Obligatory you need slappin' down intro.

Ben Mitchell is a cultural icon. This is a known fact, it does not need to be disputed. And today, the Ben Mitchell mythology expanded just a little more as EastEnders confirmed that Ben would be returning to our screens played by a new actor - for the sixth time. Yes, Ben Mitchell has been played by six (six!) different actors since his Albert Square debut back in 1996. This is excessive. There is no need. And yet, the question remains - which Ben Mitchell is the best Ben Mitchell? And maybe even more importantly - which is the worst? 6. New Ben Mitchell  Look, new Ben Mitchell was only confirmed today, OK? We don't know anything about him yet. He could be a terror. He could be a sweetheart. He could be the cold blooded killer that somebody like Ben Mitchell is wont to be. We just don't know - and for that reason new Ben Mitchell will (for now) remain at the bottom of this list. Sorry, Max Bowden. It's not personal. 5. Toddler Ben Mitchell  Played by Morgan Whittle, toddler Ben Mitchell was essentially grand. At this point in his life, he was unassuming, he was inactive, he may as well have not been there at all for the amount of screen time he got. This is not an attack on toddlers, but an accurate depiction of how little they matter when it comes to entertainment and also this particular scenario. Toddler Ben was cute, alright, but that was it. He had very little else to offer. 4. Baby Ben Mitchell  Between 1996 and 1998, Ben Mitchell was portrayed by Matthew Silver. Matthew was, unsurprisingly, a baby - so naturally he didn't do a whole lot. He posed for promo shots, he sat in a highchair, he was carried from time to time. Despite this, baby Ben was diagnosed with meningitis at one point, meaning that his life and subsequent related plot points became increasingly interesting. One-year-old Silver also possessed a range unparalleled by any other baby actor working at the time. A true talent. 3. Adult Ben Mitchell  Or, arguably, the most convoluted of all the Ben Mitchells. Portrayed by Harry Reid from 2014 to 2018, adult Ben Mitchell had lost a lot of the innocence that made him questionably likeable and just a bit gas. Sure, Reid played the role with a believable grit that some of the Ben Mitchells before him had lacked. Yeah, he was far more involved in the soap as a whole, but during his three and a bit years on the show, there was simply far too much going on. We don't want Ben Mitchell sneaking around, stealing business cards, and engaging in shady shit. We want him dancing in the kitchen to popular girl bands. C'mon. 2. Teen angst Ben Mitchell  Or post juvenile detention centre/struggling to come to terms with his sexuality Ben Mitchell. Whichever. In 2010, Ben Mitchell rocked up to Albert Square in what was the most notable soap-return since Dirty Den rose from the dead. Hardened by his time on the inside, Ben (as Joshua Pascoe) was back and he wasn't about to take any shit from anybody. Especially not Phil, Glenda, and some poor lad called Patrick, all of whom Ben unceremoniously assaults during his first few months back home. Teen angst Ben is a terror, and that makes him instantly more attractive. His inability to come to terms with his sexuality is brutal, yet understandable, as he comes from a family of hyper-masculine men who have only ever expressed themselves through fistfights and going extremely red. Later on, teen angst Ben turns into actual murderer Ben which is a whole lot more dramatic and less relatable. 1. Young Ben Mitchell  C'mon, guys. It was always going to be young Ben Mitchell. Portrayed by Charlie Jones from 2006 to 2010, young Ben Mitchell established the character as one of the most volatile, shocking, and generally harrowing people to hang about Albert Square. He was also hysterically funny. Young Ben Mitchell not only danced to Girls Aloud and went after somebody with a wrench, but he also exposed dad Phil's wife-to-be as a serial abuser, thus solidifying his status as Some Lad. And yeah, OK, it does all go a bit pear shaped when Ben begins abusing other children just like he was abused, but is that or is it not an accurate and necessary representation of the cycle of abuse? Young Ben Mitchell gets locked up following the wrench incident which, despite birthing a whole swarm of memes, did actually leave one character with a fractured skull. But in fairness to him, they did need slappin' down, so.