KNOWN to portray one of Walford’s biggest tough man, this actor has come a long way since leaving theatre school.
EastEnders star Ricky Champ is unrecognisable on snaps from his graduation day recently shared with his Instagram followers.
Albert Square undertaker Stuart Highway has been known for his long feud with Mick Carter and has recently been thrown into a cancer storyline.
An EastEnders legend, Ricky has caught the attention of over 73k followers who follow his every move on Instagram.
Fans were therefore surprised when the actor showed off three shots of himself 2002, during his graduation day from London’s Guildhall School of Music and Drama.
The actor was worlds apart from his role in the long-running drama as he sports dark hair and a graduation cap and gown.
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“Graduating from drama school nearly 20 years ago”, Ricky captioned.
“Amazing pics”, commented one of his followers while another added: “Ricky with hair?!?!”
“Absolutely bloody gorgeous”, wrote a third fan.
A fourth added: “Back when you actually had hair” and another one commented: “And you still have the same face.”
Another jumped in, referring to his on-screen brother: “It’s amazing how much you look like Tony Clay here. Perfect casting for Callum and Stuart.”
In the snaps can also be seen in the company of classmates – which include Doctor Who star Jodie Whittaker, as followers have enthusiastically pointed out.
“You had hair and met the future doctor”, one fan wrote.
Another added: “Hold up is that Jodie Whittaker?! Wow Ricky!”
Ricky’s fellow EastEnders star, Martin Fowler actor James Bye, recognised another familiar face in the second snap shared.
“Is that the almighty Matthew Spencer”, penned James, to which Ricky replied with: “hell yeah.”
Years down the line, Ricky secured his major role in EastEnders and began portraying Stuart Highway from 2018.
However, this was not his first appearance in the BBC One programme.
In 2009, Ricky Champ made a cameo appearance in the show and featured as a photographer.
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He appeared in The Queen Vic to take pictures of Sam Mitchell (Daniella Westbrook) but nothing went as planned.
EastEnders airs from Monday to Thursday at 7.30pm on BBC One.
