Craig Fairbrass turned down a return to EastEnders because he is too busy with the tough-guy roles which have made his name.
He played hardman-of-the-Square Dan Sullivan in EastEnders from 1999 and was framed for shooting Phil Mitchell in the 2001 storyline “Who Shot Phil?”.
“I’ve had the call but, with all respect to the show, I’ve got so much going on at the moment,” he told me.
“I was flattered but I’ve been there and done it.
“I’m very fortunate – there’s not many actors that have left the show and done what I’ve done so we are a very small percentage.
“So for me to go back over old ground isn’t for me – I’m forever grateful to EastEnders but I’m looking forward and keeping chasing the dream.”
Fairbrass landed role in Cliffhanger in 1993
Fairbrass is now the go-to hardman for British filmmakers.
Most up-and-comers would give their right arm for his acting slate.
Fairbrass was appearing alongside Helen Mirren in ITV’s Prime Suspect in 1991 before flying to Hollywood in pursuit of his movie star dreams.
He secured a starring role as a gun-toting baddie alongside Sylvester Stallone in Cliffhanger, one of the best action movies of the 1990s.
Fairbrass spent the decade appearing in movies on both sides of the Atlantic before joining the cast of EastEnders and going up against the Mitchell brothers.
He was never out of work after leaving Albert Square.
In 2007 he played real-life Essex hardman Pat Tate in Rise of the Footsoldier.
Tate, Tony Tucker and Craig Rolfe were the feared Essex Boys who were shot dead in one of Britain’s most brutal gangland slayings in December 1995.
You couldn’t take your eyes off the screen.
Rise of the Footsoldier spawned a sequel in 2015.
Fairbrass got an unexpected second life and reprised his role in 2017 alongside Shaun Ryder and Larry Lamb in Rise of the Footsoldier 3: The Pat Tate Years.
He won Best Actor at the National Film Awards.
Fairbrass continued to play the role in the gangster movie franchise.
In between, he has appeared in Muscle, Villain and A Violent Man, alongside voice work including the iconic role of Ghost in the Call of Duty gaming series.
A seventh Rise of the Footsoldier film, set in Ibiza, will be released this year.
Fairbrass will speak to Rise of the Footsoldier fans in Dundee
Fairbrass is coming to Dundee to talk about the Footsoldier films on February 6.
He said: “I’ve been up to Scotland a few times over the years.
“It’s a lovely part of the world and I jump at any chance I get to go there.
“I’m really looking forward to meeting the fans.
“We are seven films through now.
“None of us were really aware of how big it would be.
“The fanbase has just grown and the appetite is there for more.
“I’m constantly stopped in the street by people asking when the next one is out.
“It’s the main thing they ask me about now.
“I don’t mind that.
“I’m lucky to be stopped because it’s a very competitive business.”
Fairbrass said the films have “just got bigger and bigger”.
“There is always a fascination with a crime genre – especially a true story,” he said.
“The first film was a version of the true story of the Essex Boys.
“But over the years the entertainment side has taken over in the prequels.
“There was a 10-year gap between number one and number three.
“Timing is a beautiful thing and it was meant to be.”
What keeps him coming back to the role of Pat Tate?
“Each one has been very different,” he said.
“Some are violent and some are quite funny in places.
“Films are for entertaining and the fans love them.
“I couldn’t have imagined I’d still be playing Pat Tate in 2025.”
An Audience With will be hosted at Fat Sam’s Live where Fairbrass will be joined by fellow actors Josh Myers and Andrew Loveday for a live stage Q&A.
Loveday also directed and produced the movies.
A follow-up show in sister club Aura in Aberdeen takes place the following night.
“I take acting very seriously,” said Fairbrass.
“I am very lucky to be working in an environment with people that I love.
“Andrew Loveday is the driving force of the Footsoldier franchise.
“We get on so well.
“These people care about the project.
“We have really put everything into these movies.”
60 is the new 30 for tough-guy actors
Fairbrass is 61 but he admits getting older has never looked so good.
“It gets harder to get physically ready for these films when you get older,” he said.
“But with age comes experience.
“I’ve watched myself grow as an actor.
“I’d love to go back and reshoot Cliffhanger because I was never happy.
“The more you do, the more you learn.
“I was a young actor and it was my first big part.
“It’s an experience I’m still not over.
“It was an incredible opportunity to work on a giant Hollywood movie.
“I look back on it with fondness.
“Stallone is a lovely man and I’ve always admired him greatly.
“And he’s still doing it.
“It goes to show you the driving force of some people.
“Liam Neeson and Jason Statham are still doing action movies in later years.
“I think gravitas comes with age and the believability of a face that’s lived.
“Thank God!”
Fairbrass says no subject will be off-limits in Dundee
So what can fans expect in Dundee and Aberdeen on February 6 and 7?
“They’ll get a chance to sit there face to face and ask questions,” he said.
“Nothing will be off limits.
“We will be sharing some stories and it will be a fun evening.
“It’s a great opportunity to meet the people who love the films as much as we do.”
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