John Altman (actor)
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John Clarkson Stewart (born 2 March 1952), known as John Altman, is an English actor and singer. He was among the original cast members of the
BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
soap opera ''
EastEnders ''EastEnders'' is a British television 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 East End of London, the ...
'', playing Nick Cotton, appearing in the first episode in February 1985 and remaining on the show as a
recurring character A recurring character is a fictional character, usually in a prime time TV series, who frequently appears from time to time during the series' run. Recurring characters often play major roles in more than one episode, sometimes being the main f ...
. His character was killed off in the 30th anniversary episode of the show which aired in February 2015. Altman has also appeared in several films, television series and stage productions. In 2010, he became the new frontman of the band
Heavy Metal Kids Heavy Metal Kids are a British rock band. History Early years (1973–1985) Heavy Metal Kids were formed in 1972 by the merger of two previous bands: Heaven and Biggles. They took their name from a gang of street kids, featured in the nove ...
following the death of former frontman Gary Holton in 1985.


Early life

Altman was born in
Reading, Berkshire Reading ( ) is a town and borough in Berkshire, England, and the county town of Berkshire. It is the United Kingdom's largest town, with a combined population of 355,596. Most of Reading built-up area, its built-up area lies within the Borough ...
, elder son of Cecil Clarkson Stewart (1921–1995), a first-class clerk at the
Bank of England The Bank of England is the central bank of the United Kingdom and the model on which most modern central banks have been based. Established in 1694 to act as the Kingdom of England, English Government's banker and debt manager, and still one ...
, and Tina Florence (1920–2016), daughter of actor
Johnnie Schofield Johnnie William Schofield (10 March 1889 – 9 September 1955) was a British actor, known for '' The Middle Watch'' (1948), '' Tawny Pipit'' (1944) and '' Melody of My Heart'' (1936). Early life John William Schofield was born on 10 March 1889 ...
. He and his younger brother William were raised in Herne Bay,
Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...
.


