He won an army of fans with his popular portrayals of Simon Wicks in EastEnders and Sergeant Nick Rowan in Heartbeat – before stepping back from acting in 2003.
And Nick Berry looked unrecognisable as he made a rare public appearance on a dog walk recently.
The star, 56, who made his last television appearance in a 2012 episode of EastEnders at the funeral of his on-screen mother Pat Butcher, cut a casual figure in a lavender sweater, mint green overcoat and white patterned scarf.
Heartbeat star: Nick Berry looked unrecognisable as he made a rare public appearance on a dog walk recently
Popular: The star, 56, who made his last television appearance in a 2012 episode of EastEnders ,cut a casual figure in a lavender sweater, mint green overcoat and white patterned scarf
Every inch the silver fox, Nick paired his casual look with jeans and tan shoes as he unloaded his dog from the car before heading to a petrol station.
In a sighting which will no doubt leave his fans delighted Nick sported silver locks, a beard and a pair of trendy shades.
The star had a stellar acting career on British television but stepped away from the screen aged 39 to raise his two sons.
After springing to fame as Simon Wicks in EastEnders in 1985, Berry left in 1990 and decamped to the Yorkshire Dales for a six year stint as Heartbeat’s Sergeant Nick Rowan, before taking on the role of harbour master Mike Nicholls in Harbour Lights.
Sighting: Every inch the silver fox, Nick paired his casual look with jeans and tan shoes as he unloaded his dog from the car before heading to a petrol station
Stellar: In a sighting which will no doubt leave his fans delighted Nick sported silver locks, a beard and a pair of trendy shades (pictured as Simon Wicks in EastEnders in 1987)
He reached heartthrob status with hordes of screaming fans besieging the BBC studios where the soap was filmed.
There was even a brief pop career too: in 1986 Berry released a single, Every Loser Wins, which became the second biggest-selling record in the UK that year.
Save for a stint in the early Noughties filming police drama In Deep alongside Stephen Tompkinson, Berry disappeared from view, turning his back on acting to become a stay-at-home father to his two sons Louis, now 25, and 22-year-old Finley.
At one point, he was rumoured to have been offered a £2 million golden-handcuffs deal by EastEnders executives when he resigned in the late Eighties.
Good spirits: The star looked delighted to be spending a relaxed day with his dog
Off we go: Nick, who has shunned the spotlight for many years, loaded his dog into the car
Relaxed: The actor quit the spotlight in 2003 to be a stay-at-home dad
He was said to have amassed an estimated £5 million from his time in the spotlight – enough to fund a rambling house in Epping, Essex, and a beach house in Hove.
Speaking to the Daily Mail in 2011 about his decision to step away from the spotlight, he said: ‘I chose to be a stay-at-home dad and have loved it. I always said that when the boys were teenagers I could go back, but the longer you don’t do something the harder it is to do it, and I haven’t really missed it.
‘While I’d never say never, I’m genuinely happy as I am.’
Wow: Nick reached heartthrob status with hordes of screaming fans besieging the BBC studios where EastEnders was filmed (pictured 1985)
Beloved: Berry left in 1990 and decamped to the Yorkshire Dales for a six year stint as Heartbeat’s Sergeant Nick Rowan (above with Niamh Cusack)
‘The job was great.You’re driven everywhere, fed every five minutes and told what to do and where to go. What I struggled with was that the boys were very young and I felt like I was away filming all the time.
‘I’d been blessed with these little people and yet I wasn’t really there. I realised I wanted to be at home.’
Despite his spectacular screen success, east London-born Berry said he wasn’t a natural actor.
‘I was never that comfortable in the spotlight. Some of the egos you can do without. A lot of actors take themselves so seriously but, by and large, you’re getting paid to show off.’
Career: There was even a brief pop career too: in 1986 Berry released a single, Every Loser Wins, which became the second biggest-selling record in the UK that year
End of an era: Berry disappeared from view, turning his back on acting in 2003 to become a stay-at-home father to his two sons (pictured in 2011)