EastEnders spoilers: Tony Clay reveals whats next for Halfway after kiss with Ben Mitchell

EastEnders star Tony Clay has revealed a complicated future for Callum Halfway Highway as he continued to fight with his sexuality following a very passionate kiss with Ben Mitchell (Max Bowden). Bens realisation that Halfway is gay led to Callum opening up about the loneliness he is feeling despite having everything a man could want.

As the pair then shared an electrifying kiss, Metro.co.uk joined Tony for a chat about the development and where that leaves the character now and he revealed there is more torment to come as Callum is forced to confront who he really is.

Here, he talks the genius new arc for his alter ego, the trouble that could lie in store for Whitney and whether or not he is prepared for a potentially thriving fanbase.

How is Callum feeling after this kiss?

The build up to it has been Ben planting this seed that something is there. Callum has been fighting with this for a lot longer but someone has pushed on this button. He has tried to shut it down but deep down, he cant – this needs to happen. You see the angst in both of them – they are both troubled and have had similar upbringings with their dad issues. Directly after, he feels complete guilt but also while being elated – its something that hes never experienced before. But he is ashamed towards Whitney. Cheating on his girlfriend is not who he wants to be but deep down he needs to be true to who he is and this is something he couldnt resist anymore.

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But its fair to say that he does still genuinely love Whitney?

Absolutely. Theres a major love there and I think he thinks she is the best thing that has ever happened to him. This is why he struggles with it even more, he cant understand why he cant just have this and be happy. But he is being pushed towards someone else now and itsa constant internal battle. Its a sad thing but to see someone coming out and having this moment is also positive. But we still dont know where this is going to go – and that love for Whitney is still something that he has, it doesnt just disappear. Its just that hes now done this thing on the side and thats hard for him.

This wasnt the original plan for Halfway but rather than axing the character, Kate Oates has found a way to explore a new arc for him and one that makes a lot of sense. How did you react when you found out about the direction the story would take?

I had a meeting with Kate – we were at a crossroads with this characters, where do we go now? There had been this thing with the baby but she saw that this would be an exciting avenue to explore. Rather than bringing in someone new, why not use someone who is already there who has this inner conflict? I tink its brilliant, its a great storyline to be a part of. Its a credit to Kate for gving me this chance to really develop this character. I hope people like it.

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Are you prepared for the intensity of being at the centre of a fandom?

(laughs) Im ready, bring it on! Im prepared! Ive got my phone at the ready. Its really exciting to be part of a storyline in EastEnders that grips people so I am really hoping people will love it.

As its a soap, is it necessary to still have that conflict and drama rather than just having a gay couple to tick the box that EastEnders had been lacking for some time?

Absolutely – thats what we watch for isnt it? The internal conflict of characters we know and love. Everyone on the Square has things going on. LGBTQ+ people all over the world do struggle like this, it does happen – people who are in marriages or who have families and know it isnt true to who they are. To see someone who has, for the past year and half, tried to convince themselves that marriage and having a family is all they want and then you see that actually something else is going on in his head. He just wants to be happy and have thRead More – Source