Where are soap heartthrobs now – overdose, GMB marriage and near-fatal accident

Soap fans have paid tribute to Home and Away star Dieter Brummer after his death aged 45.

As Summer Bay’s Shane Parrish between 1992 and 1996, the TV actor graced many a teenage bedroom.

In later years, he turned his back on showbiz and took up a career as a window cleaner after departing Home and Away to experience life out of the limelight.

But what happened to the other soap heartthrobs of the 1990s? Daily Star has taken a walk down memory lane, looking at the biggest soap hunks from Hollyoaks’ Adam Rickitt to Neighbours’ Craig MacLachlan and where they are now.

Jack Ryder

As EastEnders’ resident Leonardo DiCaprio lookalike, Jack had hearts fluttering when he arrived as Phil Mitchell’s godson Jamie Mitchell in 1998.

Jamie had a turbulent romance with Sonia Jackson (Natalie Cassidy) and was killed off when Martin Fowler ran him over.

Jack quit the soap in 2002 and in the same year married Hear’say singer Kym Marsh but they split in 2009.

While he notched up roles in Kay Mellor’s In The Club in 2016 and on Holby City in 2019, he has admitted he found it hard to adjust to life post-Walford and expected more offers to come in.

But he has become a director for stage and film including on The Full Monty theatre show.

Jack, who released his debut children’s book in 2020, is now aged 39 and became a dad for the first time this year with girlfriend Ella.

Paul Danan

Paul was Hollyoaks bad boy Sol Patrick between 1997 and 2001.

After leaving he landed spots in the first and second series of the original Love Island where he shared the villa with the likes of Calum Best, Fran Cosgrave and Abi Titmuss.

But he became known for his volatile behaviour and had to be removed from the villa by security guards after one outburst.

Paul went on to film one-off series Calum, Fran and Dangerous Danan – where he had a drunken fight with Calum – and did Celebrity Big Brother in 2017.

In 2019, he appeared on The Jeremy Kyle Show to discuss his battle with drink and drugs, revealing he nearly died after snorting heroin and had been to rehab 17 times.

Now living in Hertfordshire, Paul, 43, runs a local drama club for children and has a son named Deniro.

Adam Rickitt

First treading the Corrie cobbles in 1997, Adam was troubled teen Nick Tilsley the eldest child of Gail Platt.

He quit the soap in 1999 to become a pop star but was dropped by his record label when his debut album failed to do well.

He returned to Corrie from 2003 to 2004 and was involved in the soap’s first on-screen gay kiss when he locked lips with Todd Grimshaw.

In 2005 he launched an unsuccessful bid to become a Tory MP and later joined New Zealand soap Shorthand Street in 2007.

In 2014, he became part of the supergroup 5th Story, who took part in the second series of The Big Reunion.

Most recently Adam, 43 – who is married to Good Morning Britain presenter Katy Fawcett – had a stint in Hollyoaks as Kyle Kelly.

Craig McLachlan

Craig was Henry Ramsay in Neighbours between 1987 and 1989 but sneaks onto our list of 90s stars thanks to a stint in Home and Away between 1990 and 1991.

As a singer he had hits including Mona and was a telly and stage regular Down Under during the Nineties and Noughties.

Last December, Craig was cleared of indecently assaulting his stage co-stars after being accused by four women of indecent and common assault during 2014’s Rocky Horror Show in Melbourne.

Now aged 55, he has been married twice and has one son.

Gary Lucy

Following appearances on Grange Hill and Sky One football drama Dream Team, Gary became a true soap heartthrob when he was cast as Hollyoaks’ Luke Morgan in 1999.

He received critical acclaim and a British Soap Award for his performance in a ground-breaking male rape storyline but quit the show in 2000.

Gary went on to star as Kyle Pascoe in raunchy ITV drama Footballers’ Wives from 2002 to 2005 and then had roles in The Bill and EastEnders.

The actor, who has also starred on Dancing on Ice, reprised his Hollyoaks role in 2017 and is still there today.

The dad of four, 39, split from wife Natasha in 2018 after four years of marriage.

Paul Nicholls

Paul joined EastEnders in 1996 as David Wicks’ troubled son Joe and had a powerful schizophrenia storyline.

He departed Albert Square in 1997 and went on to star in shows including Secret Diary of a Call Girl with Billie Piper, Holby City, Law & Order: UK and Ackley Bridge.

Paul also had a big-screen appearance in Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason as drug trafficker Jed.

The 42-year-old has been divorced once and hit the headlines in 2017 when he almost died after spending three days trapped in a Thai rock pool with a smashed leg.

Earlier this year he revealed he’d suffered a stroke in 2018 which caused him to become depressed and hooked on drugs, but was now in recovery and attending Narcotics Anonymous meetings.

Scott Michaelson

Now 52, Scott starred as surfer Brad Willis on Neighbours from 1991 to 1993 where his storylines included an engagement to Beth Brennan, played by Natalie Imbruglia.

He also appeared on the New Zealand series Shortland Street and in The New Adventures of Flipper.

But at the height of his fame, he chose to step away from the limelight and reinvented himself as a businessman and talent manager.

Scott’s biggest success was with Holly Valance, who he helped land the role of Flick Scully on Neighbours in 1999 as well as a subsequent music career.

But they ended up in legal wrangles when they parted ways. Today Scott, 52, manages estate agents.

Ryan Kwanten

The Aussie actor, 44, played Vinnie Patterson in Home and Away from 1997 to 2002 and his character married Leah (Ada Nicodemou) before being written out via a witness protection scheme.

Ryan went on to work regularly on the big and small screens, most famously playing Jason Stackhouse in True Blood and most recently starring in 2021 Amazon Prime horror Them.

Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk