The first time I saw someone being strangled on TV was in EastEnders. 

I was 16 in 2005, when gangster Johnny Allen (Billy Murray) held Sharon Watts (Letitia Dean) against the wall by her throat, yelling threats into her face before she revealed she was pregnant.

The scene did not really stick out to me back then, nor did I find it shocking or moving. But therein lies the problem.

Strangulation was so normalised that I did not register it as dangerous.

To me, it seemed like Sharon walked away with no shock afterwards, confusion, trauma, or flashbacks. It was something that just happened – a small piece in a bigger storyline.

Two decades later, the same thing happened when Keanu Taylor (Danny Walters) strangled Sharon until Linda Carter (Kellie Bright) stopped him before it was too lat

See Full Page