The Slater family are a fictional family from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, that have appeared since Episode 1,997, first broadcast in September 2000. The family are introduced as a central family unit, originally consisting of father Charlie Slater (Derek Martin), grandmother Mo Harris (Laila Morse), Charlie's daughters, Kat Slater (Jessie Wallace), Lynne Slater (Elaine Lordan), Little Mo Morgan (Kacey Ainsworth) and Kat's teenage daughter Zoe Slater (Michelle Ryan), and Lynne's partner Garry Hobbs (Ricky Groves). A fifth sister, Belinda Peacock (Leanne Lakey), was introduced one year later. The family were the eighth to be introduced in the soap's history, replacing the di Marco family who departed during the previous month. The Slaters were created by Tony Jordan and introduced by John Yorke. The Slater sisters were cast in an improvisation session. In their first years on the show, the family were involved in storylines about child sexual abuse and domestic violence.
Following multiple cast departures, three new cast members — Lacey Turner (Stacey Slater), Gillian Wright (Jean Slater) and Robert Kazinsky (Sean Slater) — joined the show as an extension of the family. Stacey and her mother, Jean were used to highlight the topic of bipolar disorder, working with the charity Mind. In 2010, Turner left the series and Wallace reprised her role; the following year, Kat featured in a controversial story which sees her newborn son swapped for a deceased baby. Turner returned in 2014 and the Slater family were later expanded. Riley Carter Millington, the first transgender actor to portray a transgender character in a British soap opera, was cast as Stacey's half-brother, Kyle Slater. Former Coronation Street actress, Denise Welch, appeared in one episode as Kyle's mother, Alison Slater.
The family became a focal point across New Year 2016 when Kat discovers that she has a secret son and Charlie is killed-off. The events are followed by a spin-off drama, Kat & Alfie: Redwater, focusing on Kat's search for her son, who is revealed to be murderous Catholic priest Dermott Dolan (Oisín Stack). 2016 also sees Stacey begin suffering from postpartum psychosis, a rare mental illness associated with bipolar mothers. Prior to the storyline, the family were merged with the Fowler family following Stacey's pairing with Martin Fowler (James Bye). Following his reappointment, Yorke revived the Slater family by reintroducing Kat, Jean and Mo, and casting Katie Jarvis as new family member Hayley Slater. He also made the family a focal point across Christmas 2018 with a paternity reveal.
Creation
On 30 August 2000, it was announced that a new family, the Slaters, would be introduced to EastEnders to replace the di Marco family, who departed the series during that month. The family, who first appear in September, mark the eighth to be introduced in the soap's history. Executive producer John Yorke hoped that the introduction of the family would return EastEnders to its familial roots, describing them as "the classic EastEnders family which is all about surviving and fighting back all the time." Head of BBC drama series, Mal Young, said the family were introduced as at the time, the serial had a deficit of "solid families", expanding, "there were a lot of fractured families and people who were alone."
The Slater family was created by series consultant Tony Jordan during an improvisation session with 30 actors and actresses. Prior to the workshop session, Yorke assumed he would create a more traditionally structured family, consisting of a mother, a father and two children. He was surprised to find that the presiding influence over the Slaters as they were created was a dead matriarch, Viv Slater (Debi Gibson), who exerted a "powerful influence" from beyond the grave. Yorke selected Jessie Wallace (Kat Slater), Elaine Lordan (Lynne Slater), Kacey Ainsworth (Little Mo Morgan) and Michelle Ryan (Zoe Slater) to play four of the Slater sisters as they got along so well during the improvisation session. Derek Martin was cast as patriarch Charlie Slater later than his screen daughters, in his third audition for EastEnders, having previously been considered for the roles of Den Watts and Frank Butcher. Laila Morse was chosen to portray Charlie's mother-in-law, Mo Harris. Leanne Lakey was later cast as the fifth daughter, Belinda Peacock, a recurring character introduced in 2001. Lakey enjoyed portraying Belinda on a recurring basis due to her second role on Family Affairs.