Iconic BBC soap Eastenders is reportedly facing a crisis as millions of fans continue to switch off.

The show, which has been running for an amazing 27 years, has been continually losing viewers over the last few weeks with fans allegedly fed up with poor story lines and boring characters.

The problem hit crisis point last week with the show raking in an average of just 5.7 million viewers compared to rival ITV soap Coronation St which peaked at 8.4 million.

BBC bosses have admitted that the show is ‘not pulling its weight’ and blames the loss of some ‘big’ characters including Ricky, Bianca and Pat.

With some of the shows current top stars including Janine, Tanya and Dot scheduled for long breaks this Summer the BBC have been left scratching their heads for a solution.

It was also announced yesterday that character Anthony Moon, played by Matt Lapinskas, has been axed.

A BBC insider said, “EastEnders looks like it will be playing its B-team this summer. For fair-weather fans it won’t be good enough and could end up being a summer of misery for the show. No one is happy with the ratings.”

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