Steve McFadden, who has played Phil Mitchell in EastEnders for 36 years, looks almost unrecognisable with a cropped hairstyle in ITV drama The Bill.
Steve McFadden has graced our TV screens as Phil Mitchell in EastEnders for 36 years, firmly cementing his status as a national treasure.
Fans of the BBC soap are familiar with tough-guy Phil’s signature look: a clean-shaven face, leather jacket, and menacing glares at the locals of Walford—or the occasional cheeky wink if he’s eyeing a potential love interest.
Yet Phil isn’t all hard edges. Viewers are now seeing his more tender side as he cares for his close friend Nigel Bates (Paul Bradley), who is tragically battling dementia.
Steve, 66, first joined the show in 1990 and has since mesmerised audiences with his portrayal of Phil, including the dramatic 2001 “whodunnit” storyline, which followed Phil being shot on his doorstep.
For weeks, the nation was gripped by the mystery of the shooting, which was ultimately revealed to have been carried out by his former lover, Lisa Fowler (Lucy Benjamin), according to OK!.
Phil has also weathered a string of tumultuous romances, including his affair with and marriages to Sharon Watts (Letitia Dean), his ill-fated relationship with Kathy Beale (Gillian Taylforth), and a whirlwind wedding to Kat Moon (Jessie Wallace), which ended quickly.
With Phil appearing on EastEnders several times a week, it’s hard to imagine how Steve McFadden looked nearly 40 years ago when he first joined the show. Compared to his early days on the beloved BBC soap, he is almost unrecognisable.
Early in his acting career, Steve appeared as Mickey in the iconic 1980s series Minder, played Sergeant Ballantine in Vote for Them (1989), and took on the role of Jones in Bergerac (1990). Before stepping into Albert Square as one half of the Mitchell Brothers, he also made a guest appearance on The Bill.
Running from 1983 to 2010, The Bill was one of Britain’s most-watched shows, airing on ITV.
The crime drama drew viewers in with its focus on the personal and professional lives of officers at the fictional Sun Hill police station.
During the fifth series, Steve McFadden landed a guest role as a firearms dealer in the 1989 episode Bad Company.
In this intense episode, his character acts as an antagonist, pointing a gun at a police officer after Sun Hill officers uncover his criminal operation. Steve appeared with a full head of hair and facial hair, causing chaos throughout the storyline. His stint on the ITV series lasted just one episode before he made the move to EastEnders as Phil Mitchell.
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