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Alex Newcombe Walkinshaw (born 5 October 1974) is a British actor. He has played the long-running roles of
Dale "Smithy" Smith in the
ITV
ITV or iTV may refer to:
ITV
*Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of:
** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network covering the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islan ...
police procedural series ''
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 on ...
'' and
Adrian "Fletch" Fletcher in
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
medical drama
A medical drama is a television show or film in which events center upon a hospital, an ambulance staff, or any medical environment. Most recent medical drama (film and television), dramatic programming go beyond the events pertaining to the chara ...
s ''
Casualty
Casualty may refer to:
*Casualty (person), a person who is killed or rendered unfit for service in a war or natural disaster
**Civilian casualty, a non-combatant killed or injured in warfare
* The emergency department of a hospital, also known as ...
'' and ''
Holby City
''Holby City'' (stylised on-screen as HOLBY CIY) is a British medical drama television series that aired weekly on BBC One. It was created by Tony McHale and Mal Young as a spin-off from the established BBC medical drama ''Casualty'', and pr ...
''. He also played PE teacher Jez Diamond in BBC school-based drama series ''
Waterloo Road''.
Career
Walkinshaw's first television appearance was at the age of 12 as an extra in ''
Grange Hill
''Grange Hill'' is a British Children's television series, children's television drama series, originally produced by the BBC and portraying life in a typical Comprehensive school (England and Wales), comprehensive school. The show began its ru ...
'', where he stayed for a year.
From 1992 to 1993 he appeared in the sitcom ''
Side by Side''.
He first appeared in ''
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 on ...
'' in three episodes as a guest star in 1992, 1993 and 1995,
before joining as a regular cast member in 1999. It was whilst he was acting at the
Royal Court Theatre
The Royal Court Theatre, at different times known as the Court Theatre, the New Chelsea Theatre, and the Belgravia Theatre, is a non-commercial West End theatre in Sloane Square, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, London, Englan ...
that he was spotted by one of the producers of ''The Bill'' and was encouraged to audition for the programme. He joined ''The Bill'' as PC Dale Smith, better known as "Smithy" and then left in 2001.
In 2003, he returned when his character was promoted to Sergeant. When ''The Bill'' was axed in Scotland in 2009 by
STV, Walkinshaw was the last person to appear on Scottish screens alongside
Sam Callis
Samuel Charles Callis (born 21 November 1973 in Ely, Cambridgeshire) is an English actor and director, best known for his role as Callum Stone in ''The Bill'' and Adam Benjamin in '' London's Burning''.
Biography
Callis grew up in Haslemere, Sur ...
as Sgt
Callum Stone
Callum Stone is a fictional character in the long-running police drama ''The Bill'' portrayed by Sam Callis.
Character development
In one storyline Sam and PC Emma Keane ( Melanie Gutteridge) attend the scene of an explosion. Sam discovers t ...
.
After ''The Bill'' was axed in 2010 by
ITV
ITV or iTV may refer to:
ITV
*Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of:
** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network covering the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islan ...
, Walkinshaw admitted that "It was emotional shooting the final scenes" and that he found it "tough" to leave behind some of his co-stars.
He has previously admitted that he would be keen to appear in the soap, ''
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 ...
''.
In 2011, Walkinshaw was cast in ''
Waterloo Road'' as PE teacher, Jeremy 'Jez' Diamond, replacing
Paul Nicholls.
Following his departure from the show, he joined the cast of ''
Casualty
Casualty may refer to:
*Casualty (person), a person who is killed or rendered unfit for service in a war or natural disaster
**Civilian casualty, a non-combatant killed or injured in warfare
* The emergency department of a hospital, also known as ...
'' as nurse, Adrian 'Fletch' Fletcher.
In 2014, the character made a permanent switch from ''Casualty'' to its sister show ''
Holby City
''Holby City'' (stylised on-screen as HOLBY CIY) is a British medical drama television series that aired weekly on BBC One. It was created by Tony McHale and Mal Young as a spin-off from the established BBC medical drama ''Casualty'', and pr ...
''.
Awards
In 2008, he was nominated for Outstanding Drama Performance at the
National Television Awards
The National Television Awards (often shortened to NTAs) is a British television awards ceremony, broadcast by the ITV network and initiated in 1995. The National Television Awards are the most prominent ceremony for which the results are voted ...
.
The award was won by
David Tennant
David John Tennant (''né'' McDonald; born 18 April 1971) is a Scottish actor. He rose to fame for his role as the tenth incarnation of the Doctor (2005–2010 and 2013) in the BBC science-fiction TV show '' Doctor Who'', reprising the rol ...
.
