Halfway’s torn in two

Will EastEnders’ lovable Callum Highway side with his bad-boy brother – or the family who took him in?

EastEnders character Callum ‘Halfway’ Highway will soon have to decide if blood is thicker than water, as his adoptive new family, the Carters, continue to go up against his brutish brother, Stuart.

When it recently emerged that Stuart was behind the kidnap and torture of Tina Carter, Stuart insisted to Halfway that Tina had imagined it, before getting arrested for historical abuse.

Now ostracised and a pariah, Stuart has returned to Albert Square with revenge on his mind, leaving Halfway – who is dating Whitney Carter – with a big decision to make.

‘Halfway knows Stuart has done bad things, but wants to see the good in him and hopes one day he’ll be the loving brother he always wanted,’ says Tony Clay, who plays Halfway. ‘But in the Carters he has this wonderful family he’s never had before, so it’s a question of whether blood is thicker than water for Halfway, who is pushed and pulled between them.’

The Carters will be riled this week when they find a cryptic note from Stuart left in their home.

While Mick and Shirley Carter are keen to hunt him down, Halfway feels protective towards his brother, says Tony. So who will he choose?

‘ There will soon come a point where he has to make that decision,’ says Tony. ‘The Carters and Whitney mean so much more to Halfway and have been there more for him, so I’d like to see him choose the Carters.’

And if he does, could Halfway’s relationship with Whitney have a future? ‘I hope so, as they work well together,’ says Tony. ‘But Halfway’s never been one for keeping things together for long, so we will see...’

Halfway, who Tony says is a lovable guy with his heart in the right place, has been described as ‘a wel-

come ray of sunshine in the bleak world of Albert Square’.

‘I’ll take that,’ beams Tony. ‘Halfway stands out because he has a quirkiness and loveliness to him.’

Tony, 27 this week, studied drama in west London and appeared in small parts before landing a role in Stan Lee’s big-budget Sky One drama Lucky Man, with James Nesbitt, in 2016. ‘Working with Jimmy was great, and doing action scenes with a stunt man was exciting,’ says Tony.

He joined EastEnders at the start of this year, initially for six weeks, with

Halfway taking part in a heist that saw him shoot Danny Dyer’s character, Mick Carter. He came back in March as a permanent cast member.

‘It’s been incredible working with actors like Danny who have looked after me and helped me,’ says Tony, who lives with Olivia, his holidayrep girlfriend of two years.

‘The story’s constantly changing. I’m excited for new scripts to come through. No matter what happens in my life, this is such an achievement. I’m proud to be a part of it.’