What's the difference between the two Mitchell sisters?

Samantha: Roxy's the bold, brassy type, who knows exactly what she wants. Ronnie's a little less flamboyant, darker, a bit more of a control freak!

How do Roxy and Ronnie fit into the Mitchell family?

S: Phil and Grant’s dad, Eric, is our dad's brother. Billy’s our second cousin.

Are they typical Mitchells?

R: They’re the next generation. A newer, younger, slightly more modern type of Mitchell. The other Mitchells are very old school.

S: But there’s no coincidence about the gangster sibling thing - you’ve got Ronnie and Roxy and Ronnie and Reggie . Subliminally, the Kray twins thing gets through on some level. Although on the surface they’re two flamboyant blondes, they’re also quite dark. They’re quite physically intimidating.

How do they get on with Phil and Grant?

R: We’ve heard that Phil’s a bit of a nutter because we haven’t seen him since we were kids. There’s a line where we're discussing when we were younger and Ronnie thought Grant was good looking because he looked like Simon Le Bon !

What about Billy?

S: There’s mention of them setting fire to his trousers when they were little. I think he’s pretty emotionally scarred by them.

Which men do they clock in Albert Square?

R: Roxy clocks Deano straight away. And Bradley , she’s a little bit sisterly towards. I think she finds him cute and endearing. He’s Roxy’s little project.

What do the women of Walford think of the pair?

S: It’s all quite derogatory.

R: Bleach blonde bimbos. A lot of the wives are protective of their other halves. Not that the sisters are interested in any of them!

Are the sisters going to rub people up the wrong way in Walford?

S: There’s no way that they wouldn’t create some sort of stir. You either like them or hate them, they’re not middle-ground people. There’s a really interesting dysfunctional dynamic between them too.

Are we likely to see some sibling rivalry?

S: It’s that Mitchell trait where they're strongly loyal towards their family, but there’s a real history of competition between them. You get the feeling that when it blows, you wouldn’t want to be in the same room.

What do you think of your characters' clothes?

R: Boy, is Roxy’s look far removed from my own! It really is.

S: I tend to put on whatever's at the end of the bed that's clean and quick. I like comfy shoes, like flip-flops, and wear them every day.

Are you ready for the public reaction to your characters?

R: In Roxy’s case it will be quite nice because she’s fun and for all her faults, she’s warm. She’s quirky and amusing and not all that bright all the time.

S: I don’t think Ronnie’s as likeable. She’s quite bossy.

R: Ronnie is the more nagging of the two. She’s not dislikeable or nasty though.

So who are the iconic EastEnders characters for you?

R: Funnily enough, the Mitchells ! I think it was fate for me, because I’ve always wanted to play a Mitchell. It’s really strange!

S: I loved Anita Dobson’s portrayal of Angie . She was a really damaged individual. I remember watching it and becoming completely involved in Angie and Den’s relationship and gagging for the next episode.