According to Oberman, the atmosphere on set the next day "was a bit tense" but, she added, "the Watts are pulling together and we're getting on with it and working". Looking back on the incident after she had left "EastEnders", Oberman remarked, "I respect Leslie for fronting it out; he emerged from his dressing room and started working. No one mentioned the story. That's life in "EastEnders"; the machine never stops." The increasing prominence of Chrissie in "EastEnders" meant that Oberman, more than most, had to endure the gruelling schedule of working on a soap, taping up to twenty scenes a day. Although she was only in "EastEnders" for 18 months, such was the centrality of Chrissie to the show and storylines Oberman felt she had done 4 years worth of acting, noting that by the time of her departure "Chrissie has packed into a year what most soap characters do in three." This all came during a period of great uncertainty for the show; media criticism and negative publicity created immense pressure behind-the-scenes, with large-scale cast culls and speculation in the press and on the set over who may be next. In an interview with the "Sunday Mirror", Oberman described the atmosphere as like a "vacuum", with the cast "just waiting to see what the next stage is – It can be a bit tense but it's exciting. I really don't know what's going to happen." However, the prominent role of Chrissie in the show as it moved forward meant that Oberman came out of the uncertainty with more to show than most, receiving an improved deal and extending her contract for a year, with the BBC's head of drama John Yorke declaring he had "big plans" for Chrissie. Unlike Den's first wife Angie, Chrissie "has a strong will and fights for what she wants". However, as Oberman noted, "there is enough of Angie in Chrissie to see that Den likes a certain type of strong woman. Chrissie is Angie with 15 years of feminism behind her", explaining in an interview with Radio 4: "I like to think of Chrissie as Angie with benefits... She's his [Den's] equal a bit more than Angie was." Oberman later expanded: "Chrissie, unlike Angie, won't hit the bottle as soon as Den starts playing away.