Early and personal life
Walkinshaw was born on 5 October 1974 in
Barking
Barking may refer to:
Places
* Barking, London, a town in East London, England
** London Borough of Barking and Dagenham, a local government district covering the town of Barking
** Municipal Borough of Barking, a historical local government dist ...
, Essex. In between acting jobs in the 1990s, he also worked as a labourer, office fitter and at a snooker hall in
Barking
Barking may refer to:
Places
* Barking, London, a town in East London, England
** London Borough of Barking and Dagenham, a local government district covering the town of Barking
** Municipal Borough of Barking, a historical local government dist ...
.
During his time on ''The Bill'', Walkinshaw met his wife Sarah, who worked as a make-up artist on the show. They married on 20 June 2009 at the
Queen's House
Queen's House is a former royal residence built between 1616 and 1635 near Greenwich Palace, a few miles down-river from the City of London and now in the London Borough of Greenwich. It presently forms a central focus of what is now the Old Ro ...
in
Greenwich
Greenwich ( , ,) is a town in south-east London, England, within the ceremonial county of Greater London. It is situated east-southeast of Charing Cross.
Greenwich is notable for its maritime history and for giving its name to the Greenwich ...
, London and live in Kent with their two children.
He is very close friends with his former co-stars
Roberta Taylor
Roberta Alexandra Mary Taylor (''née'' Roberts; born 26 February 1948) is an English actress and author. She is known for her roles of Irene Raymond in ''EastEnders'' (1997–2000), and Inspector Gina Gold in ''The Bill'' (2002–2008).
Career ...
and
René Zagger
René Zagger (born 1 June 1973) is an English actor, known for playing PC Nick Klein in ''The Bill'' from 1999 to 2004 and as the voice of Emet-Selch in Final Fantasy XIV from the '' Stormblood'' expansion onward. He has also made several guest a ...
. Taylor is like a second mother to him and is even grandmother by proxy to his children. Zagger is his best friend and they have known each other since they were 15 and 16; they also shared a flat when they were both on ''The Bill''. Zagger and
Scott Maslen
Scott Alexander Maslen (born 25 June 1971) is an English actor and model, best known for his portrayal as DS Phil Hunter in ITV's ''The Bill'' and Jack Branning on the BBC's flagship soap ''EastEnders'' since 2007. He also took part in the 20 ...
were his
best men
''Best Men'' is a 1997 American crime comedy film directed by Tamra Davis, and stars Sean Patrick Flanery, Luke Wilson, Andy Dick, Mitchell Whitfield, Fred Ward, Drew Barrymore and Dean Cain.
Plot
Four groomsmen are preparing for a wedding, d ...
at his wedding. His cousin is the glamour model and TV personality
Jodie Marsh
Jodie Louise Marsh is an English media personality, model and bodybuilder. She has appeared on numerous reality television shows, such as ''Essex Wives'' (2002), ''Back to Reality'' (2004), '' Love on a Saturday Night'' (2004), ''Celebrity Big ...
.
He is a
West Ham United
West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club that plays its home matches in Stratford, East London. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The club plays at the London Stadium, hav ...
supporter and enjoys programmes such as ''
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation
''CSI: Crime Scene Investigation'', also referred to as ''CSI'' and ''CSI: Las Vegas'', is an American procedural forensics crime drama television series that ran on CBS from October 6, 2000, to September 27, 2015, spanning 15 seasons. This wa ...
'' and ''
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 u ...
''.
He undertakes local charity work and is the
patron
Patronage is the support, encouragement, privilege, or financial aid that an organization or individual bestows on another. In the history of art, arts patronage refers to the support that kings, popes, and the wealthy have provided to artists su ...
for the ''St Thomas' Lupus Trust''.
On 24 March 2007, he took part in ''
The Weakest Link
''Weakest Link'' (also known as ''The Weakest Link'') is a television game show which The Weakest Link (British game show), first appeared in the United Kingdom on BBC Two on 14 August 2000 and originally ended on 31 March 2012 when its host ...
'' and won £9,450, which he donated to Essex-based charity "Kids in Need", which grants wishes for underprivileged, sick and terminally ill children.
On 2 May 2007, he opened a new community police office in
Chislehurst
Chislehurst () is a suburban district of south-east London, England, in the London Borough of Bromley. It lies east of Bromley, south-west of Sidcup and north-west of Orpington, south-east of Charing Cross. Before the creation of Greater L ...
, for the Safer Neighbourhood teams from Chislehurst and
Mottingham
Mottingham is a district of south-east London, England, which straddles the border of both the London Borough of Bromley and the Royal Borough of Greenwich. It is located south of Eltham, southeast of Charing Cross. It is within the historic ...
.
Filmography
Film
* ''
Saving Santa
''Saving Santa'' is a 2013 British computer-animated comedy film created and written by Tony Nottage and directed by Leon Joosen, produced by Tony Nottage, Terry Stone and Nick Simunek. The film was released direct-to-video.
Plot
A lowly stable ...
'' (2013)
Television
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Walkinshaw, Alex
1974 births
Living people
English male television actors
People from Barking, London
Male actors from London