EastEnders Spiked storyline wins an award
EastEnders' Spiked episode, which saw Anna Knight (Molly Rainford) get drugged during a night out at Peggy's back in July 2024, has won at the TellyCast Digital Video Awards 2025.
EastEnders has won an award for its Spiked storyline.
Anna Knight (Molly Rainford) took centre stage in the July 16, 2024, episode of the hit BBC One soap that saw her get spiked whilst on a night out at Peggy’s bar in Walford with her sister Gina Knight (Francesca Henry) and their pals Freddie Slater (Bobby Brazier) and Felix Baker (Matthew James Morrison).
The character struggled to walk and ended up collapsing on to the floor - with the incident initially went unnoticed as her friends put the behaviour down to alcohol - but she was soon taken to hospital after her pals realised that Anna's behaviour does not equate to the little amount of alcohol she has actually consumed.
The show's creators launched a five part mini-series on EastEnders' TikTok, Instagram and Facebook accounts, which revealed the true extent of Anna's spiking ordeal, as well as put viewers witness the incident from her and Anna's friends' perspective.
It also taught viewers internal warning signs to look out for when spiked.
Now, the team behind Spiked have won the Digital Original Format - TV Show Spin-Off gong at the TellyCast Digital Video Awards 2025.
Captioning an image of the award on the soap's official Instagram account, an EastEnders spokesperson wrote: "We won a TellyCast Digital Award!
"Huge congratulations to the whole Spiked team on winning the Digital Original Format - TV Show Spin-Off Award."
EastEnders worked with leading charities Stamp Out Spiking and WithYou, as well as experts in the field to ensure the storyline was portrayed as accurately and as sensitively as possible.
Chris Clenshaw, the then-Executive Producer of EastEnders, said of the storyline in July 2024: “With incidents of spiking rising at alarming rates across the UK in recent years, we chose to explore this issue with Anna Knight who represents the demographic most affected by spiking.
"It was imperative for us to work alongside organisations to accurately present, and sensitively portray this storyline, and Molly’s performance has thoughtfully demonstrated the dangerous realities of spiking as we look to raise awareness of the warning signs and symptoms to look out for after an individual has been spiked.”
Dawn Dines, CEO and Founder at Stamp Out Spiking, added: “EastEnders is a wonderful vehicle to drive the safeguarding message and with its huge popularity amongst a wide range of the public, it will help inspire conversations to help protect men and women being targeted.
"Education is key to preventing these incidents. Stamp Out Spiking are delighted to have taken part in bringing the essential storyline to the screen.”
Abie Wilson, Lead Clinical Pharmacist at WithYou, said: “We’d like to thank EastEnders for giving us the opportunity to work together on such an important storyline.
"After Anna’s drink is spiked, she is helped to safety by her friends, and so we always advise being with people you trust and who will look out for you when partying.
"For anyone affected by this storyline, or who’s experiencing challenges with drugs, alcohol, or mental health, we encourage you to access support.”
