EastEnders star Paul Nicholls off-screen life including throat tumour and near-death fall
Paul Nicholls was undeniably one of the biggest heartthrobs of his time while playing Joe Wicks in EastEnders. The star was loved by many while playing the part in the ‘90s, and despite disappearing for some time, the soap icon made a surprise return to the BBC One show on Thursday, 10 October when his character appeared for a last minute cameo.
While Paul, 45, didn't physically return to the streets of Albert Square, Joe made an appearance via a video call with his dad David Wicks, played by Michael French, who returned to EastEnders this week - and viewers couldn't get enough. "Actual Joe Wicks!!! Wasn’t expecting that!! #EastEnders," wrote one fan on X. "Surprise cameo from Joe Wicks! Paul Nicholls looking awesome. @chris_clenshaw does it again! #EastEnders," said another.
Paul's return comes 27 years after he last appeared in Albert Square. During his time on the soap, he was a teen pin-up after working on the likes of The Biz and Children's Ward and he was voted TV's sexiest actor twice. The EastEnders star also appeared on the cover of various magazines, from Heat, to Just Seventeen and Sugar, but where has he been since his years of heartthrob fame? Let’s take a look…
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Where is Paul Nicholls now?
The actor quit Albert Square after just two years and later told the Daily Mail in 2008 that he “didn’t want to be a heartthrob.” He added: “People said I had too much too soon when I was playing Joe Wicks, and maybe they were right. I didn't want to be a heart-throb, and I could not handle the attention. I was well on my way to a total breakdown. I was drinking a lot and taking drugs.
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"I had lost control of my life. The more I partied, the more I was telling myself, 'Wow, this is what acting is all about.' Everything spun out of control. I had an appetite for craziness."
The star also admitted to struggling with depression. He continued: “Although I was often out of it on drink and drugs, I was never so far gone that I didn't know at the back of my mind that something had to give."
It seems it really hasn’t been plain sailing for the Bolton-born actor. In 2016, Paul revealed his cancer scare on Loose Women as doctors found a tumour in his throat and lost his voice for several months. Paul said: “I didn't speak for a couple of months. It was a tumour rather than a nodule, in my vocal cords.”
Then, disaster struck again in 2017 as the star got trapped in a Thai rock pool for three days with a smashed leg. The former EastEnders star had gone to Thailand for a holiday after working on Channel 4 series Ackley Bridge. During the trip, he travelled to a waterfall in Koh Samui, Thailand on his motorcycle. He was rescued after local villagers alerted police to his abandoned motorbike.
However, Paul has also had success since his EastEnders day and went on to star in Holby City, Ackley Bridge, Waterloo Road, Law and Order: UK and Bridget Jones: The Edge Of Reason.
Away from the spotlight, the actor married Scottish model Chantal Brown in 2012 after seven years of dating. At the time Paul said: "I don't even look at other women now. She's my soulmate.” The pair have since divorced, going their separate ways in 2015.
