EastEnders: Charlie Slater death scene criticised by viewers as 'unrealistic' and 'laughable'

Viewers began tweeting that the script was dire and Derek Martin's acting bad

Charlie Slater suffers a fatal heart attack in EastEnders (BBC)

EastEnders fans have criticised Charlie Slater’s tragic death scene for being “unrealistic” and “dragged out”.

Millions of viewers watched the long-serving character, played by Derek Martin since 2000, die after suffering a heart attack on Thursday night.

Despite expecting the popular cab driver to meet his sad demise in a highly emotional episode, it wasn’t long before many began mocking Martin’s acting and the dodgy script on social media.

“This is the worst fictional heart attack in TV history,” one fan wrote, with another confessing to “actually laughing it was so bad”.

Others noted that the Slaters were “useless” in helping Charlie and questioned how he was able to have a conversation with daughter Kat while in so much pain.

Not all viewers were quite so disbelieving, however, with plenty left in tears by Charlie’s death.

EastEnders returns to BBC One at 8pm this evening.