<P> Once they had decided on their 23 characters, they returned to London for a meeting with the BBC . Everyone agreed that EastEnders would be tough, violent on occasion, funny and sharp--set in Margaret Thatcher's Britain--and it would start with a bang (namely the death of Reg Cox). They decided that none of their existing characters were wicked enough to have killed Reg, so a 24th character, Nick Cotton was added to the line - up . He was a racist thug, who often tried to lead other young characters astray . When all the characters had been created, Smith and Holland set about casting the actors for the show . </P> <P> Through the next few months, the set was growing rapidly at Elstree, and a composer and designer had been commissioned to create the title sequence . Simon May wrote the theme music and Alan Jeapes created the visuals . The visual images were taken from an aircraft flying over the East End of London at 1000 feet . Approximately 800 photographs were taken and pieced together to create one big image . The credits were later updated when the Millennium Dome was built . </P> <P> The launch was delayed until February 1985 due to a delay in the chat show Wogan, that was to be a part of the major revamp in BBC1's schedules . Smith was uneasy about the late start as EastEnders no longer had the winter months to build up a loyal following before the summer ratings lull . The press were invited to Elstree to meet the cast and see the lot, and stories immediately started circulating about the show, about a rivalry with ITV (who were launching their own market - based soap, Albion Market) and about the private lives of the cast . Anticipation and rumour grew in equal measure until the first transmission at 7 p.m. on 19 February 1985 . Both Holland and Smith could not watch; they both instead returned to the place where it all began, Albertine's Wine Bar on Wood Lane . The next day, viewing figures were confirmed at 17 million . The reviews were largely favourable, although, after three weeks on air, BBC1's early evening share had returned to the pre-EastEnders figure of seven million, though EastEnders then climbed to highs of up to 23 million later on in the year . Following the launch, both group discussions and telephone surveys were conducted to test audience reaction to early episodes . Detailed reactions were taken after six months and since then regular monitoring was conducted . </P> <P> Press coverage of EastEnders, which was already intense, went into overdrive once the show was broadcast . With public interest so high, the media began investigating the private lives of the show's popular stars . Within days, the scandalous headline the producers had all dreaded appeared--"EASTENDERS STAR IS A KILLER". This referred to Leslie Grantham, and his prison sentence for the murder of a taxi driver in an attempted robbery nearly 20 years earlier . This shocking tell - all style set the tone for relations between Albert Square and the press for the next 20 years . </P>

When did the first episode of eastenders air