Christopher John Chittell BEM (born 19 May 1948) is an English actor, known for his role as Eric Pollard in the ITV soap opera ''

Emmerdale ''Emmerdale'' (known as ''Emmerdale Farm'' until 1989) is a British television soap opera that is broadcast on ITV (TV network), ITV. The show is set in Emmerdale (known as Beckindale until 1994), a List of fictional towns and villages, fict ...

''. He has portrayed the role since 1986, making him the longest-serving cast member in the soap's history.

Biography

Early life

Chittell was born in

Aldershot Aldershot ( ) is a town in the Rushmoor district, Hampshire, England. It lies on heathland in the extreme north-east corner of the county, south-west of London. The town has a population of 37,131, while the Farnborough/Aldershot built-up are ...

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Berkshire to the north, Surrey and West Sussex to the east, the Isle of Wight across the Solent to the south, ...

. His father served in the

Indian Army The Indian Army (IA) (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the Land warfare, land-based branch and largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Commander-in-Chief, Supreme Commander of the Indian Army, and its professional head ...

, and on leaving school Chittell intended to join the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

, but instead, he became a model. His first acting stint was in 1964, with the National Theatre, at Chichester Festival Theatre, in Peter Shaffer's ''

The Royal Hunt of the Sun ''The Royal Hunt of the Sun'' is a 1964 play by Peter Shaffer that dramatizes the relation of two worlds entering in a conflict by portraying two characters: Atahuallpa Inca and Francisco Pizarro. Performance history Premiere ''The Royal H ...

''.

Career

He appeared as Potter in the 1967 film ''

To Sir, with Love ''To Sir, with Love'' is a 1967 British drama film that deals with social and racial issues in a secondary school in the East End of London. It stars Sidney Poitier and features Christian Roberts, Judy Geeson, Suzy Kendall, Patricia Routle ...

''. In 1968 he appeared as a Trooper in '' The Charge of the Light Brigade'', and made an uncredited appearance in '' If....'' . This was followed by a starring role as one of the ''

Freewheelers ''Freewheelers'' is a British television series made by Southern Television between 1968 and 1973 for the ITV network. It was created by the television producer Chris McMaster, who was aware of the popularity of adult action series such as '' ...

'', made as an action/adventure children's serial by

Southern Television Southern Television was the ITV broadcasting licence holder for the South and South-East of England from 30 August 1958 to 31 December 1981. The company was launched as Southern Television Limited. However, in 1966, during the application pr ...

between 1968 and 1973. Chittal acted for two seasons in the 1970s science fiction TV drama ''

The Tomorrow People ''The Tomorrow People'' is a British children's science fiction on television, science fiction television series created by Roger Price (television producer), Roger Price. Produced by Thames Television for the ITV (TV network), ITV Network, th ...

''. His other film appearances included roles in '' The Beast in the Cellar'' (1970), '' The Weekend Murders'' (1971), ''

The Raging Moon ''The Raging Moon'' (released in the US as ''Long Ago, Tomorrow'') is a 1971 British romantic drama film starring Malcolm McDowell and Nanette Newman and based on the book by British novelist Peter Marshall. Adapted and directed by Bryan Forbe ...

'' (1971), ''

The Last Valley The Last Valley may refer to: * ''The Last Valley'' (novel), an historical novel about the Thirty Years' War ** ''The Last Valley'' (film), a 1971 film adaptation of the novel directed by James Clavell {{DEFAULTSORT:Last Valley, The ...

'' (1971), '' Erotic Inferno'' (1975), '' Golden Rendezvous'' (1977), ''

Zulu Dawn ''Zulu Dawn'' is a 1979 American adventure war film directed by Douglas Hickox and written by Anthony Storey and Cy Endfield. It is based on Endfield's book of the same name about the historical Battle of Isandlwana in 1879 between British and ...

'' (1979) and ''

Game for Vultures ''Game for Vultures'' is a 1979 British thriller film starring Richard Harris, Joan Collins, and Richard Roundtree. It was directed by James Fargo and based on the 1975 novel with the same name by Michael Hartmann set during the Rhodesian Bu ...

'' (1979). He also appeared in a number of Swedish sex films in the 1970s including ''Swedish Sex Games'' (aka ''The Intruders'' and ''Let Us Play Sex'') in 1975 (which also featured a young

Stellan Skarsgård Stellan John Skarsgård (, ; born 13 June 1951) is a Swedish actor. He is known for his collaborations with director Lars von Trier, appearing in ''Breaking the Waves'' (1996), ''Dancer in the Dark'' (2000), '' Dogville'' (2003), ''Melancholia' ...

). He performed on stage at the

Old Vic Old or OLD may refer to: Places *Old, Baranya, Hungary *Old, Northamptonshire, England *Old Street station, a railway and tube station in London (station code OLD) *OLD, IATA code for Old Town Municipal Airport and Seaplane Base, Old Town, Mai ...

in ''

Macbeth ''The Tragedy of Macbeth'', often shortened to ''Macbeth'' (), is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, estimated to have been first performed in 1606. It dramatises the physically violent and damaging psychological effects of political ambiti ...

'' with

Peter O'Toole Peter Seamus O'Toole (; 2 August 1932 – 14 December 2013) was an English actor known for his leading roles on stage and screen. His numerous accolades include the Academy Honorary Award, a BAFTA Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, and four Golde ...

.Hayward, Anthony '' The Emmerdale Companion'' Published by Orion Publishing Co. (1997) In 1972, Chittell appeared in the untransmitted '' Doomwatch'' episode "Sex and Violence", playing Dick Burns, widely believed to be a parody of

Cliff Richard Sir Cliff Richard (born Harry Rodger Webb; 14 October 1940) is a British singer and actor. He has total sales of over 21.5 million singles in the United Kingdom and, as of 2012, was the third-top-selling artist in UK Singles Chart histo ...

and Richard's part in the Nationwide Festival of Light. The "Sex and Violence" episode was included as part of the ''Doomwatch'' DVD box set release in April 2016.

Personal life

Chittell is married to his ''

'' co-star Lesley Dunlop, who plays Brenda Walker.

Honours

He was awarded the

British Empire Medal The British Empire Medal (BEM; formerly British Empire Medal for Meritorious Service) is a British and Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth award for meritorious civil or military service worthy of recognition by the Monarchy of the United Ki ...

(BEM) in the 2019 Queen's Birthday Honours List for services to drama and charity.

Filmography

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Chittell, Chris English male soap opera actors English male film actors English male stage actors 1948 births Living people Male actors from Aldershot Recipients of the British Empire Medal 20th-century English male actors 21st-century English male actors