How to get the Dot Branning look this summer.

I am shamefully, a devoted Eastenders fan. Even if I don't manage to watch it on time, I still catch up on recordings or the weekly omnibus. 

For those who don't watch it, it's predictable, it's cheesy, it's unrealistic, but from around the age of four, I've been hooked. For me,  it's the characters that make it; there's such a diverse range of people: goodies, baddies, young, old, beautiful, ugly. You name it, there's someone to fit any description in Eastenders and the most unlikely of relationships form, as their paths cross in tiny Albert Square. 

One of my favourite characters is Dot Branning, played by 86-year-old, June Brown. She is the second longest serving character surpassed only by Ian Beale who was a mere teenager when the show first began in 1985. 

Without Dot, Eastenders would be nothing. She holds the square together, uniting rivals and being a role model to everybody with her religious values and words of wisdom. Don't be fooled however. This old devil isn't shy of a sweet sherry or two, and lives and breathes gossip shared over a cigarette (or five), but this is what makes her so appealing. She brings humour, but has also touched on some incredibly sensitive issues over the years; euthanasia, cancer and drug use to mention just a few and that's not forgetting her story this week, where she became the suspect of benefit fraud. 

Now, after her close friend Heather Trott was violently murdered last year, Dot took some time to come to terms with her loss and left Albert Square to stay with her grand-daughter. 

When she left, Dot was the typical, religious, 77-year-old woman: ankle length skirts, turtleneck jumpers, comfy, sole support shoes and most notably the same long coat since the eighties. You know, conservative, modest, kind of drab but appropriate, twin-set-and-pearls type thing. 

However, upon her return recently, Dot appears to have had a makeover. Dot is now sporting a pair of slim-line, patterned blue trousers, a chiffon shirt and a fitted modern blazer. The look is finished with a number of fashionable broaches, a loosely hung Oxford-esque scarf and that's not to forget the knee length fur lined boots I noticed that she wore to court on Thursday. 

I'm sorry but what? 

Dot Branning has become a fashion icon. 

So, in true, trashy magazine style, here's how to get the Dot Branning look on the High Street: 

Black Floral Print Tapered Leg Trousers

New Look

£16.99

Cream Chelsea Girl Lace Yoke Blouse 

River Island

£25

Ted Baker Tylar Check Jacket

House of Fraser

£249.00

Kashmiri Paisley Stole

Accessorize 

£27.00

Peony Sparkle Brooch

Accessorize

£10.00

And of course no Dot Branning look would be complete without her symbol of Christianity, which are all the rage this summer, whether you're religious or not. 

Gold Stud Pendant Necklace

New Look

£4.99

So there we have it, the Dot Branning look on our High Streets this summer. It's practical, elegant, and bang on trend, where can you go wrong dressing like a 77-year-old? 

In all seriousness, fair play to Dot and her makeover. It's refreshing to see glamorous older ladies on our screens and is a welcome relief in the face of Coronation Street's E.T look alike Gail Platt or former Eastender, Pat Butcher. Don't get me wrong, I don't want to see Dot hobbling around the Square in a pair of stilettos and a mini-skirt after one too many sherries, but it really is nice to see her character updated after twenty-eight years. Eastenders just wouldn't be the same without this trendy Grandma.