Who is Dani Dyer’s ex Sam Strike and when did the Love Island 2018 contestant date the EastEnders actor?

BRIT actor Sam is making waves in Hollywood after his stint in EastEnders.

But before he left Walford for La-la land, he dated Dani Dyer despite playing her dad's on-screen son. Here's what you need to know...

Who is Dani Dyer's ex Sam Strike?

Dani's ex Sam is an English actor from Southend-on-Sea in Essex.

He was born on January 18, 1994 - making him 24.

Sam has a host of TV and film credits to his name though he's probably best known for playing Johnny Carter on EastEnders between 2013-14.

Ironically his character is the son of Mick Carter who is played by Dani's dad, Danny Dyer.

Besides his stint in Walford, Sam also portrayed Dan Morgan in the CBBC series M.I.High.

In 2017 he starred alongside Stephen Dorff in horror movie Leatherface, before depicting serial killer and rapist Montie Rissell in Netflix hit Mindhunter.

Sam will next appear in The Wisdom Tooth and thriller Monster Party alongside Julian McMahon.

He will feature in an episode of Nightflyers, a TV series based on the works of Game of Thrones writer George R. R. Martin.

Sam will be taking on the main role in upcoming American science fiction series Nightflyers.

When did Dani date Sam Strike?

Despite playing Danny Dyer's on-screen son between 2013-14 they only began dating back in 2015 after growing close on the set of gangster movie Bonded By Blood 2.

A source told The Sun on Sunday of their romance at the time: "As soon as Dani and Sam met, thanks to Danny, they hit it off.

"It was a bit of a coincidence, but luckily for them Danny didn't mind. He found it funny and fully supported them."

Sources told the Sun Online last month that Sam wasn't keen on his ex entering the Love Island villa. 

The insider dished: "Sam and Dani are really good friends and she runs everything past him.

"His advice was to not do the show – he feels it’s the wrong move for her.

"Dani and Sam have a special bond and even after things didn’t work out when they were dating, they speak weekly.

"When Dani was asked to do Love Island last year he advised her against it.

"He has been adamant he doesn’t think she should be going on the programme."

Who else has Dani dated?

Dani regularly mentions having her heart broken in the past but little is known about who the culprits are.

She previously spoke out about a terrible date with a "gorgeous rugby player" who wouldn't stop name-dropping who her father was to the restaurant staff.

Dani said that after the second instance: "That's when he saw the other side to me. And I unfollowed him on Instagram."