Jake Moon
Jake Moon | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
EastEnders character | |||||||||||||
Portrayed by | Joel Beckett | ||||||||||||
Duration | 2004–2006 | ||||||||||||
First appearance | Episode 2863 30 December 2004 | ||||||||||||
Last appearance | Episode 3243 20 October 2006 | ||||||||||||
Classification | Former; regular | ||||||||||||
Introduced by | Kathleen Hutchison | ||||||||||||
|
Jake Moon is a fictional character from the British soap opera EastEnders, played by Joel Beckett. Jake appears in the show in episodes originally broadcast in the United Kingdom between 30 December 2004 and 20 October 2006. His casting was announced by executive producer Kathleen Hutchison on 20 October 2004. Jake is introduced alongside his younger brother Danny Moon (Jake Maskall) and upon his arrival was described as "the sensitive brother who had an eye for the ladies", while Beckett expressed his happiness at joining the show.[1] In March 2005, Beckett and Maskall were axed[2] but Jake was reintroduced to the show later in the year.[3]
Jake and Danny are cousins of established character
On 7 May 2006, Beckett announced that he was quitting the show and departed on 20 October 2006. His last scene saw him being confronted by mobsters shortly after Johnny had died of a heart attack in prison, and his fate has never been revealed.
Storylines
Jake Moon makes his first appearance on 30 December 2004, arriving in Walford along with his brother
Jake struggles to cope with observing Andy's murder and ends up sharing the information to Danny as the latter, who had recently learned of Andy's death, grows paranoid in fear that Johnny will come after them next. In July 2005, Jake and Danny plan to leave
Jake returns to Walford and informs Johnny that he will not be starting trouble, as he is there for personal reasons; Johnny allows him to stay. Jake soon repairs his relationship with Chrissie - whom he recently had a fling with - and is later shocked when she admits to have killed her husband and Johnny's close friend,
Sometime later, Jake discovers Danny has been living in Johnny's mansion in Essex. He manages to locate Danny and tries to persuade him to return to Walford together, but Danny says Johnny's home is also his home now. Jake realises Danny has become mentally unstable since his time away from Walford, and that Johnny is just using him to do his dirty work. Danny then reveals that he owes Johnny a favor, and in order to gain his approval, he had to do something. Danny then shows Jake a mobile phone recording of Andy's best-friend, Dennis Rickman (Nigel Harman), being stabbed to death on New Year's Eve 2005. Jake is shocked when he realizes Danny had killed Dennis on Johnny's orders. Jake confronts Danny for his recklessness, prompting the latter to threaten him with a pistol; the pair end up having a fight when Jack punches Danny, only for his younger brother to then knock him unconscious. Jake regains consciousness just as Sam's brothers Phil (Steve McFadden) and Grant (Ross Kemp) arrive to confront Johnny - seeking to bring him to justice for Dennis' murder as they had promised to their ex-lover Sharon (Letitia Dean), who recently married Dennis months before his death. However, Johnny ends up capturing the brothers and orders Danny to kill them. Danny prepares to kill Grant with a shotgun, but just as he is about to pull the trigger, Jake intervenes with Danny's pistol - which he dropped during the earlier struggle between them - and shoots his younger brother in a desperate attempt to stop him. Though he intended to wound Danny by shooting him in the arm or the leg, Jake had killed his brother when Grant confirms that Danny is dead. As Phil and Grant leave to confront Johnny again, Jake mourns the loss of his brother and proceeds to bury Danny in the woods with a spade - which he then uses to mark his grave. Jake then notices Johnny calling Danny on his phone, and answers the call - indirectly telling Johnny about Danny's death whilst also stating that Phil and Grant are still alive; Johnny would later get arrested for the murders of Andy and Dennis. Following Johnny's arrest, Jake takes his daughter Ruby (Louisa Lytton) back with him to Walford and looks after her.
As Jake copes with the events of Danny's death and Johnny's arrest, he forms a relationship with
Creation and development
The character's arrival was announced on 20 October 2004,[4] and Beckett was quoted as saying "I've watched the programme since the beginning and I'm very excited to be joining such a successful television institution".[5] Three months after their on-screen arrival, Jake and his brother Danny were axed from the show.[6] However, producer Kate Harwood gave Jake a reprieve, and the character subsequently took a short break from the show which coincided with Danny's exit and then returned.[7]
Jake and Danny always tried to imitate the Mitchell brothers, but second-rate gangsters is all they were.[8] Jake is described, the sensitive brother who had an eye for the ladies.[8]
It was announced on 7 May 2006 that Beckett had quit the role to move on and further his career,[9] and the character made his final appearance on 20 October 2006.[8] Jake ended up with a contract out on his life, after Johnny Allen's dying words were misconstrued. He was last seen leaving Albert Square being confronted by a sinister looking stranger.[8]
References
- ^ "Press Releases: From The Office to Albert Square". BBC. 20 October 2004. Retrieved 2 April 2020.
- ^ "'EastEnders' axes new Moon brothers". Digital Spy. 16 March 2005.
- ^ "EastEnders' Joel - It's just a break". Digital Spy. 19 April 2005.
- ^ Saney, Daniel (20 October 2004). "'Office' star to be in 'EastEnders'". Digital Spy. Retrieved 2 May 2010.
- ^ Wilkes, Neil (16 November 2004). "New Moon brothers join 'EastEnders'". Digital Spy. Retrieved 2 May 2010.
- ^ Wilkes, Neil (16 March 2005). "'EastEnders' axes new Moon brothers". Digital Spy. Retrieved 5 May 2010.
- ^ Green, Kris (19 April 2005). "EastEnders' Joel - It's just a break". Digital Spy. Retrieved 2 May 2010.
- ^ a b c d 'Jake Moon played by Joel Beckett EastEnders 2006 Retrieved 21 October 2012
- ^ Kilkelly, Daniel (7 May 2006). "Joel Beckett quits 'EastEnders'". Digital Spy. Retrieved 5 May 2010.