The child actor at the heart of one of the biggest soap plots in television history comes from Medway.

Eliot Carrington, 12, received acclaim for his performances in EastEnders as his character Bobby Beale was revealed as the killer of his half-sister Lucy.

The Lucy murder plot has been running for 10 months and the unveiling of the culprit was a big part of the BBC soap’s 30th anniversary celebrations, which included live action and a flashback episode.

Eliot, who went to Barnsole Infant School in Gillingham (now Barnsole Primary), joined the cast in November and found out about Bobby’s big plot just three days before it was aired to millions of viewers.

“I sat him [Eliot] down and said, ‘Bobby’s going to be a naughty boy’ to gauge his reaction and he said it was brilliant" - Eliot Carrington

Executive producer Dominic Treadwell-Collins had to seek permission from Eliot’s father, Robert, to go ahead and said he would have changed the plot if he had objected.

Mr Treadwell-Collins said: “I sat him [Eliot] down and said, ‘Bobby’s going to be a naughty boy’ to gauge his reaction and he said it was brilliant. He’s a very intelligent little boy and very emotionally mature.”

Eliot was shown in the key episode wearing his pyjamas and clutching the murder weapon, Lucy’s music box, as he explained to mum Jane why he had hit her.

But during the full live performance it was revealed that young Bobby thought his sister had recovered and left the house, subsequently falling prey to a killer on Walford Common.

Eliot has two brothers, Joseph and Oliver, and a sister Holly, and the family are believed to still live in Medway – although Eliot’s agents and the EastEnders press office were remaining tight-lipped about personal details this week following a surge of publicity.

He lists as his favourite films Billy Elliot, Oliver and Star Wars. Actors he admires include Clint Eastwood, Johnny Depp, Brad Pitt and Michael Caine.