EastEnders’ former Ben Mitchell stars unrecognisable 26yrs after character’s debut as he’s rocked by horror attack
BEN Mitchell has been a mainstay on EastEnders for more than two decades - and he's still at the heart of the action now.
Max Bowden, the sixth actor to play the cheeky chappie / one-man crimewave, is currently navigating the character through yet another crisis on the soap.
But what became of the popular performers who were Ben before? We took a look at what they're up to today...
Charlie Jones (2006-10)
The first two Ben Mitchells were babies - one called Matthew Silver, who joined in 1996, and the other Morgan Whittlem in 1999.
But it seems playing the part of future-murderer and Phil Mitchell's son was enough for them and they appear not to have performed again since.
In stepped Charlie, who took on the role of Ben aged 10 in 2006, when the character returned to Albert Square after mum Kathy died (and then, erm, emerged alive).
Now 26, he studied acting at the ALRA school in London and appeared in hit BBC drama Noughts + Crosses in 2021.
The ex-EastEnders star also had a minor part in the festive film Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey.
Joshua Pascoe (2010-12)
Ben really turned bad when Joshua took over playing the rotten Mitchell for an event-filled two-year tenure.
He killed Heather Trott after clattering her round the head with a picture frame, sending her tumbling to her doom on a kitchen counter - which landed him a stint in jail.
The actor was 16 when he left - with both Ben and Joshua getting shuttled out of the soap in August 2012.
Like his predecessor, Joshua stuck with acting and had credits on the movies Just Charlie and A Suburban Fairytale.
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Harry Reid (2014-18)
Next up to play Ben Mitchell - a character with almost as many actors behind him as Doctor Who - was Harry Reid.
By this time Ben had been out of the picture for years, returning after a brief spell in jail for manslaughter.
He returned to a familiar sight, his dad Phil having an affair with Shirley before his wedding to Sharon, but decided to stick it out.
Harry quit the soap as Ben headed off to France with a chunk of the heist money back in 2018.
He walked into the theatre and has a role in the upcoming thriller Die Before You Die.
Max Bowden (current)
He was chopped by producers, but proving you just can't keep him away, boomerang Ben No.6 returned in 2019.
It originally looked like he was going to rush to Phil's rescue, but no he was just there in an audacious bid to steal all his money.
Max, formerly best known as Justin Fitzgerald in Waterloo Road took the role and is credited with showing a softer side to the character.
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We have seen Ben find love with Callum and lose his hearing, which has been an issue since birth, entirely in the boat crash.
Though as the character keeps on proving, when you peel back the layers of the monster, there is usually just more monster.