The young talents of EastEnders during the 1990s were the equivalent of bands, with posters of the adored soap stars adorning teenage bedroom walls across the country
Back in the nineties, the young stars of EastEnders were as adored as the boy and girl bands of the era. Take Michael Greco, once crowned the sexiest man on TV, or Paul Nicholls, who was practically a national object of desire.
But what have our favourite EastEnders actors and actresses been doing since they left the show all those years ago? From near-death experiences and battles with drug addiction to peculiar ‘feuds with local clowns’, here’s an update on your favourite stars…
Michael Greco (Beppe di Marco)
From 1998 to 2002, Michael Greco, with his designer goatee, had fans swooning as Italian restaurant worker Beppe. The star spent most of his time shirtless before being axed by executive producer John Yorke in 2002 as part of a revamp.
However, his life after EastEnders has taken an unusual turn. According to his Wikipedia page, he retreated to his hometown of Dunbar, Scotland, where he clashed with local clown Gladys Chucklebutty. The feud reportedly started at a children’s party when Gladys made unkind comments about the 5ft 9 actor’s height while he was trying to win his height in pizzas.
However, it’s highly probable that some crafty individual concocted that tale, given Michael hails from Sutton, south London, and now resides in Los Angeles after achieving considerable success as a professional poker player. Following his reputation as a fixture on London’s party circuit, apart from a fleeting stint in Casualty in 2017, he turned his back on fame and has maintained a largely private existence away from the cameras.
“I kind of gave up acting a while ago, a couple of years after I left EastEnders and just thought this celeb style isn’t really for me,” he told the Express in 2019, following his split from Hollyoaks star Stephanie Waring. “I just wanted to shun the limelight… I was very private and didn’t really do interviews, I wanted to keep myself… then I just lost my way. I just lost my love for the acting game, really.”
In recent years, however, it would appear that Michael has found his love for acting once more. He played Pothinus in the 2023 Netflix miniseries Cleopatra and Strabo Plinth in The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes.
In another update, his Wikipedia page mentions that he lovingly became a first-time father at the age of 51 with his girlfriend, Helen Harris.
Paul Nicholls (Joe Wicks)
Thanks to his children’s TV work, Paul was already a teen pin-up when he joined EastEnders in 1995 as schizophrenic Joe. The teenage heartthrob proved enormously popular, scooping TV’s sexiest actor accolade twice, and graced magazine covers including Smash Hits, Heat, Just Seventeen and Sugar.
He also enjoyed romantic flings with two of the soap’s leading ladies, Martine McCutcheon and Daniella Westbrook. However, the pressures of teen stardom became overwhelming, and he departed Albert Square after merely two years.
Subsequently, Paul candidly revealed his battles with depression while developing dependencies on alcohol and drugs. He reportedly avoided rehab, instead achieving sobriety independently by 2008 before securing roles in Holby City, Waterloo Road, Law and Order: UK and Bridget Jones: The Edge Of Reason.
However, in 2015, footage surfaced allegedly showing Paul smoking from a questionable implement. Previously, he held EastEnders responsible for his substance abuse struggles.
“People said I had too much too soon when I was playing Joe Wicks, and maybe they were right. I didn’t want to be a heartthrob, and I could not handle the attention,” he previously said. Paul added, “I was well on my way to a total breakdown. I was drinking a lot and taking drugs.
“I had lost control of my life. The more I partied, the more I was telling myself, ‘Wow, this is what acting is all about.'”.
In 2017, he faced a cancer scare when a benign throat tumour left him unable to speak for months, and later that year, he nearly died after spending three days trapped in a Thai rock pool with a shattered leg following a selfie attempt gone wrong.
Tragedy hit again when Paul suffered a stroke just a year later in 2018. After this, he experienced depression and became addicted to drugs in 2020, but later shared that he was seeking help and was glad to be in recovery.
However, he also reappeared on our screens from 2017 to 2018 as Steve Bell in Ackley Bridge, and more recently starred in Phoenix Rise as Carl Hopkins from 2023 to 2024.
Martine McCutcheon (Tiffany Mitchell)
When Martine arrived on the show in 1994, Tiffany’s character was initially meant to be a minor role. However, she swiftly won over countless admirers, and an incredible 22 million viewers watched her tragic demise on New Year’s Eve 1998.
Following years of torment at the hands of violent spouse Grant Mitchell, Tiffany was poised to escape and begin afresh in Spain with their daughter Courtney. Yet her scheme collapsed like a Greek tragedy when she arrived at the Queen Vic to fetch Courtney, only to discover Grant had been freed on bail.
