Former Heartbeat star Nick Berry has been spotted looking remarkably different from his television heyday, eight years after stepping away from his acting career. The 58-year-old, best known for playing PC Nick Rowan on the ITV drama from 1992 to 1998, now sports silver hair and a casual look, a far cry from his on-screen persona.
Berry first rose to fame in the 1980s as Simon Wicks in EastEnders, a role he played for five years before leaving the BBC One soap in 1990. He later took on the part of harbour master Mike Nicholls in Harbour Lights. In addition to acting, he enjoyed a brief pop career, with his 1986 single 'Every Loser Wins' becoming the second biggest-selling record in the UK that year, and his cover of Buddy Holly's 'Heartbeat' reaching No.2 in 1992.
His last television appearance was a decade ago in 2012 at the funeral of his on-screen EastEnders mother Pat Butcher. Since then, Berry has largely stayed out of the limelight, prioritising family life with his wife Rachel Robertson, whom he married in 1994, and their two sons, Louis and Finley.
Berry decided to quit acting to become a stay-at-home dad, citing the demanding filming schedules that robbed him of time with his young children. In a 2011 interview, he said: 'I chose to be a stay-at-home dad and have loved it... I struggled with was that the boys were very young and I felt like I was away filming all the time.'
Despite his retirement, Berry has not ruled out a return to acting now that his sons are older, stating he would 'never say never'. The family lives in Epping, Essex, and Berry was recently photographed helping his dog into his red Land Rover, looking unrecognisable from his days as a TV heartthrob.
