List of EastEnders characters introduced in 2010

The following are characters who first appeared in the BBC soap opera EastEnders during 2010, listed by order of first appearance. Executive producer Diederick Santer left EastEnders on 26 February 2010, handing over to Bryan Kirkwood, who fully took control from 1 March 2010.

Santer introduced five new main characters in January, three from the online spin-off EastEnders: E20, Zsa Zsa Carter (Emer Kenny), Leon Small (Sam Attwater) and Fatboy (Ricky Norwood), as well as two members of the long-established Mitchell family, Glenda Mitchell, played by Glynis Barber, and her son Danny (Liam Bergin). February saw the show's first birth of 2010, with Kamil Masood, the fourth child of the established Zainab Masood (Nina Wadia) and Masood Ahmed (Nitin Ganatra). The same month, Sandy Gibson (Caroline Pegg/Martha Cope), the mother of Dotty Cotton (Molly Conlin/Milly Zero) appeared. The character of Harvey Freeman, played by Martin Jarvis, was introduced in April, and the fourth main character from EastEnders: E20, Mercy Olubunmi (Bunmi Mojekwu), joined EastEnders in May. Kirkwood's first major casting was Zöe Lucker in the role of Vanessa Gold and later cast her daughter Jodie (Kylie Babbington) and husband Harry (Linal Haft), as well as Mercy's grandmother Grace (Ellen Thomas), all of whom appeared in June. June also saw the show's second birth of the year, that of Lily Branning, the daughter of Stacey Branning (Lacey Turner) and Ryan Malloy (Neil McDermott). In September, Richard Mitchell became the third birth of the year, born to Sam Mitchell (Danniella Westbrook/Kim Medcalf) and Jack Branning (Scott Maslen). Three characters arrived in October: Greg Jessop (Stefan Booth), Tanya Branning's (Jo Joyner) fiancé; Michael Moon (Steve John Shepherd), Alfie Moon's (Shane Richie) cousin; and Julie Perkins (Cathy Murphy), an old friend of Billy Mitchell (Perry Fenwick). In November, Kirkwood introduced Zainab's ex-husband, Yusef Khan (Ace Bhatti). Two more babies were born in December, James Branning and Tommy Moon, which triggered a long-running controversial storyline for Ronnie Branning (Samantha Womack) and Kat Moon (Jessie Wallace).

Fatima Inzamam is the wife of Inzamam Ahmed (Paul Bhattacharjee) and mother of Jamila (Sara Aisha Kent) and Ali (Omar Kent). She made her first screen appearance on 1 January 2010 played by an uncredited actress. Anu Hasan took over the role for Fatima's return from 15 May 2015.

She first appears before Syed Masood's (Marc Elliott) wedding to Amira Shah (Preeya Kalidas) but leaves when Inzamam's brother Masood Ahmed (Nitin Ganatra) tells Inzamam he is no longer welcome at the wedding. In May 2015, Fatima visits after being contacted by her niece Shabnam Masood (Rakhee Thakrar) to find her a husband for an arranged marriage, frustrated at her boyfriend Kush Kazemi's (Davood Ghadami) inability to commit. Fatima invites the suitor, Asim (Nitin Kundra), to the house and introduces him to Shabnam. However, when Shabnam dodges the question of future children, Fatima confronts her, revealing she knows Shabnam abandoned her daughter on her doorstep seven years earlier. She tells Shabnam that she does not keep in touch with the child's adoptive parents but assures her that she is in good health. After Shabnam accepts Kush's proposal, Fatima confesses to Masood that she and Inzamam have separated, he has moved back to Pakistan and that she lied to Shabnam about her daughter; she knows where she is. Fatima later visits again with Shabnam's wedding dress and makes alterations to it to conceal her pregnancy bump.

Fatima is shocked when Shabnam brings up Denise Fox (Diane Parish) and Stacey Slater's (Lacey Turner) past relationships, discovering that Denise's ex-husband, Lucas Johnson (Don Gilet), is a serial killer and that Stacey had an affair with her father-in-law, Max Branning (Jake Wood). Fatima is also shocked to discover Shabnam had been in numerous relationships previously and is unimpressed when Denise, Stacey and Kush's mother Carmel (Bonnie Langford) drink alcohol, worrying about the effect it will have on Masood's reputation. When Carmel questions her relationship with Masood, Fatima is forced to reveal that she is just his sister-in-law, stopping short of revealing that her marriage is over. Once she has finished with Shabnam's dress, Carmel disapproves of the alterations and tells an unimpressed Fatima that Shabnam should not be ashamed to be pregnant, which Shabnam agrees with. Masood later calls Fatima back to the house and she tells him that she felt that she had married the wrong brother. Shabnam then walks in on them kissing and leaves in shock. Fatima is then outraged to discover that Masood had slept with Carmel, and leaves angrily, telling her nephew, Masood's son Tamwar (Himesh Patel), that Masood is just as bad as Inzamam. She returns on the eve of Shabnam and Kush's wedding and helps Shabnam, Carmel, Stacey and Denise with the wedding preparations. She is also present at the wedding ceremony the next day where she meets her new nephew, Masood's youngest son Kamil (Arian Chikhlia), whose mother Zainab Masood (Nina Wadia) has flown out from Pakistan for the occasion.

Laura-Jane Tyler from Inside Soap praised the character, saying "how sweet is Shabnam's Auntie Fatima? Supportive, understanding, calm and reasoned, she's the loving mother the Masood kids never had!"

Zsa Zsa Carter is played by Emer Kenny and made her first appearance on 5 January 2010 before appearing in the Internet spin-off EastEnders: E20. She is one of four characters created for the spin-off who also appear in the main show. Kenny's casting was announced on 25 November 2009. She was cast while writing the second episode of E20. Zsa Zsa is the niece of regular character Shirley Carter (Linda Henry), with whom she is said to have a lot in common. She is described as "Beautiful, funky and an outspoken tomboy," as well as "a lone wolf [who] doesn't care about anyone." Zsa Zsa was axed in May 2010 by new executive producer Bryan Kirkwood, though Kenny continued to write for EastEnders: E20. Her storylines mostly revolve around her relationship with Leon Small (Sam Attwater). The character's last appearance was on 30 September 2010.

Leon Small is played by Sam Attwater and makes his first appearance on 5 January 2010 before appearing in the Internet spin-off EastEnders: E20. He is one of four characters created for the spin-off who also appear in the main show. Attwater's casting was announced on 25 November 2009. Leon is described as "Sexy and effortlessly cool [with] a short fuse and a lack of respect for those in authority." His mother died when he was a child and he was left in charge of his alcoholic father. He also practices boxing. He was axed in May 2010 by new executive producer Bryan Kirkwood. His storylines revolve around his relationships with Zsa Zsa Carter (Emer Kenny) and Lucy Beale (Melissa Suffield). The character's last appearance was on 30 September 2010.