Steve Robert McFadden (
né
The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...
Reid; born 20 March 1959) is an English actor whose career has spanned three decades. He rose to prominence for his role as longstanding character
Phil Mitchell in the
BBC One
BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's oldest and flagship channel, and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television b ...
soap opera
A soap opera (also called a daytime drama or soap) is a genre of a long-running radio or television Serial (radio and television), serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term ''soap opera'' originat ...
''
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 ...
'', which he has played since 1990. Regarded as one of the show's most popular characters, he has received numerous accolades including the
British Soap Award for Outstanding Achievement. McFadden was also the presenter of the game show ''
Britain's Hardest'' (2004).
Early life
McFadden was born in
Maida Vale
Maida Vale ( ) is an affluent residential district in North West London, England, north of Paddington, southwest of St John's Wood and south of Kilburn, on Edgware Road. It is part of the City of Westminster and is northwest of Charing C ...
,
London
London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
, on 20 March 1959. He left school in 1975, and had short stints in jobs including labouring, carrot picking, plumbing and working at a builder's merchant.
After attending university, McFadden decided that he wanted to become an actor, and was accepted into the
Royal Academy of Dramatic Art
The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, also known by its abbreviation RADA (), is a drama school in London, England, which provides vocational conservatoire training for theatre, film, television, and radio. It is based in Bloomsbury, Central London ...
in 1984, graduating in 1987.
Career
In 1988, McFadden got his first acting role as a uncredited extra in the film ''
Buster''. He played his first speaking role as a football hooligan in the 1989
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 film
A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie, telefilm, telemovie or TV film/movie, is a film with a running time similar to a feature film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a Terrestr ...
''
The Firm
The FIRM is a brand of exercise videos and equipment currently owned by Gaiam. First released in 1986, the video series is best known for popularizing a hybrid of aerobic exercise and weight training.
History
In 1979, Anna Benson founded th ...
'', and this was followed by guest appearances in television series including ''
The Bill
''The Bill'' is a British police procedural television series, broadcast on ITV (TV network), ITV from 16 October 1984 until 31 August 2010. The programme originated from a one-off drama, "Woodentop (The Bill), Woodentop" (part of the ''Storyb ...
'', ''
Minder
A minder is the person assigned to guide or escort a visitor, or to provide protection to somebody, or to otherwise assist or take care of something, i.e. a person who " minds".
Government-appointed persons to accompany foreign visitors are of ...
'' and ''
Bergerac''.
McFadden then began portraying the role of
Phil Mitchell in 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 ...
''. He joined ''EastEnders'' at the beginning of 1990, at the same time as
Ross Kemp
Ross James Kemp (born 21 July 1964) is an English actor, author, and television presenter. He rose to prominence in the role of Grant Mitchell in the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders''. His other roles include Graham Lodsworth in ''Emmerdale'' and ...
, who played Phil's younger brother
Grant Mitchell. During that time, his character was involved in several popular storylines, such as
Sharongate (in which it was revealed that he had an affair with his brother's wife
Sharon
Sharon ( 'plain'), also spelled Saron, is a given name as well as a Hebrew name.
In Anglosphere, English-speaking areas, Sharon is now predominantly a feminine given name, but historically it was also used as a masculine given name. In Israel, ...
) in 1994, and the
Who Shot Phil? storyline in March 2001, when his character was shot and wounded by a mystery attacker.
McFadden then made a brief appearance in the film ''
Kevin & Perry Go Large'' (2000),
and starred in an episode of the BBC anthology series ''
Murder in Mind'' in 2001. He left ''EastEnders'' in late 2003 for a one-year break to concentrate on
pantomime
Pantomime (; informally panto) is a type of musical comedy stage production designed for family entertainment, generally combining gender-crossing actors and topical humour with a story more or less based on a well-known fairy tale, fable or ...
s. His character was written out of the series after being framed for an armed robbery by
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 ...
