query: When was Abi Branning introduced on EastEnders?
passage: Abi Branning
Abi Branning i<!-- Do not change is to was, she has not stopped being fictional. -->s a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Lorna Fitzgerald. She was introduced by executive producer Kate Harwood on 3 July 2006 as an extension to the Branning family, along with father Max (Jake Wood), mother Tanya Branning (Jo Joyner) and older sister Lauren Branning (Madeline Duggan/Jacqueline Jossa). Her storylines involve her friendships and relationships with Ben Mitchell (Charlie Jones/Joshua Pascoe/Harry Reid) and Jay Brown (Jamie Borthwick), her toxic friendship with Babe Smith (Annette Badland), faking a pregnancy so that Ben would not leave her for Paul Coker (Jonny Labey), being a suspect in the murder of Lucy Beale (Hetti Bywater), her affair with Lauren's fiancé, Steven Beale (Aaron Sidwell), and becoming pregnant by him. In September 2017, it was announced that Fitzgerald and Jossa had been axed by executive consultant John Yorke.[2] Abi's exit storyline involves her and Lauren falling from the roof of The Queen Victoria pub, leading to Abi giving birth prematurely and being confirmed brainstem dead in later episodes. Abi's final scenes aired on 19 January 2018 after her life support is withdrawn. The character's funeral took place on 16 February 2018.
passage: Abi Branning
On 10 September 2017, it was announced that Fitzgerald had been axed from the show by executive consultant John Yorke, along with Jacqueline Jossa. A spokesperson said: "We can confirm Jacqueline and Lorna will be leaving. They have been wonderful to work with and we wish them all the best for the future."[25] Fitzgerald's final episode was broadcast on 19 January 2018, in which the character dies.[26] At the end of the episode, instead of the usual closing title sequence, the image, focused on Abi's face, fades to black and no theme music is played.[27]