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EastEnders star Max Bowden speaks out on Ben's male rape story

The following article contains discussion of themes including sexual assault that some readers may find upsetting.

EastEnders spoilers follow.

EastEnders star Max Bowden has spoken about the aftermath of Ben Mitchell's male rape story for the first time.

Ben's life will change forever next week, after he's sexually assaulted by new bar manager Lewis. Soap fans have known about the story since last month, but the full details have been announced today (May 17) ahead of broadcast next week.

Here, Max – who plays Ben – talks about his reaction to the story, the devastating aftermath, and the impact it will have on his alter ego's relationships with Kathy, Phil and Callum and Jay.

Photo credit: BBC/Jack Barnes/Kieron McCarron
Photo credit: BBC/Jack Barnes/Kieron McCarron

How did you feel when the story was pitched?

"As with everything, there's an element of excitement that you're being trusted within these situations, but also an element of fear because we have such a duty to tell the story correctly. You're very afraid to get to get it wrong because it's not my story I'm telling, it's the story of the survivors, and that was what was brilliant about working with, in particular, Duncan [Craig, CEO of Survivors Manchester]. He was meticulous about the detail that he'd gone through and it made me of appreciate just how pivotal and important this story was.

"As an actor, it is always exciting to get your teeth into something that's taboo, dark, and dangerous and that's going to make people ask questions – that's what you want from art, you want it to ask questions constantly. However, there is such fear when taking on something like this, and you feel the stakes of getting it right."

Where is Ben's head at in the lead up to next week's episodes?

"Ben and Callum are at a crossroads. Ben has been acting out and become some sort of vigilante, going round assaulting people who have been either homophobic or negative towards his community. In doing so, it has put Callum in a bit of a tricky position, because, as a police officer, his job is obviously to fight crime. It's one of the troubles of being with Ben Mitchell I suppose."

Photo credit: BBC/Jack Barnes/Kieron McCarron
Photo credit: BBC/Jack Barnes/Kieron McCarron

What is Ben's intention in going to see Lewis?

"Callum and Ben find themselves at loggerheads and Ben decides to confide in somebody other than then Callum, which leads Callum to mistrust Ben and also to doubt their relationship. In the mood that Ben is in, he takes it upon himself to block out Callum completely and revert back to the old Ben Mitchell – somebody who's slightly more frivolous, slightly more free-thinking and possessed by this idea to self sabotage."

Can you talk us through what happens when Ben and Lewis head upstairs at the Albert and how the assault occurs?

"The important thing we've tried to explore within this whole subject matter is the idea of consent and the very straightforward fact that no means no, regardless of what happens in the lead-up. When that word is uttered, it means no. Up until the point, Ben is being outgoing towards Lewis – he's finding this cheap thrill with him that he hasn't had in Callum for a while. Him and Lewis are quite similar as they both came out quite early.

"They find a common ground and an essence of similarity. That all comes to a head when Ben has a slight self-analysis moment and realises what he's doing. But initially, it's to do with that common ground, which is ironic because he found that within Callum early doors. He realises, in this moment, that he needs to get out of this and that he has actually got everything he wanted – he has got a life, a perfect family, and that's what matters. Sadly, it just so happens that it comes at the wrong time. I think it's going to be a very tough watch, but I do I think it's been handled really well.

"The beauty of shows like EastEnders is we're able to make people ask questions. The question at hand here is fairly straightforward for anybody in this situation. Once the word 'no' is uttered, it's no. Ben is an antagonist at the beginning of the episode and, in the scenes with Lewis, he is flirting and he is showing this rollercoaster of emotions towards him. That gives us somewhere to then go next, and for the audience to understand and see quite clearly that no really does mean no."

Photo credit: BBC/Jack Barnes/Kieron McCarron
Photo credit: BBC/Jack Barnes/Kieron McCarron

There's a scene the following day where Lewis tries to suggest that Ben initiated it. How does this impact Ben?

"As with any essence of trauma, there's a massive element of confusion – confusion around what happened the night before, confusion about whether it's his fault, confusion about what's happening to his marriage and to his life. There's an element of loneliness.

"It takes him a while to realise that he is a victim. He's Ben Mitchell; a man who comes from a great stature of family and a proud family and he finds himself a victim of rape. That for anybody is an impossible situation to get your head around, but for somebody who's as proud and outgoing and as male bravado-driven as Ben Mitchell, it's really, really tough.

"He becomes a complete shell of himself, he's utterly confused and a bit lost. It's like shellshock – has this happened and why has this happened? It’s fight or flight for what comes next."

Photo credit: BBC/Jack Barnes/Kieron McCarron
Photo credit: BBC/Jack Barnes/Kieron McCarron

Did you get more rehearsal time for the Ben and Lewis scenes?

"We had a lot of a lot of meetings with the director, who was just wonderful. We had an intimacy coordinator for the scene itself. In terms of rehearsal time, it was more just conversation and choreography. With something like this, it's very important that we get the moments of change within the thought pattern as so much happening in such a short space of time.

"As actors, we have to choreograph it to make sure it reads perfectly for the audience so there's no confusion about what's happening and the decisions that have been made. It also just gives us a bit of clarity as actors so that we know where we're going in our journey. Both that and the intimacy coordinator really helped, it freed up the experience for us."

