diff --git a/src/components/structures/TimelinePanel.tsx b/src/components/structures/TimelinePanel.tsx
index b14016d0be8..c8aa9f38e67 100644
--- a/src/components/structures/TimelinePanel.tsx
+++ b/src/components/structures/TimelinePanel.tsx
@@ -1408,24 +1408,16 @@ class TimelinePanel extends React.Component<IProps, IState> {
         // quite slow. So we detect that situation and shortcut straight to
         // calling _reloadEvents and updating the state.
 
-        const timeline = this.props.timelineSet.getTimelineForEvent(eventId);
-        if (timeline) {
-            // This is a hot-path optimization by skipping a promise tick
-            // by repeating a no-op sync branch in TimelineSet.getTimelineForEvent & MatrixClient.getEventTimeline
-            this.timelineWindow.load(eventId, INITIAL_SIZE); // in this branch this method will happen in sync time
-            onLoaded();
-        } else {
-            const prom = this.timelineWindow.load(eventId, INITIAL_SIZE);
-            this.buildLegacyCallEventGroupers();
-            this.setState({
-                events: [],
-                liveEvents: [],
-                canBackPaginate: false,
-                canForwardPaginate: false,
-                timelineLoading: true,
-            });
-            prom.then(onLoaded, onError);
-        }
+        const prom = this.timelineWindow.load(eventId, INITIAL_SIZE);
+        this.buildLegacyCallEventGroupers();
+        this.setState({
+            events: [],
+            liveEvents: [],
+            canBackPaginate: false,
+            canForwardPaginate: false,
+            timelineLoading: true,
+        });
+        prom.then(onLoaded, onError);
     }
 
     // handle the completion of a timeline load or localEchoUpdate, by
@@ -1442,8 +1434,8 @@ class TimelinePanel extends React.Component<IProps, IState> {
     }
 
     // Force refresh the timeline before threads support pending events
-    public refreshTimeline(): void {
-        this.loadTimeline();
+    public refreshTimeline(eventId?: string): void {
+        this.loadTimeline(eventId, undefined, undefined, false);
         this.reloadEvents();
     }