Linda Carter’s (Kellie Bright) life hangs in the balance in EastEnders after she was found by son Johnny (Charlie Suff) struggling to breathe following a booze binge.

The landlady of the Queen Vic has been seeking solace in alcohol in the wake of Christmas Day last year when she killed Keanu Taylor (Danny Walters).

Keanu, as fans know, was attempting to murder Sharon Watts (Letitia Dean) at the time of the incident, hence Linda’s knee-jerk reaction as she picked up a meat thermometer and stabbed the mechanic in a bid to save her best mate’s life.

With help from five fellow women – Sharon included – Linda covered up the crime but her actions have continued to haunt her, with son Johnny desperate to ensure that she keeps quiet and stays out of prison.

The matriarch has repeatedly reached for the bottle to drown out the trauma of what she did and, despite having framed rapist Dean Wicks (Matt Di Angelo) for the crime, her nightmare continues, with Dean pressurising Bernie Taylor (Clair Norris) into tormenting her.

Tensions have been fraught this week, with Johnny determined to keep his mum quiet after she contemplated making a deal with Dean.

Things reached boiling point on Tuesday (August 13) and huge showdown ensued, with Johnny going too far as he wished his mum dead.

Feeling utterly devastated by her beloved ‘sausage’s words, Linda took the bottle once more, with devastating scenes following.

Johnny, racked with guilt over what he said, returned to the Queen Vic to apologise to his mum but ultimately found her choking on her own vomit.

Gina Knight (Francesca Henry) rushed in, telephoning for an ambulance, but will Linda be okay?

That is the question, and the first look images in this article preview what happens next, as paramedics race to the Square and into the Vic, taking Linda to the hospital.

Elaine Peacock (Harriet Thorpe) watches on with horror, fearing the worst, as silence