Derek Martin (born Derek William Rapp; 11 April 1933) is an English former actor. Beginning his career as a stuntman, he moved into acting and played many roles on UK television. One of his most widely known roles is

Charlie Slater Charlie Slater is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', played by Derek Martin. Charlie's first appearance is in the episode first broadcast in the United Kingdom on 4 September 2000. He is played by Jason McGregor in fla ...

on the BBC soap opera ''

EastEnders ''EastEnders'' is a Television in the United Kingdom, British soap opera created by Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the Ea ...

'' from 2000 to 2011, with brief appearances in 2013 and 2016.

Early life

In his early life Martin worked as a professional gambler, motor racer, at a meat market and as a debt collector. He also performed national service in the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) an ...

Career

Martin started his entertainment career as a

stuntman A stunt performer, often called a stuntman or stuntwoman and occasionally stuntperson or stunt-person, is a trained professional who performs daring acts, often as a career. Stunt performers usually appear in films or on television, as opposed ...

on programmes including ''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series depicts the adventures of a Time Lord called the Doctor, an extraterrestrial being who appears to be human. The Doctor explores the ...

'', but after breaking his collar bone filming the drama ''

Elizabeth R ''Elizabeth R'' is a BBC television drama serial of six 85-minute plays starring Glenda Jackson as Queen Elizabeth I of England. It was first broadcast on BBC2 from February to March 1971, through the ABC in Australia and broadcast in Amer ...

'' (1971) he switched to acting. He featured in the BBC television series ''

Paul Temple Paul Temple is a fictional character created by English writer Francis Durbridge. Temple is a professional author of crime fiction and an amateur private detective. With his wife Louise, affectionately known as 'Steve' in reference to her ...

'' as well as the ITV television series The Governor. His film appearances include ''

Secrets of a Windmill Girl ''Secrets of a Windmill Girl'' is a 1966 British exploitation film directed by Arnold L. Miller. It recounts the road to ruin of a young woman (Pauline Collins) who becomes involved with the striptease scene after becoming a dancer at the Windmil ...

'' (1966), ''

The Sex Thief ''The Sex Thief'' is a 1973 British sex comedy film starring David Warbeck, Diane Keen and Christopher Biggins. It was an early film credit for director Martin Campbell. The film was released in North America (in January 1976) as ''Her Family J ...

'' (1973), '' Eskimo Nell'' (1975), ''Sex Express'' (aka ''Diversions'') (1975), ''

Adventures of a Plumber's Mate ''Adventures of a Plumber's Mate'' is a 1978 British sex comedy film directed by Stanley Long and starring Christopher Neil as Sid South. Following on from ''Adventures of a Taxi Driver'' and '' Adventures of a Private Eye'', it was the final ...

'' (1978), ''

Ragtime Ragtime, also spelled rag-time or rag time, is a musical style that flourished from the 1890s to 1910s. Its cardinal trait is its syncopated or "ragged" rhythm. Ragtime was popularized during the early 20th century by composers such as Scott J ...

'' (1981), ''

Spaghetti House ''Spaghetti House'' is a 1982 Italian comedy film directed by Giulio Paradisi. It is loosely based on the Spaghetti House siege that occurred in 1975. Plot In an attempted armed robbery of an Italian restaurant in London, the staff members ar ...

'' (1982), and '' Boston Kickout'' (1995). In 1978, he co-starred with Peter Dean in the BBC television series ''

Law & Order ''Law & Order'' is an American police procedural and legal drama television series created by Dick Wolf and produced by Wolf Entertainment, launching the '' Law & Order'' franchise. ''Law & Order'' aired its entire run on NBC, premiering ...

'', playing Detective Inspector Fred Pyall. From 1981 to 1982, he played Det. Insp. Berwick in two series of the BBC drama ''

The Chinese Detective ''The Chinese Detective'' is a British television police procedural drama series, first transmitted by the BBC between 1981 and 1982. The series was created by Ian Kennedy Martin, who had previously devised '' The Sweeney'' and ''Juliet Bravo' ...

