Craig EastEnders ends with Craig Ingram left for dead after Amy Mitchell hit him over the head with a candle holder. Matthew James Bailey has now spoken about the death, and he says the character got the end he deserved.
Bailey said, "I’m very glad the story ends the way it does, I think the character has met a deserved end." He also said, "But I do think it’s extremely important for Craig to have his comeuppance."
Bailey on Craig Ingram
Craig had been grooming Amy Mitchell in recent months, and the story turned after Craig and Amy fled Walford last week to start a new life together. This week, Amy tried to contact her loved ones, Craig returned to the bedsit and lost his temper, and the attack followed.
Bailey praised Ellie Dadd’s work in the final scenes, saying, "I can’t speak highly enough of Ellie. She’s just the most incredible actress and she deserves all the credit for how she played out those final scenes because she’s amazing." That puts the performance front and centre, rather than the violence alone.
Barnardo's and End Violence Against Women
EastEnders worked with Barnardo's and End Violence Against Women on the storyline. Bailey said, "I hope we can spread enough awareness and give the audience enough information and enough red flags to recognise what manipulation and grooming looks like."
That line matters because the ending is not just a character exit. Amy returned to her overjoyed family and lied to the police about what happened, so the fallout is still being managed inside the story even after Craig has been left for dead.
The body not found
Craig’s body has not yet been discovered, which keeps the death from feeling neatly closed on-screen. Bailey also said the final scenes carried a deserved end for Craig, but the missing body leaves the police thread unresolved inside the drama’s own logic.
For Bailey, the role sits alongside a wider soap run that now includes another death in 2024, when his Hollyoaks character Ethan Williams was killed off. He said, "I’m going to tick off every soap there is!" and added that he will start shooting a film in February, a true story shooting in The Netherlands and revolving around World War II.
