EastEnders spoilers: Alfie sets fire to his house - but who's trapped inside? First look pictures

As previously reported, Alfie's partner Kat will sustain life-threatening injuries after bearing the brunt of the blaze. "This has the makings of a massive story for Kat," a source told Inside Soap. "The burns she'll suffer will be very severe. It means she'll have to be very brave as she receives treatment and then has to learn to live with the disfigurement."

EastEnders has previously charted the effect of living with burns in 2011 after Tamwar Masood (Himesh Patel) was left scarred on his back following the Christmas fire at the B&B. Of this latest storyline, which is set to air in the week commencing Monday 15 September, the source said:

"Kat is a true survivor and has got over terrible things in her life. But that's no reason to underestimate the impact of the fire. Everything will change and she'll have a hell of a fight on her hands."

And what of Alfie in all of this? Will the arsonist go to pieces after realising what's happened? "It's going to be heartbreaking as the scenes play out," an insider told the Daily Star recently. "There was lots of screaming and crying when we filmed the fire episodes. The arsonist will have to live with the consequences of his or her actions for the rest of their life."