Did you and Aidan [O'Callaghan, who plays Lewis] know where this story was heading when he first joined?

"I didn't know but I think perhaps Aidan did. It had been pitched to me about ten months ago but weren't sure when it was going to come in. It was still in discussion and then it had to go through clearances so has been a long process. It wasn't until Aidan came in that I realised the story was actually happening."

Photo credit: BBC/Jack Barnes/Kieron McCarron
Photo credit: BBC/Jack Barnes/Kieron McCarron

Did that inform how you played scenes between Ben and Lewis?

"Yeah, I was probably a bit of an arse really. I deliberately kept my distance from him for about six weeks, just because I didn't want to find myself in a position where we'd become personally close. I thought it would make everything that happens afterwards really difficult if we did.

"I said to him after we'd finished the scene, 'I just want you to know that I am not an arsehole, I was just doing this because of ‘X, Y and Z'. After that, we had a good chat and got on really well. It was a choice and I did feel quite bad for doing it, but I think it helped."

Ben's mum Kathy suffered a trauma in the same building. Does that get explored?

"The initial impact of trauma is that element of shock, confusion, fear and loneliness. Ben can generally be quite an insular person and he is very good at masking things. We discussed the idea of the mask on / mask off situation; the moments of internal thought when he's on his own and the moments of external when he's with other people. But we do start to see the mask falling.

"It becomes more and more apparent that something's not right. With Kathy, there's obviously that commonality and the fact that she was raped by Wilmott-Brown. There's also a brotherhood with Jay, who can see through the mask as well. The people who know him best starting to see something's not quite right."

Photo credit: BBC/Jack Barnes/Kieron McCarron
Photo credit: BBC/Jack Barnes/Kieron McCarron

Was it deliberate to have Ben's assault happen in the same building as Kathy's? Have you spoken to Gillian Taylforth about that?

"I believe so, yes, it was a deliberate move from the writers. What's really great about the show at the moment is there's a lot of referencing and a lot of links back to history, which I think the fans love. They love to be reminded of stuff that's happened before and also for that to then correlate within the story.

"It's genius and keeps the show at its roots and about family, heritage and all of the things that makes EastEnders what it is. Gillian and I have the most amazing relationship and we're really close, so there was a lot of cross-referencing between us as to her experience of when she filmed it and my experience going through it. There's always a conversation to be had with Gillian Taylforth!"

Did she give you advice?

"Not advice as such, more an insight, and that I will keep with me as it's very private. But as an actress she just gets it. She understands what we go through and the emotional journey."

How important will Kathy be to Ben moving forward in the storyline?

"I think she'll be very important. There's been a kind of missing link for a while with Ben and Kathy, as there's been so much emphasis on the relationship between Ben and Phil for years that we've missed a lot of the Ben and Kathy elements that keep them fresh.

"They are a wonderful little pairing and I adore working with Gillian. They actually have a lot more in common than they realise, personally, I think maybe more than Ben and Phil. Discovering that going forward is going to be really important, not just for the characters, but for the fans. It's been crying out for some kind of rekindling between Ben and Kathy, and I think this might be the opportunity to bring that together."

Photo credit: BBC/Jack Barnes/Kieron McCarron
Photo credit: BBC/Jack Barnes/Kieron McCarron

What about Phil?

"I think we're going to have to wait and see. Obviously Phil is in prison at the moment so there's that divide, which is interesting for the audience. He's not there and so that could be feeding into into Ben's loneliness and the toxic masculinity he feels. It will either go one or two ways. Phil will either be incredibly supportive or incredibly nonchalant. We will just have to wait and see how it plays out."

Can you tell us anything else about the aftermath? Will anyone else come forward to support him?

"With any sort of trauma eventually you have to release, so there will come a time when it becomes more on the surface. At the moment, Ben has got to rebuild his self-understanding again and come to terms with the fact that he will never be the same again."

Photo credit: BBC/Jack Barnes/Kieron McCarron
Photo credit: BBC/Jack Barnes/Kieron McCarron

Ultimately, do you hope Ben and Callum can get through this as a couple?

"I've always said that working with Tony [Clay] is one of the joys in my life. Selfishly, as an actor, I'd always want Ben and Callum to find themselves reunited, and hopefully, we can see that happen. They have such a big following and there's real love and understanding between them. There’s a big journey to go on for both of them to get to what each character should be, and what they ultimately can be together.

"I feel blessed that the writers enjoy writing for Ballum and and that's the beauty of having such polar opposites – one's a criminal and one's a police officer, and so there's always going to be friction, there's always going to be some sort of tension to allow the storylines to manipulate themselves. One of the blessings of Ballum is there's always going to be something that can crop up."

EastEnders airs on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursday and Fridays at 7.30pm on BBC One.


If you've been affected by the topics raised in this story, then numerous organisations can offer help and support including SurvivorsUK (0203 598 3898 or help@survivorsuk.org), Survivors Manchester (0808 800 5005 or support@survivorsmanchester.org.uk) and the Male Survivors Partnership (0808 800 5005 or hello@malesurvivor.co.uk). In an emergency, please dial 999.

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