A soap insider today poured scorn on a suggestion that Jessie Wallace was being offered another £100,000 to stay with EastEnders until the end of the year.
The claim was made in a tabloid newspaper report which suggested that the actress, who plays Kat Moon in the BBC soap, would be leaving at the end of her contract in July to spend more time with her baby, Tallulah Lilac.
It said producers were preparing to offer another six-month deal to keep her until Christmas in a bid to boost ratings.
The tabloid also suggested that writers had plans to bring Kat, and her on-screen husband Alfie back together in a 'huge Christmas storyline'.
An EastEnders insider told DS: "Jessie's current contract runs until Christmas anyway."
The insider also confirmed that the eagerly anticipated return of Phil Mitchell would happen within the next two to three weeks, with Kat herself returning soon afterwards