Families are hell...but as long as there's love, then it's happy days

Actor on changing times

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HE had four weddings, 20 affairs and four kids during his first stint on EastEnders but New Year's Day was the first time he mastered time travel.

Max Branning, Albert Square's serial womaniser, featured in a unique flash-forward by 12 months and gave viewers a glimpse of bride number five.

But before future Max can tie the knot, he will be arrested for murder.

Actor Jake Wood's own family life, with wife Alison and their kids, Amber, 20, and Buster, 17, is serene by comparison — but he still knows drama can often lie beneath the surface.

"Family is hell. It's never straightforward, is it?" he says.

"I mean, any family that I know that is large... there is always drama. Every family I can think of has got something, some secret or some trauma. It's very rarely what you see on the surface."

But he adds: "The main thing is, if there's love in a family, that's everything, isn't it? Love, mutual respect, support. If you've got all of those things, yeah, happy days, crack on."

Despite having a strong moral code when it comes to his own family, who live in an old school house in Hampshire, Jake admits he is drawn to the Brannings, as he finds crime families endlessly intriguing.