![\"Actor](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/SEI_90127395-9dac-e1744361158941.jpg\")
\n\t\tFormer EastEnders star Peter Dean now looks very different (Picture: Don Smith\/Radio Times\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n
\t\t
\n\t\tFormer EastEnders star Peter Dean now looks very different (Picture: Don Smith\/Radio Times\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n
Former EastEnders star Peter Dean looks worlds away from his Pete Beale role, over three decades on.<\/p>\n
Fans of the BBC<\/a> soap have been drenched in nostalgia over the last year, with a number of returnees and throwbacks to days gone by to celebrate the show\u2019s 40th anniversary.<\/a><\/p>\n That has been further intensified in the build-up and aftermath of Martin Fowler<\/a>\u2019s (James Bye<\/a>) death, as members of the extended Fowler and Beale clans have been name dropped left, right and centre.<\/p>\n Yesterday\u2019s episode showed his grieving partner Ruby Allen<\/a> (Louisa Lytton<\/a>) sell his Bridge Street fruit and veg stall back<\/a> to the family \u2013 much to the delight of Ian Beale<\/a> (Adam Woodyatt<\/a>), as his dad Pete was at the helm of the cart for years.<\/p>\n Unfortunately there\u2019s no return on the cards for Pete, given the character died in 1993.<\/p>\n But who was Pete Beale, and what is Peter Dean doing now?<\/p>\n Who was Pete Beale in EastEnders?<\/p>\n Family man Pete was one of 23 main characters devised by creators Julia Smith and Tony Holland<\/a> in 1985.<\/p>\n He lived with wife Kathy<\/a> (Gillian Taylforth<\/a>) and their son Ian in a tower block a short distance away from Albert Square, but was a constant presence in the area due to his work and visits to his mum Lou (Anna Wing).<\/p>\n \t\t \t\t Storylines during his tenure included being accused of assaulting ex-wife Pat Wicks<\/a> (Pam St Clement<\/a>), after he discovered that their son Simon (Nick Berry) was not his own.<\/p>\n He later tried to throw Kathy\u2019s rapist James Willmott-Brown (William Boyde)<\/a> off a building, and with his marriage to her in tatters, he left Walford with new girlfriend Rose Chapman\u00a0(Petra Markham).<\/p>\n News reaches his family soon after that the pair have died in a car crash, and Ian\u2019s son Peter \u2013 who was born on the same day<\/a> \u2013 is named in his honour.<\/p>\n Where is actor Peter Dean now?<\/p>\n 85 year old Peter now looks unrecognisable, sporting a white beard and wearing a cap in a rare, new picture whilst attending a reunion.<\/p>\n The snap was posted on social media by a fan who noticed him taking a trip down memory lane with friends at a pub in London.<\/p>\n He really does look worlds away from his EastEnders days.<\/p>\n \t\t \t\t Since leaving the show, he\u2019s continued to act, reprising the Pete Beale role in a 2004 episode of Leigh Francis vehicle Bo\u2019 Selecta! and two years later in an instalment of Comedy Lab.<\/p>\n More recently he\u2019s starred in Danny Baker sitcom biopic Cradle to Grave and in the 2016 TV movie Nearly New as Father David.<\/p>\n In 2018 he was one of a number of celebrities to appear on The Real Marigold Hotel.<\/a><\/p>\n Why did Peter Dean quit EastEnders?<\/p>\n It has been reported that his exit wasn\u2019t exactly on good terms, with Peter\u2019s contract with the BBC allegedly ending due to \u2018irreconcilable differences\u2019.<\/p>\n In 2018, he appeared in a special soap week of ITV panel show Loose Women.<\/p>\n He told the panelists: \u2018The producer called me in and said, \u201cThe writers can\u2019t find anything for you to do.\u201d<\/p>\n \u2018So I said, \u201cWell get rid of the writers\u201d. Life\u2019s simple when it\u2019s logical. But of course, it was already set. <\/p>\n \u2018EastEnders is EastEnders. The real East End has changed.\u2019<\/p>\n If you\u2019ve got a soap or TV story, video or pictures get in touch by emailing us\u00a0soaps@metro.co.uk<\/a>\u00a0\u2013 we\u2019d love to hear from you.<\/strong><\/p>\n Join the community by leaving a comment below and\u00a0stay updated on all things soaps on our homepage<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n Arrow Arrow![\"Pat](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/AD_76248989-df70.jpg\")
\n\t\tPete is one of the show\u2019s most iconic characters (Picture: BBC)<\/p>\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/PRI_186628180-669d.jpg\")
\n\t\tThe Beales lived a short distance away from the Fowlers (Picture: Don Smith\/Radio Times\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n![\"Peter](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/SEI_247043851-ac6c.jpg\")
\n\t\tA fan bumped into Peter in a London pub (Picture: Facebook\/Bob Murphy)<\/p>\n![\"Pete](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/SEI_247137568-393c.jpg\")
\n\t\tThe character was killed off in 1993 (Picture: REX\/Shutterstock)<\/p>\n
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