| abstract
| - Della Alexander was a fictional character in the BBC Soap opera EastEnders. She was played by Michelle Joseph. Della was Walford's first lesbian resident, but she wasn't always happy expressing her sexuality in public.
- Della arrives in Walford in March 1994 as a new assistant to the market trader, Sanjay Kapoor. Della is a former hairdresser who had gone to the same school as the barman Steve Elliot. Realising that Della has a talent that could be a potential money spinner, Steve decides to go into business with her. He and Della make plans to open a hairdressing salon in George Street. The salon, Kool for Kutz, opens in April that year. After some problems at home, Della comes to live with Steve at The Queen Victoria public house, and Steve soon begins seeing her as more than just his business partner. He actively pursues her, which she seems to encourage. However, Della is only leading Steve on in order to mask the fact that she is a lesbian, and days later he catches her in bed with her girlfriend Binnie Roberts. As a result, Steve throws Della out, which prompts a feud between him and Binnie. Della is mortified that her sexuality has been uncovered and her shame is often a major source of conflict for her girlfriend, who is openly gay. Steve is eventually forced to come to terms with Della's homosexuality although he harbours feelings for her for a long time after. He makes several attempts to convert her into a heterosexual. Binnie and Della soon move into a bedsit on the Square. Problems arise when Natalie Price hears a rumour that they are lesbians and begins spreading hateful rumours about them. This reaction only increases Della's trepidation about living as a lesbian and she starts denying the rumours, claiming that she'd never slept with a woman before in her life. Infuriated by Della's shame, Binnie threatens to leave the Square, which forces Della to prioritise. In order to convince Binnie to stay, Della kisses her in the middle of Bridge Street, which really gives the gossips something to talk about. Binnie and Della kiss in the middle of Bridge Street. Binnie spends most of her time on the Square trying to force Della to accept herself as a lesbian. She regularly pressures her to "come out" to her mother, which often causes fights between them. In January 1995 they go through a bad patch in their relationship, and Della turns to her old friend Steve for support. They arrange an evening out, which again leads Steve to think that she has changed her mind about dating him. After a flirtatious night and plenty of cocktails, Steve tries to convince Della that she isn't really gay and goes to kiss her. Furious, Della storms off and once again leaves Steve looking the fool. Back in Walford, an insanely jealous Binnie jumps to all the wrong conclusions and berates Della for sleeping with Steve. After witnessing them argue, Steve decides to cut his losses and pull out of his partnership at the salon. He signs the lease over to a grateful Della, and promises to never make a pass at her again. Binnie eventually accepts their explanation and she and Della reconcile. Later in the year, Della begins to grow disillusioned with life in Walford, and she and Binnie decide to make a new start in Ibiza. After tying up loose ends, including selling the lease of her salon and firing her obnoxious assistant Lydia , Della decides that the time had come to tell her mother, Alica, about her sexual orientation. However, after continuous stalling, Alice eventually shows up in Walford and is accidentally informed by Peggy Mitchell instead. Unaware of this, Della continues to lie to her mother about her relationship with Binnie, but on her final day she finally works up the courage and telephones her mother with the news. Alice relays that she already knows, and is happy that she has finally told her the truth. Della then leaves with her conscience clear. Her last appearance is in May 1995.
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