In the turbulent world of EastEnders, few characters have left as complicated and controversial a romantic legacy as Max Branning. Known for his fiery temper, sharp wit, and equally sharp dress sense, Max has been at the center of some of the soap’s most dramatic love affairs. Over the years, he has been portrayed as a man who desperately craves love and family stability, yet constantly sabotages himself with infidelity, betrayal, and reckless choices. The many lovers of Max Branning are not just a roll call of names—they are chapters in a story that reveal his vulnerabilities, his flaws, and the chaos he leaves in his wake.

At the heart of Max’s reputation is his long and troubled relationship with Tanya Cross. Tanya, perhaps the most defining love of Max’s life, was both his partner in passion and his fiercest adversary. Their marriage was a whirlwind of affection, deception, and betrayal. Max’s repeated affairs tore at the fabric of their family, culminating in moments of shocking heartbreak. Who could forget Tanya burying Max alive after discovering his infidelities, a storyline that remains one of the most iconic in EastEnders history? Despite everything, Tanya and Max shared an undeniable connection that audiences could never fully dismiss, no matter how toxic their relationship became.

Of course, the affair that truly cemented Max Branning as one of Walford’s most infamous ladies’ men was his liaison with Stacey Slater. Stacey was married to Max’s son Bradley at the time, which only made the betrayal more devastating. The affair began in secret, fueled by passion and self-destruction, but its exposure shook the Branning family to its core. The infamous reveal, played out in the 2007 Christmas episode, became one of the most-watched and most shocking moments in EastEnders history. For many fans, Max and Stacey’s affair defined the height of soap scandal, with fallout that rippled for years.

Yet Max’s love life extended far beyond Tanya and Stacey. Over the years, he became entangled with a variety of women, each relationship highlighting different aspects of his personality. There was Vanessa Gold, whose sophistication seemed to tame Max’s wild side for a while, until his insecurities and lies unraveled the romance. There was Lucy Beale, whose affair with Max shocked viewers due to their significant age gap and the consequences it carried in the wider Beale family drama. There was also Kirsty Branning, Max’s supposed “secret wife,” whose arrival created explosive tension and threatened to tear apart his already fragile world.

Max’s lovers often reflected his inability to remain faithful or satisfied. He seemed addicted to the thrill of forbidden romance, often seeking validation outside his relationships rather than confronting his emotional struggles. This pattern left a trail of broken hearts and fractured families behind him. For many fans, Max’s endless affairs made him a villain; for others, they revealed the tragic complexity of a man unable to control his impulses. His character embodied the soap’s ability to explore the gray areas of morality—Max was never purely good or evil, but always complicated.

In addition to his well-known affairs, Max’s flirtations and short-lived romances added to his reputation. From casual dalliances to emotionally charged encounters, Max seemed to be caught in a cycle of craving connection while simultaneously pushing it away. Each new lover brought temporary comfort but also fresh destruction, feeding into the larger narrative of Max as both a victim of his flaws and a perpetrator of pain.

What made Max Branning such a compelling character was not simply the number of women in his life, but the emotional stakes tied to each relationship. With Tanya, it was about the collapse of a marriage. With Stacey, it was about betrayal within the family. With Vanessa, it was about false hope for stability. With Kirsty, it was about secrets and lies catching up with him. And with Lucy Beale, it was about scandal, danger, and the darker side of his compulsions. Each storyline added to his legend as one of Walford’s most complicated lovers, making his character both loathed and loved in equal measure.

His lovers also served as mirrors, reflecting Max’s deepest flaws back at him. They exposed his insecurity, his fear of abandonment, and his inability to break free from destructive cycles. Yet, they also revealed his charm, his capacity for passion, and his desperate need for love and belonging. That duality kept viewers invested, even when Max was making unforgivable mistakes. Fans might rage at his behavior, but they also understood the broken man behind it.

Max’s romantic entanglements also had long-lasting ripple effects on the wider community of Walford. Families were torn apart, friendships destroyed, and rivalries ignited because of his actions. His relationship with Stacey not only wrecked his son Bradley’s marriage but also contributed to Bradley’s tragic death. His involvement with Lucy Beale tied him to one of the show’s most significant murder storylines, forever altering his standing in the Square. Each lover, each affair, became more than just personal drama—it became part of the larger tapestry of EastEnders, shaping storylines and characters for years.

Even after his departure from Walford, Max Branning’s reputation as a notorious womanizer lingers. Fans continue to debate whether he was truly searching for love or simply addicted to self-destruction. Some argue that he was doomed by his flaws, while others see him as a tragic anti-hero who never learned to accept the happiness he claimed to desire. Either way, his many lovers remain a defining feature of his legacy, ensuring that Max Branning will always be remembered as one of the most passionate and polarizing figures in soap history.

In the end, the many lovers of Max Branning tell the story of a man whose heart was both his greatest strength and his greatest weakness. He loved fiercely but carelessly, leaving behind broken marriages, fractured families, and unforgettable scandals. Yet he also gave audiences some of the most iconic moments in EastEnders, proving that in Walford, love is never simple and passion is always dangerous.