The brother of former EastEnders actress Gemma McCluskie will appear in court today charged with her murder.

Miss McCluskie’s torso was discovered dumped in Regent’s Canal close to Hackney’s Broadway Market last week, days after she attended a high-profile hospital opening ceremony in east London.

Her 35-year-old brother Tony was formally charged by police on Saturday night as divers continued their searches for Miss McCluskie’s remaining body parts.

The actress, 29, who played Kerry Skinner in the BBC soap in 2001, went missing following the opening of the Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel.

Friends launched extensive searches across east London in a bid to find her and former EastEnders co-stars Natalie Cassidy and Brooke Kinsella both appealed on Twitter for help.

Miss McCluskie’s remains were discovered on Tuesday when a member of the public reported a suspicious object.

A post-mortem examination has proved inconclusive.

Tony McCluskie, of Pelter Street, Bethnal Green, is accused of killing his sister between February 29 and March 6. He will appear in custody at Thames Magistrates’ Court in east London.