In a shocking turn of events, he snatched Courtney and stormed out of the pub, leaving a distraught Tiffany in his wake. Suddenly, Frank Butcher’s car came speeding around the corner, hitting Tiff, who tragically died in the middle of the street.
A single tear rolled down her cheek as she took one last look at her daughter – it was a heart-wrenching scene. But this wasn’t how Martine had envisioned her exit.
When she decided to leave the show to pursue a music career, she didn’t anticipate being killed off. She accused the showrunners of spite, but they hit back, claiming she just wanted a ‘safety net’.
Her 1999 single ‘Perfect Moment’ topped the charts, followed by roles in Love Actually and My Fair Lady on London’s West End. However, things began to unravel when her health deteriorated due to a streptococcal infection, thrombosis in her leg and skull, and depression.
Martine was later diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome ME and Lyme’s disease, and suffered recurrent miscarriages because her immune system ‘was shot’. At her lowest point, she was declared bankrupt, confined to a wheelchair and told her husband Jack McManus to find someone else.
“You’re pushed to your limits too much. You feel like you’re really hungover, like you’ve been beaten up by Mike Tyson. I was getting lots of infections and my immune system was down,” she confessed on Loose Women in 2016.
“I did say to him at one point, ‘If you want to go on and meet someone else, go.” She added, “I don’t want you to lose out because of me.”
The couple welcomed their longed-for son, Rafferty, in 2015, but in 2024 announced their split. Her most recent TV stints saw her appear on Celebrity Gogglebox in 2020 and The Masked Singer UK in 2021.
Sean Maguire (Aidan Brosnan)
When Sean’s character Aiden first joined the programme in 1993, he appeared to have a bright future ahead as a trainee footballer for Walford Town FC. However, a string of injuries destroyed his sporting dreams, and a stormy relationship with troubled teenager Mandy Salter left him without a home and dependent on drugs.
Over 23 million viewers watched as he tragically attempted to take his own life on Christmas Day that year. Fortunately, Mandy managed to rescue him, but the following day, he departed for Ireland, leaving Albert Square behind forever.
Pursuing life beyond TV, Sean launched three albums, with his most successful single, ‘Good Day’, climbing to number 12 in May 1996. When his music career declined, he moved to Los Angeles, where he appeared in TV shows, Eve, The Class, CSI: NY and Once Upon A Time as Robin Hood.
He also went on to star in shows such as The Red Dress, The 100, The Magicians, Electric Easy, Action Royale and S.W.A.T. In his personal life, he married police detective Tanya Flynn in October 2012, and together they have three children, two boys and a girl.
In 2020, he and his wife became US citizens, and the family is thought to reside there today.
Lucy Speed (Natalie Evans)
Lucy’s character made her debut as an addition in 1994 when the soap initially expanded to three episodes weekly. Envious of her schoolmate, Bianca Jackson’s bond with Tiffany Mitchell, she began a fling with her man, Ricky Butcher and revealed the secret by shoving her knickers in his work clothes.
She departed just a year later in 1995 after being chased out by an enraged Bianca, but made a comeback in 1999 as a thriving entrepreneur running a matchmaking business. Through this venture, she encountered and fell for motor trader Barry Evans, having a son, Jack, together, before Natalie schemed to flee with Ricky – only to discover he’d been romping with Sam Mitchell.
Lucy eventually left the soap permanently after Janine Butcher killed Barry in 2004, believing her character had reached a dead end. She explained at the time: “I’d been back for five years and had very little to do the year before. I quite like being busy, and I could see the scriptwriters were struggling with Natalie and where to place her, so it seemed like the right time to go.
“It’s nice that they’ve left it open. I’d hate to think the door was shut behind me. Absolutely, I’d like to go back; never say never. Maybe I’ll track Janine down.”
After leaving Walford, she featured in the 1998 film Shakespeare in Love, Men Behaving Badly, Dangerfield, Holby City and Jericho before portraying the mum of a vanished lad in series two of Marcella. She’s also starred in After Life, Unforgotten, Casualty, Becoming Elizabeth and The Hack.
She wed model and actor Spencer Hayler in September 2009, and welcomed their daughter Kitty in 2012, followed by son Sullivan in 2018. Residing in Fulham, London, she maintains a close friendship with Charlie Brooks, who portrayed her on-screen adversary Janine.
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