EastEnders actor Toby-Alexander Smith has returned to the BBC soap as serial killer Gray Atkins after a four-year absence. The 35-year-old villain first appeared in Walford in 2019 with wife Chantelle Atkins (Jessica Plummer), whom he abused and later murdered in 2020. Over the next two years, Gray killed Kush Kazemi (Davood Ghadami) and Tina Carter (Luisa Bradshaw-White) and began a relationship with Chelsea Fox (Zaraah Abrahams), who gave birth to his son Jordan. In 2022, Gray was sent to prison after being exposed with help from Whitney Dean (Shona McGarty).
Gray's Return and Family Drama
Gray's grandmother, Sheila (Sheila Ruskin), has re-entered Chelsea's life after Jordan (Jahsaiah Williams) was hit by Ian Beale's (Adam Woodyatt) car and is now wheelchair-bound. Sheila has been providing Chelsea with money and wants more time with Jordan, but her unannounced visits have angered Chelsea. On Monday (June 29), Sheila feared losing access to Jordan and visited Gray in prison to ask for his help in keeping Jordan in their lives.
Famous Wife: Emmerdale's Amy Walsh
Away from EastEnders, Toby-Alexander Smith is married to Emmerdale star Amy Walsh, 39, who plays Tracy Robinson on the ITV soap. The couple met in 2019 after a chance encounter in the Strictly Come Dancing audience. Amy was there to support her Emmerdale co-star Kelvin Fletcher, while Toby was cheering for EastEnders star Emma Barton (Honey Mitchell).
“It was just pure chance that we were both there [on Strictly] that night, sat in the front row,” Amy said on Loose Women. “We were just chatting all night and really got on.”
The couple welcomed their first daughter, Bonnie, in December 2021, announced their engagement in August 2022, and married in the mountains of Montenegro in 2023. Guests included Girls Aloud singer Kimberly Walsh (Amy's sister) and EastEnders star Shona McGarty, who performed a duet with singer Sonny Tennent. “It was honestly the most perfect day,” Amy told OK! magazine. “It surpassed all my expectations and more.”
In March 2026, Amy and Toby welcomed their second daughter, Nell Rose. Amy announced the birth on Instagram with a black-and-white photo of the baby's feet, captioning it: “This time last week I was heading into established labour. We’ve been in the most magical bubble ever since.”
Other Roles
After leaving EastEnders in 2022, Toby-Alexander Smith starred as Charles Bingley in the period drama An American in Austen (2024) and as Charles Barkley V in Love Across Time. This year, he plays Sydney in the Prime Video movie A Murder Between Friends, a whodunnit featuring six old friends entangled in a lethal mystery at a country estate. The film also stars Dame Joan Collins as a showbiz detective and co-producer. Toby additionally stars as Harry Windover in Prime Video's regency romance Seeking Persephone.
EastEnders airs Monday to Thursday on BBC One and iPlayer.
