From EastEnders to Hollywood: How have Albert Square stars seeking Tinseltown fame fared? - Mirror Online
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From EastEnders to Hollywood: How have Albert Square stars seeking Tinseltown fame fared?
Patsy Palmer, Sean Maguire and Michelle Ryan are just a few - some have made it big while others have found LA less welcoming than they hoped
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LA calling: Patsy goes shopping in Beverly Hills
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With the grim storylines and gloomy weather, it’s no wonder EastEnders stars dream of a more glamorous life in the sunshine.
So much so that many have upped sticks and moved from the woes of Walford to the hysteria of Hollywood.
While soap stars have long tried to crack Tinseltown, few from Coronation Street or Emmerdale have dared take the risk.
But there must be something in the beer at the Queen Vic as so many Albert Square residents are determined to take their talents from the East End of London to the West Coast of America.
But Los Angeles is not always as warm and welcoming as they hope.
Some have managed to go on to make it big, others find their careers go, er, south.
Here we look back over the last couple of decades to see how some of our most popular soap actors have fared.
Patsy Palmer - played Bianca Jackson
Bianca's trademark puffa jacket and screechy persona were shrugged off last year as Patsy moved her family to Los Angeles.
She now lives on Malibu beach with hubby Richard Merkell and her four children – and says she’s having the time of her life.
After appearing on an advert for a US electronics retail chain, Patsy plans to expand her showbiz repertoire to behind the camera, and is currently working on a television project with Hollywood executives.
Not sure what Bianca would think of the cockney’s move to La La Land, but Patsy, 43, still regularly hooks up with her former on-screen husband Ricky Butcher, played by Sid Owen, who has a home in the Hollywood Hills.
So the pair can still carry on bickering...
Sean Maguire - played Aidan Brosnan
Flop: Sean in Flaming Sword of Fire
He won the hearts of many teenage girls as apprentice Walford Town footballer Aidan in 1993.
But he soon tired of landlady Pauline Fowler’s two-up, two-down and now has a far flasher home in West Hollywood.
Sean, 39, has just finished filming his third season of popular US drama Once Upon A Time, in which he plays Robin Hood, replacing another ex-EastEnder Tom Ellis in the role.
After he left Walford, he appeared in several TV shows, including short-lived Krod Mandoon and the Flaming Sword of Fire.
He also starred in flop Meet the Spartans in 2008.
Charlie Brooks - played Janine Butcher
Gone for good: No more Janine in 'Enders
Since quitting EastEnders last year, Charlie has made a pilot for US TV show British Andy, written by former Hollyoaks’ actor Andy Newton Lee.
In the slapstick comedy, she plays a parody of bitchy murderess Janine, who arrives in the States to find fame and fortune.
The pilot is yet to be commissioned, but it’s looking hopeful it will be optioned by a TV station.
Former I’m A Celeb winner and mother- of-one Charlie, 34, says she has left EastEnders for good – which will certainly come as a relief to the men of Walford.
Ben Hardy - played Peter Beale
X-Man: Ben will play Angel in blockbuster
Perhaps the hottest Easties property right now, Ben has just landed the role of baddie Angel in the forthcoming movie X-Men: Apocalypse.
Cast by renowned American director Bryan Singer – who is tipping Ben, 24, for huge success – US girls are already besotted with his boyish good looks and impressive torso.
His new role couldn’t be more different to that of Walford’s rather wimpy Peter Beale, who he played for two years.
Michelle Ryan - played Zoe Slater
Bionic Woman: Michelle is another who has sworn off EastEnders
The future looked so bright for Michelle when she won the lead role in US TV series Bionic Woman in 2008.
But Michelle, 31 – famous for the line, “You ain’t my muvva”, when she found out she was Kat Slater’s daughter back in 2005 – soon found out that Hollywood is a tough place as the show was cancelled after just one series.
Speaking on her return to the UK, she said it had made her less ambitious – probably a good thing as her last job was touring with Will Young in a production of Cabaret.
But she has insisted she won’t return to Walford. Ever.
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Michelle Collins - played Cindy Beale
Corrie stint: But Michelle is now happy in Hollywood
LA newbie Michelle arrived in January to seek her big Hollywood break. She is currently working on getting an agent.
Mother-of-one Michelle, 52, has her eye on becoming a theatre actress there and is already putting together her own production, which she hopes to both star in and direct.
It’s a far cry from her EastEnders character Cindy, long dead, and her later Corrie role as barmaid Stella Price.
But now that her daughter Maia Rose, 19, is grown up, she hopes to make her move across the Atlantic a permanent one.
Michael Greco - played Beppe di Marco
US TV star: Beppe days are distant memory
Ambitious Michael sold up in London 10 years ago and put everything into his new life in the States after quitting as hunky Albert Square police officer Beppe.
He has since starred in ABC’s Revenge, as well as alongside Kevin Costner in Hatfields & McCoys – a three-part TV mini-series in 2012.
The show was up for 16 Emmy nominations, five of which it won, and Michael, 44, was given a special mention in the New York Post for his performance.
He has also starred in crime movie misfire and another TV series, Chasing Shadows.
He is currently waiting to find out if he has won a role in a movie which will take him to Mexico.
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