EastEnders legend Tom Watt, famously known as George “Lofty” Holloway, has spilled the beans on his life after leaving the iconic BBC soap.
The actor, who was part of the original line-up back in 1985, waved goodbye to Albert Square after a three-year stint and swapped the drama for a career in sports journalism.
Now aged 68, Tom’s been rubbing shoulders with the big dogs in the sports world, lending his voice to talkSPORT, Channel 4, and the BBC, becoming a well-known sports pundit.
Post-EastEnders, Tom was the voice behind talkSPORT’s drivetime show Season Ticket for a solid four years and later took his talents to BBC London, where he covered live footie action on weekends.
(Image: BBC)
He even had a gig hosting Arsenal TV’s weekly Fans’ Forum until it got the chop in 2013.
But Tom didn’t just keep his talents to the airwaves. he’s penned articles for Arsenal’s matchday programme and recently, you might’ve caught him presenting on BT Sport or crafting words for EA Sports.
One of his standout gigs was ghostwriting for none other than David Beckham in the football icon’s 2002 autobiography “My Side,” as reported by OK!, reports the Mirror.
(Image: Getty)
Though he’s turned his back on acting full-time, Tom couldn’t resist returning to EastEnders for a couple of cameos popping up in 2019 for Dr Harold Legg’s funeral and again in 2022 to bid farewell to Dot Cotton.
Chatting on This Morning about his brief return to the soap, Tom shared: “I really enjoyed going back to do it, acting’s something I love doing I’m just not great waiting for the phone to ring and I’m out of town.”
(Image: BBC)
“They came along with this and I’ve got to say it wasn’t just ‘oh let’s get someone from the past back’. It was really well-written absolutely the right thing that Lofty was there for the funeral.”
Reflecting on his time in EastEnders during a chat on Steph’s Packed Lunch last year, Tom Watt gushed: “Lofty was a really rewarding character to play – a beautiful mix of comedy and proper drama. I had really good working relationships with people like Leslie Grantham, Anita Dobson, and Susan Tully.”
The character Lofty, who was smitten with Michelle Fowler (portrayed by Susan Tully), experienced unrequited love as she did not share his deep feelings. Their marriage crumbled after Michelle decided to have an abortion, leading to the heart-wrenching exit of Lofty from the Square.
EastEnders airs Monday to Thursday at 7.30pm on BBC One and BBC iPlayer
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
