- Steve McFadden
Infobox actor
imagesize = 150px
name = Steve McFadden
birthname = Steve McFadden
birthdate = birth date and age|1959|3|20|df=yes
birthplace =Maida Vale ,London ,England
occupation =Actor
yearsactive = 1988-present
awards = British Soap Award - Villain of the Year
2001 "EastEnders " - PhilSteve McFadden (born
20 March 1959 ) is an Englishactor who is well-known for his starring role asPhil Mitchell in the BritishBBC TVdrama "EastEnders ", since 1990.Biography
Early life
Steve McFadden was born "Stephen Reid" in the
Maida Vale area ofLondon on20 March 1959 , the only child of Robert and Barbara Reid. His parents separated soon afterwards and his mother later married a man called John McFadden, who adopted Steve and gave him his new surname.He left school in 1975 and over the next few years had short stints in jobs including labouring, carrot picking, plumbing and working at a builder's merchants. None of these occupations gave him much satisfaction, so he decided to sell his motorbike and hitch-hike around
Europe . He spent several months camping out inMontpellier ,France , on land earmarked for development as a footballstadium . He then returned to London and felt that the city was too repressive for his liking, so he went to aJob Centre and asked for a job "with a meaning".Steve's first job after his return to London was on the "Acorn Project", a scheme for blind people which involved attending college. He gained 'O' and 'A' Level passes in
Sociology andPolitics before enrolling at North London Polytechnic University on anEconomics course. Just seven weeks after starting, he decided that the course was not for him, and withdrew himself from university. He decided that he wanted to become an actor, and joined the acting groupRADA in 1984, and in his first year there won a prize for creating his own drama piece called "Best Fight" - which included many characters who were based on his own friends from school.Career
After graduating from the "RADA" he made his acting debut playing a small role in the 1988
television film "The Firm". That same year he had an uncredited role in the film "Buster" as a gang member. This was followed by guest appearances in the television series "The Bill ", "Minder" and "Bergerac".Steve then became famous for playing 'hard man'
Phil Mitchell in theBBC soap opera "EastEnders ". He joined EastEnders at the beginning of 1990, at the same time asRoss Kemp , who played Phil's younger brother Grant Mitchell. During that time, his character has been involved in numerous ratings-pulling storylines such asSharongate and the most notableWho Shot Phil? storyline where his character was shot and wounded by a mystery attacker. The identity of the attacker was revealed weeks later as Phil's girlfriend Lisa, who was ironically played byLucy Benjamin - Steve's real-life girlfriend at the time.Since playing the role of Phil Mitchell, Steve has also made a brief appearance in the film "Kevin & Perry Go Large" in 2000 and starred in an episode of the
BBC1 anthology series "Murder in Mind " in 2001.Steve left "EastEnders" in late 2003 for a one-year break to concentrate on
pantomimes . His character was briefly written out of the series after being framed for an armed robbery byDen Watts (played byLeslie Grantham ), and going on the run after breaking out of prison.During his break from "EastEnders" he presented the
reality television fighting series "Britain's Hardest" which aired onSky One .He briefly returned to "EastEnders" in March 2005, but his comeback lasted just one week as Phil had returned to Walford in need of financial help, only to be arrested and returned to prison.In October 2005, he returned again on a permanent basis. He is still with EastEnders, almost two decades after joining, and his character is now one of the longest-running in the programme's history.In 2007 he appeared in the fact-based film "Provoked'.
Personal life
Off the screen controversy
He was the recipient of much bad publicity during 2005, when he was accused of being involved in dogging with other men. [cite news |url=http://www.thesun.co.uk/article/0,,2-2005360442,00.html |title=BBC bosses back 'dogger' |publisher=
The Sun |last=France |first=Anthony |accessdate=2007-05-02] OnNovember 3 ,2005 , he was the victim of an assault, believed to have been perpetrated by his ex-girlfriend Angela Bostock,Fact|date=May 2007 who earlier in the year had also made claims about McFadden's private life in the tabloid press.Fact|date=May 2007 The woman was released with a police caution. With striking coincidence, this incident took place on the same day thatRoss Kemp , who plays his brother Grant in "EastEnders", was allegedly assaulted by his wife. In July 2007, Steve was involved in a brawl with painter and decorator Michael McIntyre which took place outside theRoyal British Legion inFalmouth, Cornwall . Sadly, Michael McIntyre later died, though this was not due to injuries following the fight. [ [http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/showbiz/article-23408689-details/Man+in+brawl+with+EastEnders+hardman+Steve+McFadden+dies/article.do Evening Standard article] ]Family
Steve McFadden has three children; Matthew, Teona and Mollie. He currently lives in Falmouth,
Cornwall .Filmography
* "Provoked" (2007) .... DS Ron Meyers
* "Murder in Mind " (2001) .... Joe Waterman
* "Kevin & Perry Go Large " (2000) .... Bouncer 2
* "EastEnders " (1990-2003, 2005-) .... "Philip" Phil Mitchell
* "Bergerac" (1990) .... Jones
* "The Bill " (1989) .... Gun Dealer
* "Minder" (1989) .... Mickey
* "Buster" (1988) (uncredited) .... Gang Member
* "The Firm" (1988) .... BillyReferences
External links
*imdb name|id=0568711|name=Steve McFadden
* [http://www.guardian.co.uk/Archive/Article/0,4273,4230010,00.html Guardian Article]
* [http://www.gosh.org/news/2007/pirates-post.html Steve McFadden helps out at Charity Premiere]
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.