(played by
Leslie Grantham
Leslie Michael Grantham (30 April 1947 – 15 June 2018) was an English actor who played "Dirty" Den Watts in the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders''. He was a convicted murderer, having served 10 years for the killing of a West Germany, West German ...
), and going on the run after breaking out of prison.
During his break from ''EastEnders'', he presented the reality television series ''
Britain's Hardest'', which was an underground competition broadcast on
Sky One
Sky One was a British pay television channel operated and owned by Sky Group (a division of Comcast). Originally launched on 26 April 1982 as Satellite Television, it was Europe's first satellite and non- terrestrial channel. From 31 July 1989, ...
in 2004. In 2005, he filmed a small part as a detective sergeant in the film ''
Provoked'' which released in 2006.
He returned to ''EastEnders'' for two episodes in April 2005. In the story, Phil returned to
Walford
Walford is a fictional borough of East London in the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders''. It is the primary setting for the soap. ''EastEnders'' is filmed at Borehamwood in Hertfordshire, towards the north-west of London. Much of the location wor ...
in need of financial help, only to be arrested and returned to prison. In October 2005, he returned on a permanent basis, after his character was cleared of armed robbery. As of 2025, he is one of the longest running characters in the series.
He has also appeared as
Captain Hook
Captain James Hook is the main antagonist of J. M. Barrie's 1904 play ''Peter and Wendy, Peter Pan; or, the Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up'' and its various adaptations, in which he is Peter Pan's archenemy. The character is a pirate captain of the br ...
in a pantomime production of ''
Peter Pan
Peter Pan is a fictional character created by Scottish novelist and playwright J. M. Barrie. A free-spirited and mischievous young boy who can fly and never grows up, Peter Pan spends his never-ending childhood having adventures on the mythical ...
'' from 2010 to 2011 at
The Swan.
Personal life
McFadden has five children. His son Matt McFadden's mother is Sue Marshall, and Angela Bostock is the mother of his daughters Teona and Mollie Jane. Rachel Sidwell gave birth to his daughter Amelie Tinkerbell on 29 June 2009. At the time, she was his partner, but the couple split two months later. A fifth child, a daughter named Frankie, was born to his girlfriend Karen Cairns in June 2016.
In 1996, McFadden was banned from driving for 18 months and fined £1000 plus £350 in costs after pleading guilty to drink-driving after attending a party at a London nightclub.
McFadden is a sailor, and took part in the
Thames Diamond Jubilee Pageant
The Thames Diamond Jubilee Pageant was a parade on 3 June 2012 of 670 boats on the Tideway of the River Thames in London as part of the celebrations of the Diamond Jubilee of Elizabeth II. The Queen, Prince Philip and other members of t ...
in his motorboat, Barbara.
In 2014, he sued the
Metropolitan Police and ''
News of the World
The ''News of the World'' was a weekly national "Tabloid journalism#Red tops, red top" Tabloid (newspaper format), tabloid newspaper published every Sunday in the United Kingdom from 1843 to 2011. It was at one time the world's highest-selling ...
'' after a police officer sold details about him to the newspaper. He sued ''News of the World'' after one of their journalists admitted trying to intercept his voicemail messages in the
News International phone hacking scandal
Beginning in the 1990s, and going as far until its shutdown in 2011, employees of the now-defunct newspaper ''News of the World'' engaged in phone hacking, police bribery, and exercising improper influence in the pursuit of stories.
Investi ...
. McFadden stated "I am particularly concerned that a police officer sold my privacy to a tabloid newspaper for profit. I consider the payment of damages and public apology will go some way to ensuring respect for my and others' privacy in future. I am glad to have been vindicated and to be able to put this matter behind me".
Filmography
Film
Television
Awards and nominations
References
External links
*
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{{DEFAULTSORT:McFadden, Steve
1959 births
Living people
20th-century English male actors
21st-century English male actors
Alumni of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art
British Soap Award for Outstanding Achievement winners
English game show hosts
English male film actors
English male soap opera actors
English male stage actors
English male television actors
Male actors from London
Actors from the City of Westminster
People from Maida Vale