Career

Altman made his acting debut in the 1979 film '' The First Great Train Robbery'' where he played a minor role. Also in 1979, he portrayed musician George Harrison in the biographical television film '' Birth of The Beatles''. He made brief appearances in several other films including '' Quadrophenia'' (1979), ''
An American Werewolf in London ''An American Werewolf in London'' is a 1981 comedy horror film written and directed by John Landis. An international co-production of the United Kingdom and the United States, the film stars David Naughton, Jenny Agutter, Griffin Dunne and ...
'' (1981) and '' Memoirs of a Survivor'' (1981). In 1980, Altman worked as a model in creating prototypes of the Hawkmen that appear in the Dino De Laurentiis–produced film, '' Flash Gordon'' but did not appear in the film itself. In 1982, Altman played the role of a Royal Navy rating alongside Timothy Spall in the Channel 4 film '' Remembrance''. Altman also featured in a 1982 short public information film, "Stupid Git", part of the British government's campaign against drink-driving. In 1985, he began appearing as Nick Cotton in the new
BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
television soap opera ''
EastEnders ''EastEnders'' is a British television 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 East End of London, the ...
'', appearing in the first episode on 19 February that year. Altman was axed from the show the following year after Executive Producer Julia Smith told writers to 'write him out' of the show after he opposed a decision to make his character gay.John Altman, AKA Eastender's Nasty Nick: It's almost like the Taliban. You can't say what you like.
GB News, 13 Sep 2021
However, he went on to make recurring appearances on the show over a span of nearly 30 years. He has had a major role in many famous storylines in the show including the murders of Reg Cox (whose body was found in the first episode) and Eddie Royle, his attempt to kill his own mother Dot by poisoning her and his various feuds with characters including Pete Beale,
Den Watts Den Watts is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', played by actor Leslie Grantham. He became well known for his tabloid nickname, "Dirty Den". Den was the original landlord of The Queen Victoria public house from Albert ...
and Mark Fowler. He also contributed towards the death of his own son Ashley by sabotaging a motorbike which Ashley ended up stealing and crashing. His character was also given his own television spin-off episode titled ''Return of Nick Cotton'' which was completely centred on his character and aired in October 2000. In 2015, his character was killed off in the episode that aired on 13 February 2015 and he made his final appearance as a corpse in the episode that marked the 30th anniversary of the show on 19 February 2015. His body was found in the same way as his victim Reg Cox was found in the first episode 30 years earlier. A year earlier, his character's death had been announced in the show, only for it to emerge within a few months that Nick had faked his own death. In 1991, he played Thomas De Quincey in Malcolm Mclaren's 'The Ghosts of Oxford Street', where he appeared outside a purported subterranean 'Boots Apothecary', the origin of an urban myth that there is a parallel abandoned Victorian shopping street 'under' Oxford Street, London. This was actually the under-pavement storage vaults of 20–22 Stratford Place. Away from television, he also appeared in an adult pantomime, which released on video in 1994 titled '' Pussy in Boots''. In the pantomime he appeared alongside fellow ''EastEnders'' cast members Mike Reid and
Barbara Windsor Dame Barbara Windsor (born Barbara Ann Deeks; 6 August 193710 December 2020) was an English actress, known for her roles in the Carry On (franchise), ''Carry On'' films and for playing Peggy Mitchell in the BBC One soap opera ''EastEnders''.
. In 2001 he won the Rear of the Year Award alongside Claire Sweeney. In the same year he also performed in the Leiber and Stoller tribute evening at the Hammersmith Apollo, singing " Trouble", originally performed by
Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977) was an American singer and actor. Referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one of the most significant cultural figures of the ...
. In 2002, he toured around the UK playing Billy Flynn in the long-running musical
Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
. He also appeared in the John Godber written stage play ''Bouncers'' opposite fellow soap actor Nigel Pivaro, who is best known for playing a similar style of character, Terry Duckworth in ''
Coronation Street ''Coronation Street'' (colloquially referred to as ''Corrie'') is a British television soap opera created by ITV Granada, Granada Television and shown on ITV (TV network), ITV since 9 December 1960. The programme centres on a cobbled, terraced ...
''. Both Terry and Nick are the sons of long-running established characters, both are estranged from their mothers, both have committed criminal acts and both have made sporadic appearances on their respective shows. In 2004, he made an appearance in the comedy sketch series '' Bo' Selecta!'' as his ''EastEnders'' character. In 2006, Altman was set to appear in an upcoming British film called ''It's Been Real'', the trailer can be seen on YouTube. It still has yet to be released in cinemas. John Altman also appeared on 18 July 2009 episode of '' Totally Saturday'' by climbing out of the boot of a car. In August 2010, he joined a band called
Heavy Metal Kids Heavy Metal Kids are a British rock band. History Early years (1973–1985) Heavy Metal Kids were formed in 1972 by the merger of two previous bands: Heaven and Biggles. They took their name from a gang of street kids, featured in the nove ...
. From late 2010, until early 2011, Altman appeared in adverts for '' Daz'' along with actors ( Michael Starke and Amanda Barrie), from rival soap opera
Coronation Street ''Coronation Street'' (colloquially referred to as ''Corrie'') is a British television soap opera created by ITV Granada, Granada Television and shown on ITV (TV network), ITV since 9 December 1960. The programme centres on a cobbled, terraced ...
. In February 2011, he appeared on '' Live from Studio Five''. In January 2012, he appeared as one of the first five couples in the third series of '' Celebrity Coach Trip'' partnering fellow actor Derek Martin. In February 2015, he appeared as a guest on '' The Graham Norton Show'' as part of an ''EastEnders'' special episode alongside June Brown,
Adam Woodyatt Adam Brinley Woodyatt (born 28 June 1968) is an English actor. He is known for his role as Ian Beale in the BBC One, BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', a role he has portrayed since the show's inception in 1985, making him one of the shows longest ...
, Letitia Dean, Danny Dyer, Kellie Bright, Shane Richie, Jessie Wallace and Pam St. Clement. In February 2017, he appeared in ''June Brown at 90 – A Walford Legend'', a special BBC documentary that aired to celebrate June Brown's 90th birthday. In April 2020, he appeared with 7 other celebrities in the 4th series of the BBC travel documentary series ''The Real Marigold Hotel'', filmed in Pondicherry, India.


Personal life

In 1986, Altman married Bridgette Poodhun. They divorced in 1997. He has one daughter. Altman released his autobiography, ''In the Nick of Time,'' which was published on 30 June 2016.


Filmography


Films


TV


References


External links

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John Altman profile

BBC John Altman Interview
{{DEFAULTSORT:Altman, John 1952 births Living people Male actors from Reading, Berkshire English male film actors English male soap opera actors English male stage actors English male television actors English rock singers