she receives a text from Phil, inviting her to join him and the rest of the family in Peggy's wine bar to welcome in the New Year, leaving Ricky disappointed. The next day, Sam apologises to Ricky and agrees to move to Germany with him and Scarlett. Ricky proposes to Sam in the middle of Albert Square, but she rejects his proposal, admitting that she is not interested in marriage. Sam later tells Ricky that she cannot move abroad with him because her twelve-year-old son, Ricky Jnr (Frankie Day), needs her support. Ricky then bids farewell to Sam and Sonia before departing for Germany with Scarlett. Creation and development Background EastEnders had been on air for three years before the character of Ricky made his first screen appearance in May 1988. At the time, big changes were occurring "behind-the-scenes". Co-creator Julia Smith took "a more back-seat role" as Series Producer, which allowed producer Mike Gibbon to take control of the making of the programme. The arrival of the Butcher family in May 1988 signified an end of an era for the soap, as Den and Angie Watts vacated their positions as landlord and landlady of The Queen Victoria public house, leaving the head of the Butcher family, Frank (Mike Reid), and his girlfriend Pat Wicks (Pam St. Clement) to take over. Along with Frank came his two teenage children, Ricky (Sid Owen) and Diane (Sophie Lawrence). Later they were joined by Frank's mother Mo (Edna Doré), and Frank's youngest daughter Janine (Rebecca Michael). Owen was 16 when he first appeared as Ricky in EastEnders. Personality Portrayed as a soft touch and unintellectual, the character has been dubbed "thicky Ricky" by the popular press in the UK — in the serial he failed all his GCSEs. Sid Owen has discussed Ricky's intellect: "Ricky is just a sort of lovable innocent, really. He's just bungling his way through life the best way he can. All right, so he'll never win any prizes for his brain power. So what? He's a good bloke, a good mate to his friends and he can work miracles with motors [...] What you see is what you get where he's concerned." Author Kate Lock has described Ricky as hapless and a figure of fun, "completely lacking in tact and rarely opens his mouth without putting his foot in it." Noting the changes his character went through in