The Bill star, 69, unrecognisable 16 years after leaving hit show
WITH his big yellow trilby hat, thick rimmed glasses and stubbly face, you’d find it hard to place who this former The Bill star is.
Well behind the spectacles and huge winter coat is none other than actor Jeff Stewart who played the much loved PC Reg Hollis.
The actor, now 69, was spotted looking dapper as he took a stroll around London.
Over the last few years, the TV star – who on The Bill was known for his fresh face and short back and sides haircut – had previously sported a huge bushy beard and big curly hair.
But Jeff has shaved the beard off and gone for a more trendy look, as he took a walk in the capital.
He was seen wearing a stylish long coat, to keep warm in the cold air.
Jeff was one of the longest lasting actors on The Bill, appearing from 1984 to 2008.
He appeared alongside Graham Cole’s PC Tony Stamp and Mark Wingett’s character DC Jim Carver.
Following his departure from the show, Jeff starred in 2009’s Dead Man Running, 2010’s Tomorrow and Under Jakob’s Ladder in 2011 – where he managed to bag himself Best Actor at the Manhattan Film Festival.
Speaking about leaving the drama, he previously said: “I didn’t see a counsellor, it was evident I was OK and I never worried how it would affect my career.
“I thought, ‘I have a choice, you can either stagnate or blossom.”
The Bill launched on ITV in 1983 but was axed in 2010, after running for an incredible 26 series.
The show, set in the fictional Sun Hill in London, became the longest-running police procedural drama in Britain.
It helped launch the careers of Keira Knightley, David Tennant, James Mcavoy, Sean Bean and David Walliams.
Last year marked 40 years since The Bill’s debut episode.
To celebrate this actor Mark Wingett – who played Jim Carver – opened up about what it was like to be part of the show.
The star played the probationer-turned-DC for 21 years, and during that time only saw The Bill pick up a couple of awards.
Speaking to RadioTimes.com, he admitted he felt it deserved many more considering it’s longevity on screen.
He said: “Other shows won awards, not that I’m bitter about that because I think awards are ridiculous anyway, but The Bill was kind of overlooked.
“The show didn’t get the recognition it probably deserved.”
He pondered whether snobbery was at play, and said: “Maybe, I think it fell between two stools.
“It was never really taken as a true drama, and it was never really taken as a soap opera until towards the end of the show, so it was in a category of its own.”