BBC/Jack Barnes/Kieron McCarronEastenders actress Molly Rainford says it’s “important” for the soap to tackle spiking in a new experimental storyline.
Her character Anna Knight stars in a new five-part mini series uploaded by the show’s makers to social media.
Called Spiked, it shows what happens to Anna when her drink gets spiked during a night out.
The online shorts are accessible via a QR code displayed during the episode shown on BBC One on Tuesday night.
Viewers who scan the image with their phones are taken to the five episodes and links to resources about spiking.
Spiking is when someone puts alcohol or drugs into another person’s drink or body without their knowledge or consent.
According to police, the majority of cases happen in public places such as bars and nightclubs.
Although it’s already illegal, the government is set to introduce a new bill in the King’s Speech later that makes spiking a specific criminal offence.
MPs believe this will make it easier for police to respond to reports.
‘Worst thing I’ve experienced’
Symptoms of spiking can include memory loss, hallucinations and disorientation.
EastEnders hopes to show viewers of the miniseries the symptoms through Anna’s eyes as her night takes a turn for the worse.
“I think it’s so important that we show those signs,” says Molly.
The actress tells BBC Newsbeat it was “really important” for her to do her research to portray the experience accurately and highlight the symptoms.
Molly also urges people to look out for their friends on nights out.
“Are they acting differently? Is something not quite right?” she says.
Molly hopes the series will create more awareness around spiking, and reach younger audiences online.
“What better platform than social media to reach the people that it’s directly affecting?” Molly says.
Molly says she is constantly thinking about her safety on nights out.
“You have to kind of live in that bit of fear that it could happen and it’s a real shame,” she says.
“I’m lucky enough that I haven’t been spiked, but it shouldn’t be luck, it should be standard.”
The effects of spiking are something Abbi Taylor, from Manchester, knows about all too well.
“It was just the worst thing I’ve experienced,” she says.
Abbi, who’s originally from Harrogate, North Yorkshire, says she realised she’d been spiked as she got home from a day event two months ago.
She describes the feeling as “sheer panic”.
“I started to notice my vision going blurry,” she says. “I started shaking, I was sweating.”
As the effects grew stronger, Abbi says, she started to lose the ability to move her body.
“I couldn’t talk. If I tried to stand up – I’d just collapse,” she says.
“It almost felt like I was trapped in this body that didn’t feel like it was mine.”
After having her drink spiked, Abbi says she no longer wants to go on nights out.
Like Molly, she urges others to be alert to the signs.
“If it can happen to me, it can happen to anyone,” she says.
Dawn Dines, CEO of charity Stamp Out Spiking, which consulted on the EastEnders mini series, says “education is key to preventing these incidents”.
She hopes featuring the issue on Eastenders will “inspire conversations” that help to protect people.
The Metropolitan Police, which covers London, says 1,383 allegations of spiking were submitted in 2023 – an average of 26 allegations per week.
It says reports increased by 13% in the last six months of 2023 compared with the same period the previous year.
In 2023, the force made 70 arrests for spiking offences.
Met Police Det Ch Supt Angela Craggs urged those who suspect they’ve been spiked to come forward.
Around the country, Samantha Millar, of the National Police Chiefs’ Council says, police forces have been “working proactively” to improve feelings of safety on nights out.
“This includes regular, targeted patrols of busy town centres,” Samantha says, adding that police also visit universities to raise awareness of spiking symptoms.
The Home Office has said the law is part of the new Labour government’s “mission to halve violence against women and girls in a decade”.
The spiking law will apply in England and Wales. Any further measures in Scotland and Wales will be for devolved politicians.