''. In 1982 he became the second actor to take on the role of

R. D. Wingfield Rodney David Wingfield (6 June 1928 – 31 July 2007) was an English author and radio dramatist. He is best remembered for creating the character of Detective Inspector Jack Frost, who was later played by Sir David Jason in ''A Touch of Frost'' ...

's fictional Detective Inspector Jack Frost, starring in a BBC radio adaptation of ''A Touch of Frost''. In 1984, he appeared in an episode of season five of ''Minder''. In 1985, he was cast as the star in '' King and Castle'' alongside

Nigel Planer Nigel George Planer (born 22 February 1953) is a British actor, comedian, musician, novelist and playwright. He played Neil in the BBC comedy '' The Young Ones'' and Ralph Filthy in '' Filthy Rich & Catflap''. He has appeared in many West End ...

, which ran for two series until 1988. Devised and co-written by ''

The Sweeney ''The Sweeney'' is a 1970s British television police drama focusing on two members of the Flying Squad, a branch of the Metropolitan Police specialising in tackling armed robbery and violent crime in London. It stars John Thaw as Detective Insp ...

'' creator

Ian Kennedy Martin Ian Kennedy Martin (born 23 May 1936) is a British television scriptwriter who created the action drama series ''The Sweeney'' (1975–1978). Career He began his television career in the 1960s, first as a script editor on the military police d ...

, Martin played the role of ex policeman Ronald King, now running a debt collection agency in

London's East End The East End of London, often referred to within the London area simply as the East End, is the historic core of wider East London, east of the Roman and medieval walls of the City of London and north of the River Thames. It does not have u ...

. He then starred in '' Eldorado'' as Alex Morris. He has also made guest appearances in many television programmes, including returning to ''Doctor Who'' to play policeman David Mitchell in '' Image of the Fendahl'' (1977), ''The Sweeney'' episode "Messenger of the Gods" as the villain Spooner, '' Upstairs, Downstairs'', ''

The Bill ''The Bill'' is a British police procedural television series, first broadcast on ITV from 16 August 1983 until 31 August 2010. The programme originated from a one-off drama, '' Woodentop'', broadcast in August 1983. The programme focused o ...

'' and ''

Only Fools and Horses ''Only Fools and Horses....'' is a British television sitcom created and written by John Sullivan (writer), John Sullivan. Seven series were originally broadcast on BBC One in the United Kingdom from 1981 to 1991, with sixteen sporadic Christmas ...

''. Martin also played himself in an episode of ''

Little Britain Little Britain may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Little Britain'' (sketch show), a British radio and then TV show ** ''Little Britain USA'', an American spin-off * "Little Britain", a song by Dreadzone from the 1995 album ''Second Light'' * ...

''. In September 2000, he started playing

in ''EastEnders''. In April 2010 it was announced that Martin had been cut from the show, along with five other actors. In early 2011 he filmed a guest stint with ''EastEnders'' with Charlie due to return for two episodes around April 2011. He returned for another two episodes at Christmas 2013. On 11 February 2015, it was revealed that plans for Martin to make an ''EastEnders'' return had been called off, but in October, it was announced Martin would make a brief return for the upcoming Christmas/New Year period. He was written off the show on Thursday, 7 January 2016, in part one of two episodes, in which his character suffered a cardiac arrest. He also starred in a short film called ''Piggy Bank'' in 2004. In January 2012, he appeared as one of the first five couples in the third series of ''

Celebrity Coach Trip ''Coach Trip'' is a British reality game show originally broadcast on Channel 4 from 7 March 2005 to 30 June 2006. The programme returned after a three-year break, from 25 May 2009 to 9 March 2012. In early 2013, the show went into hiatus agai ...

'' partnering fellow actor John Altman.

Personal life

In February 2010 it was revealed that Martin was due to undergo an operation on his knee, expected to be around May 2010. He said his complaint was due to old age, playing football and carrying meat in an old job at Smithfield Meat Market.

References

External links

*
Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Martin, Derek 1933 births Living people 20th-century Royal Air Force personnel English autobiographers English male soap opera actors English stunt performers Male actors from London People from Bow, London