Former BBC child star Reece Buttery, now 24, has swapped acting for a new role as a nightclub bouncer in Lowestoft, East Suffolk. The transformation marks a dramatic shift from his early days on the CBBC programme The Dumping Ground, where he played Mo Michaels.
From CBBC fame to nightclub security
Buttery first appeared on screen eleven years ago as the anxious newcomer Mo at the Elm Tree House children's care home. The show, a spin-off of the Tracey Beaker series, was popular with younger audiences and made him a familiar face at just 11 years old.
After The Dumping Ground ended in 2016, Buttery continued acting, taking on roles in films and soaps such as Holby City, and later landed the lead part in the television adaptation of Gangster Granny.
A new career as door staff
Since 2021, Buttery has largely disappeared from public view, stepping away from the limelight entirely. He is now working as a bouncer at Mossys nightclub in Lowestoft, where a recent TikTok video shows him dancing on a bar to Rihanna's 2006 hit SOS.
In the video, Buttery sings directly to the camera and points at it while dancing. His trademark thick-framed glasses and long hair are gone, replaced by shorter hair and a thick moustache. He captioned the clip: "Door staff can be fun too."
Fans react to his transformation
Fans were stunned by his new look in the comments. One wrote: "No way is Mo, Robbie and Ben now a bouncer!" Another added: "OMG, it's Mo!" while a third remarked: "Imagine being banned from the club by Mo."
Buttery has not yet updated his TikTok bio, which still describes him as an "actor, comedian and DJ".
