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Max Branning (Jake Wood) will take centre stage in EastEnders this New Year, with a special flashforward episode set to focus on what the future holds for the legendary lothario.

The offering in question, which airs New Year’s Day, will see the character – who returned to the Square in September after four years away – exactly one year in the future, where he finds himself in a sticky situation.

How very Max.

What exactly his plight will entail – or who will be involved – remains shrouded in mystery but there’s plenty of room for speculation, with fans already having their thinking caps on as they try to dig for clues.

Of the supposedly several tricky predicaments Max finds himself in at the beginning of 2027, a wedding seems a likely possibility, with the Walford icon pictured wearing a suit in the promotional photo released alongside the episode announcement.

Not only that, but he picked up the bouquet at daughter Lauren’s (Jacqueline Jossa) wedding earlier this year and we all know what that means!

But, if this does prove to be the case – and Max does walk down the aisle once more – then just who is the bride-to-be this time around?

Given that Max is not exactly a stranger when it comes to relationships and weddings, narrowing down possible brides should be a tall task. However, there is just one name that springs to mind for me – and a multitude of reasons why.

Stacey Slater (Lacey Turner).

While Stacey left the show in September, it’s worth keeping in mind that star Lacey’s departure is thought to be a temporary one as opposed to a full-blown exit, with a spokesperson for the BBC One soap stating earlier this year that she will be back when ‘the time is right’.

This was reiterated once again when, following her exit scenes, EastEnders’ official social media channels posted a message waving ‘goodbye to Lacey Turner… for now’.

What’s more, Stacey – who is undoubtedly one of EastEnders’ biggest characters, played by one of its most-lauded actors in Lacey – didn’t receive a Julia’s Theme for her goodbye sequence, which again echoes the sentiment that it wasn’t actually goodbye and was instead a ‘see you later’.

With Stacey pretty much guaranteed to return, the upcoming flashforward seems like it a perfect chance for her to stage her return.

And the seeds for such a thing appear to have already been set in motion.

Despite having decided to leave the Square in the wake of her grief over Martin Fowler’s death, Stacey’s exit scenes were almost entirely about Max, who had only just set foot back in Walford.

At the time, Max made it quite clear that he’d be open to the prospect of rekindling their passion but Stacey couldn’t have been less interested after she uncovered his romance with Zoe (Michelle Ryan).

Max tried to make things right so that they didn’t part on bad terms but Stacey had nothing more to say as she got in a black cab.

In her final moments on screen, she was seen listening to a voicemail from Max, who pondered that maybe one day they would ‘see each other again’.

I don’t know about you but a line of dialogue implying that Stacey and Max might see one another again in the future seems a deliberate choice now that we know there is a flashforward coming.

Could this confirm that Stacey will be back at some point next year and that she and Max have worked out their issues and reunited?

With Lacey’s return a certainty, all arrows are pointing to an appearance in the flashforward – but will Stace be the next Mrs Branning?