paths with the newly arrived Josh Goodwin (Joshua Vaughan). The chemistry was instant. After some back-and-forth, Josh played it cool with a simple: “I should probably go home… unless you’ve got a better offer?” Oscar took him up on it. They kissed. Fans went off.
The complicated part
What makes this storyline genuinely interesting is the knot it has tied itself into. Josh is the twin brother of Jasmine Fisher (Indeyarna Donaldson-Holness), the same Jasmine that Oscar was dating just months ago. Jasmine is currently in prison after killing her father, Dr Anthony Trueman (Nicholas Bailey), who had attacked her mother Zoe Slater (Michelle Ryan). Oscar has no idea who Josh actually is yet. He spent their evening venting about his ex, unaware that he was talking to her twin brother.
Oscar came out as bisexual in July 2025, not long after returning to Albert Square for the first time in nearly a decade. When his uncle Jack Branning (Scott Maslen) questioned him about his interest in women, Oscar kept it brief: “I swing both ways.” Jack joked that nobody in Walford would be safe. Turns out he was right.
His sister Lauren (Jacqueline Jossa) nudged things forward too, telling Oscar to “open your heart” when the new connection started. He listened.
The actors behind the characters
Counihan-Moullier trained in theatre from childhood, starting at the Royal Court Theatre before going on to work at the Young Vic, including productions like The Second Woman (2023) and My England (2018). He also worked as a stunt actor on Netflix’s Fate: The Winx Saga (2021). Joshua Vaughan, who plays Josh, joined the EastEnders cast in early 2026. The Birmingham-raised actor previously performed as Billy in the West End production of School Of Rock and appeared with the Royal Shakespeare Company in Macbeth.
Why this storyline lands
EastEnders has been part of LGBTQIA+ TV history since 1987, when it introduced one of the earliest gay storylines on British television with characters Colin Russell and Barry Clark. What separates this from a lot of bisexual representation on screen is that Oscar’s sexuality is not the story. The story is the mess he’s walking into.
Fans are already invested. “Oscar has so much more chemistry with Josh than he ever did with Jasmine,” one viewer wrote online. “I wish for once no hearts get broken here!”
EastEnders airs Monday to Thursday at 7:30pm on BBC One, with episodes available from 6am on BBC iPlayer.
