Walford is welcoming back one of its most famous faces, Robbie Jackson, for a short stint.
Actor Dean Gaffney, who plays Robbie, said he felt "honoured" to be returning to EastEnders, and revealed the first person he phoned with the good news was co-star Natalie Cassidy (Sonia Fowler).
Gaffney, who was last seen on the show in 2010, revealed he still watches the soap religiously with his twin daughters, now aged 19.
He said: "My daughters are at an age where I constantly bore them and I stop the show, whenever there's a scene in the Jackson house ..."
Viewers last saw his character walking his sister Bianca down the aisle, before then heading to India following news his wife, Nita, was pregnant.
He will be back for six episodes, and while Gaffney has not seen any of the scripts yet, he said: "All they've told me is that Robbie, as always, is hapless in love and business, so I think this trend is continuing. And I believe he comes back with a son."
He returns as part of Lindsey Coulson's exit storyline but could not reveal any details about her departure.
Gaffney said: "I would actually surrender me coming back for Lindsey to stay, I think it's a shame for the show she's leaving, but I think she'll go on to bigger and better things."
Gaffney revealed he was shopping in a supermarket with his good friend, Coronation Street's Ryan Thomas, when his agent broke the news of his return.
"My agent said, 'Are you sitting down?' He said, 'They want you to come back to do a stint on the show,'" he said.
"I'm standing with Ryan, so then I had to put the phone down and we couldn't scream because we were in a supermarket.
"When I got outside, I just let off a big scream."
Shooting for his scenes starts mid-July and they are expected to air six weeks afterwards.