As EastEnders celebrates its 40th anniversary on air, Daily Star are taking a look at what some of the former cast are up to nowadays after leaving the BBC soap
EastEnders has seen hundreds of cast members come through it’s sliding BBC doors during it’s 40 years on air – but what are some of them up to now?
From Hollywood stardom to shunning spotlight, the BBC alum have been up to all sorts since shooting to fame on the long-running show. We’ve decided to take a deep dive into some of the stars who have gone back to ‘normal’ jobs away from showbiz after making their EE exit.
In 2019, axed EastEnders star Katie Jarvis mysteriously left Albert Square after playing Hayley Slater. Then just months later she was spotted working the doors of a discount store.
At the time, Daily Star Sunday exclusively revealed that was working as a security guard at B&M Bargains in East London. Katie, 33, told us that that she had turned her back on acting.
Mum-of-two Katie said: “I’ve taken a step back from acting. I’ve got a job and I’m looking after my kids.” Since then, Katie has been embroiled in a scandal after shouting “black lives don’t matter” outside a fish and chip restaurant.
The actress was been sentenced to a community order in 2022 after she admitted to racially aggravated harassment and common assault in court.
According to reports, Katie now works in a garage and admits she’s had several other regular jobs in between filming that fans may not be aware of.
She shared: “In between filming, I’ve done a railway engineering course, I’m qualified in nails, I’ve done all sorts, the list is never ending.
A second star who has left the telly world behind them is Spencer Moon star Christopher Parker. Christopher first joined the show in 2002 alongside Spencer’s older brother Alfie Moon [Shane Richie].
Fast forward nearly 20 years on, Christopher has now landed a role as a Senior Consultant at Ignition Law. After taking on a handful of other TV projects such as hosting Dead Famous Live alongside Gail Porter in Los Angeles, he decided to go back to his studies.
Christopher then graduated from Birkbeck University in London with a law degree and is also now a director of business affairs and a company solicitor at Insanity Group.
He also listed on his LinkedIn profile: “I am a qualified solicitor specialising in commercial and media law, including commercial litigation, intellectual property, reputation management, harassment, information law, employment matters, rights management and entertainment based transactional work.’
In other news, former Ben Mitchell star Harry Reid also moved away from the world of glitz and glamour. This caught fans’ attention after he advertised his new decorating and scaffolding company on Instagram.
He told his followers: “Now providing scaffolding. Business continuing to grow.”
Harry worked on the soap from 2014 – 2018 after Max Bowden took on the role of Phil’s son Ben.Talking about his exit, he once said: “I always said I would have gone back. I’m disappointed because I love playing the character – it was a real pleasure as an actor to play a character like that. It’s a shame I won’t get to continue his journey but it’s the name of the game, it is what it is.”
Bradley Branning was involved in one of the show’s biggest-ever episodes and the character’s demise is still spoken about today. But these days, actor Charlie Clements who took on the role is now almost unrecognisable.
Charlie now sports glasses and beard which is a far cry from the clean-cut look Bradley donned on the soap. The actor, who left the show in 2010, has had a couple of different paths since leaving the show.
During lockdown, the star also found himself between jobs after previously taking on a job at a restaurant and then later took on a chef job at a garden centre. At the time, he told the Loose Women panel: “Acting is my first love and career choice, but at the end of the day, I’m a jobbing actor. I’ve got bills to pay and a family to support like everyone else.”
In recent months, he revealed he swapped the kitchen for a golf course after becoming a grounds keeper at a local venue. He told fans online: “Swapped chef whites for the greens,” as he captioned a photo of him proudly sporting a turquoise Greenkeeper outfit.
Dad-of-three Charlie, 37, has since made a new profile on Instagram dedicated to his passion for the sport as he hoped to make it his main gig. He told his followers: “Aware that some may be less interested in my golf related activities! But for those who are go follow me at @charlieclementsgolf.”
“But since starting out as a Greenkeeper a year ago, this is up there with the best of them… Touching the hallowed turf of Centre!”
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
