Steve Robert McFadden (
né
A birth name is the name of a person given upon birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name, or the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a birth certificate or birth reg ...
Reid; born 20 March 1959) is an English actor. He is known for his role as
Phil Mitchell
Phil Mitchell is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', played by Steve McFadden. He was introduced to the soap opera on 20 February 1990 and was followed by his brother Grant Mitchell (EastEnders), Grant (Ross Kemp), s ...
in the
BBC One
BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, p ...
soap opera
A soap opera, or ''soap'' for short, is a typically long-running radio or television serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term "soap opera" originated from radio dramas originally being sponsored ...
''
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 ...
'', which he has played since 1990. He was also the presenter of the game show, ''
Britain's Hardest
''Britain's Hardest'' is a game show first broadcast on Sky One from 26 January to 29 March 2004. It was presented by '' EastEnders'' actor Steve McFadden and mixed martial arts
Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fi ...
''.
Early life
McFadden was born in
Maida Vale
Maida Vale ( ) is an affluent residential district consisting of the northern part of Paddington in West London, west of St John's Wood and south of Kilburn. It is also the name of its main road, on the continuous Edgware Road. Maida Vale is p ...
,
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
, 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 (RADA; ) is a drama school in London, England, that provides vocational conservatoire training for theatre, film, television, and radio. It is based in the Bloomsbury area of Central London, close to the Sen ...
in 1984, graduating in 1987.
Career
McFadden made his acting debut playing a small role in the 1989
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. ...
...
''. That same year, he had an uncredited brief appearance in the film ''
'' as a gang member. This was followed by appearances in the television series ''
''.
McFadden then began portraying the role of
...