The Firm

The Firm is a fictional gangland organisation of the BBC soap opera programme EastEnders; serving as one of the show's central antagonists throughout the 1980s era and in between 2003-2006.

INTRODUCTION — 1985-1989
In late 1985, members of The Firm made local headlines when they were deemed unofficially responsible for putting Kenny Malone, a local badboy, through a sausage machine. Den Watts, who attended school with two of the Vinnicombe brothers - The Firm's tyrannical and enigmatic leaders - threatened Nick Cotton with the gang unless he left Walford, following Nick's abusive treatment of his mother Dot. The menfolk of Albert Square thought it was a bluff until Den revealed the truth to Tony Carpenter.

The Firm, aka "Walford Investments", first appeared on-screen in 1986, represented by the sharp-suited Gregory Mantel, lackeys Brad Williams and Joanne Francis, and the elusive boss Mr. Vinnicombe.

The Firm owns Strokes wine bar, a front for illegal gambling, which is reluctantly managed by Den Watts. It is thought by Mantel that Den, a well-known local publican, will not attract any suspicion to the illegal goings-on at the bar. The Firm is also responsible for a protection racket involving the bar's rival, The Dagmar, which they financially ruin when the bar's owner James Willmott-Brown refuses to let them buy into the place. When Den wants revenge on Willmot-Brown for raping Kathy Beale, the wife of his best-friend Pete, he persuades Brad to burn the place to the ground. However, this enrages The Firm's bosses - as it draws attention to the illegal gambling going on at Strokes.

Den is forced to take the blame for the fire at The Dagmar, and is remanded in custody, awaiting trial. The Firm mistakenly believe that Den has informed on them to the police while in prison, and so want him out of the way permanently. They capture him on the way to his trial with the intention of killing him. Den, with Brad's help, manages to escape, but is tracked down to the canal by Mantel. A Firm hitman shoots Den with a gun hidden in a bunch of daffodils, and he is believed to be dead - but has in fact escaped to Spain.

The Firm later discover this, and Vinnicombe is killed in retaliation; his body ends up getting dumped in the canal to look like Den's - with the Firm going as far as to brick out Vinnicombe's teeth in order to prevent identification. Vinnicombe's body is later recovered and, owing to some lazy police work and some false evidence planted by The Firm in order to cover-up the murder, buried as Den's.

RE-INTRODUCTION — 2003-2006
The Firm is re-introduced in 2003, and is represented by bookkeeper Dennis Rickman; his friend Andy Hunter; and their ruthless boss Jack Dalton, who is said to have usurped control of The Firm from Vinnicombe and ordered Den's death. When Den survived the attempt on his life, which was initially thought to have been successful, Dalton had Vinnicombe murdered in retaliation.

Dalton had taken a young Dennis Rickman under his wing, unaware that Dennis is the son Den Watts never knew he had. Dennis became a professional "hardman", and it is in this capacity that he landed himself a prison sentence for grievous bodily harm. Dalton soon wants Dennis dead, and so orders his enemy Phil Mitchell to kill him. Dennis turns the tables on Phil, and persuades him to let him kill Dalton. Phil agrees, and Dennis confronts Dalton, who admits that it was he who had ordered for Den Watts to be killed. Dennis reveals the truth about his parentage to Dalton, before shooting him. Dalton's last act is to reveal the fact that Den had survived the attempt on his life.

News reaches Den Watts in Spain that Dalton is dead, and he returns to Walford in 2003. Andy replaces Dalton as the leader of The Firm. This is until Andy loses his position for being a "soft touch", and is thrown out of a moving car onto the doorstep of the Queen Victoria pub. Andy is subsequently killed by a fellow mob boss, Johnny Allen, when their ensuing rivalry leads Andy to try and double-cross him on a deal. Ironically, Den Watts is finally murdered that same night - though at the hands of his wife Chrissie in an unconnected incident.

At the end of 2005, Dennis is murdered when Johnny orders his henchman Danny Moon to kill him. In 2006, Danny is murdered by his brother Jake when attempting to kill Phil and his brother Grant. Johnny ultimately confesses his crimes - most specifically to his involvement behind the murders of Andy and Dennis - to the police and later dies of a heart attack whilst serving a life prion sentence.