Chris Chittell | |
---|---|
Born | Christopher John Chittell 19 May 1948 |
Occupation | Actor |
Years active | 1964–present |
Known for | Role of Eric Pollard in Emmerdale |
Spouses | |
Children | 2 |
Christopher John Chittell BEM (born 19 May 1948) is an English actor, known for his role as Eric Pollard in the ITV soap opera Emmerdale . He has portrayed the role since 1986, making him the longest-serving cast member in the soap's history. [1]
Chittell was born in Aldershot, Hampshire. His father served in the Indian Army, and on leaving school Chittell intended to join the Royal Navy, but instead, he became a model. [2] His first acting stint was in 1964, with the National Theatre, at Chichester Festival Theatre, in Peter Shaffer's The Royal Hunt of the Sun . [3]
He appeared as Potter in the 1967 film To Sir, with Love . [4] In 1968 he appeared as a Trooper in The Charge of the Light Brigade , and made an uncredited appearance in If.... . [5] This was followed by a starring role as one of the Freewheelers , made as an action/adventure children's serial by Southern Television between 1968 and 1973. [6]
Chittal acted for two seasons in the 1970s science fiction TV drama The Tomorrow People . [7] [8] His other film appearances included roles in The Beast in the Cellar (1970), The Weekend Murders (1971), The Raging Moon (1971), The Last Valley (1971), Erotic Inferno (1975), Golden Rendezvous (1977), Zulu Dawn (1979) and Game for Vultures (1979). [5] He also appeared in a number of Swedish sex films in the 1970s including Swedish Sex Games (aka The Intruders and Let Us Play Sex) in 1975 (which also featured a young Stellan Skarsgård).
He performed on stage at the Old Vic in Macbeth with Peter O'Toole. [2] [9] In 1972, Chittell appeared in the untransmitted Doomwatch episode "Sex and Violence", playing Dick Burns, widely believed to be a parody of Cliff Richard and Richard's part in the Nationwide Festival of Light. [10] The "Sex and Violence" episode was included as part of the Doomwatch DVD box set release in April 2016. [11]
Chittell is married to his Emmerdale co-star Lesley Dunlop, who plays Brenda Walker.
He was awarded the British Empire Medal (BEM) in the 2019 Queen's Birthday Honours List for services to drama and charity. [12]
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1967 | To Sir, with Love | Potter | |
1968 | The Charge of the Light Brigade | Trooper | |
1968 | The Avengers | Bassin | |
1968 | If.... | Senior | Uncredited |
1970 | The Breaking of Bumbo | The Prisoner | |
1970 | The Weekend Murders | Georgie Kemple | |
1971 | The Raging Moon | Terry | |
1971 | The Last Valley | Svenson | |
1971 | The Beast in the Cellar | Baker | |
1971 | They Call Him Cemetery | John McIntire | |
1974 | The Intruders | Richard | |
1974 | Man About The House | Alan | |
1975 | Erotic Inferno | Martin Barnard | |
1977 | Molly | Peter | |
1977 | Ta mej i dalen | Richard | |
1977 | Golden Rendezvous | Rogers | |
1978 | The Wild Geese | Philips | Uncredited |
1978 | Night Ride | TV movie | |
1979 | Zulu Dawn | Lt. Milne | |
1979 | Game for Vultures | McAllister | |
1980 | Les Visiteurs (The Visitors) | L'interprète (The Interpreter) | TV Mini Series. Episode entitled: Pirvii |
1982 | Triangle | Lorry Driver | TV series. Series 2. Episode 17 |
1984 | Tucker's Luck | Junior | TV series. Recurring role |
1986–present | Emmerdale | Eric Pollard | ITV Soap Opera. Series regular |
2016 | Doomwatch | Dick Burns | 1 episode |
Doomwatch is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC, which ran on BBC1 between 1970 and 1972. The series was set in the then present day, and dealt with a scientific government agency led by Doctor Spencer Quist, responsible for investigating and combating various environmental and technological dangers.
Michael Roy Kitchen is an English actor and television producer, best known for his starring role as Detective Chief Superintendent Christopher Foyle in the ITV drama Foyle's War, which comprised eight series between 2002 and 2015. He also played the role of Bill Tanner in two James Bond films opposite Pierce Brosnan, and that of John Farrow in BBC Four's comedy series Brian Pern.
Dudley Sutton was an English actor. Active in radio, stage, film and television, he was arguably best known for his role of Tinker Dill in the BBC Television drama series Lovejoy.
Eric Richard Porter was an English actor of stage, film and television.
Anthony Samuel Selby was an English actor. He was best known for his roles as Clive Mitchell in EastEnders, Corporal Percy Marsh in Get Some In!, and Sabalom Glitz in Doctor Who.
John William Francis Hallam was a British character actor, who frequently played hard men or military types.
Lesley Jane Dunlop is an English actress. She is known for her roles as Anna Kirkwall in Where the Heart Is and Zoë Angell in May to December. Her current role is Brenda Walker in the ITV Yorkshire-based soap opera Emmerdale.
Bernard Joseph Archard was an English actor who made many film and television appearances.
Brian Deacon is a British actor, known for portraying Jesus in the 1979 film Jesus, which was made by the evangelical organization the Jesus Film Project. Deacon was chosen for the part out of a field of 900 actors screen tested by producer John Heyman.
Jerome Barry Willis was a British stage and screen actor, with a strong reputation for Shakespearean roles in the theatre.
Valerie "Val" Pollard is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera Emmerdale, played by Charlie Hardwick. She made her first screen appearance in the episodes broadcast on 1 February 2004. Val was introduced as the sister of established character Diane Sugden. She later married Eric Pollard. Hardwick took a three-month break from Emmerdale to appear in a play and the character left on 10 February 2012. Val returned in June 2012 and was surprised to learn that Eric had begun in a relationship with Brenda Walker. She moved into Diane's pub after her marriage breakdown and helped to run it while Diane was away visiting her daughter.
Joseph Fürst was an Austrian-born international film and television actor known for his English language roles in Britain and Australia, after first appearing on the Canadian stage.
Francis George Middlemass was an English actor, who even in his early career played older roles. He is best remembered for his television roles as Rocky Hardcastle in As Time Goes By, Algy Herries in To Serve Them All My Days and Dr. Alex Ferrenby in 20 episodes of Heartbeat. Middlemass was also active in the Royal Shakespeare Company and was the fourth and final actor to play Dan Archer in The Archers.
Eric Pollard is a fictional character from the British soap opera Emmerdale, played by Chris Chittell. He made his first appearance in the soap on 30 September 1986. Having appeared continuously since, he is currently the longest-serving actor and the longest-serving character in the history of the soap. The character originally served as the show's villain, but this has been noticeably toned down in recent years, particularly since Eric's marriage to Val Lambert and the introduction of his long-lost son, David Metcalfe.
Geoffrey Cecil Burridge was an English actor noted for his performances in theatre and television.
Christopher Winton Beeny was an English actor and dancer. He had a career as a child actor, but was best known for his work as the footman Edward Barnes on the 1970s television series Upstairs, Downstairs, as Billy Henshaw in the sitcom In Loving Memory, and as the incompetent debt collector and golfer Morton Beamish in Last of the Summer Wine.
Robert Dorning was a musician, dance band vocalist, ballet dancer and stage, film and television actor. He is known to have performed in at least 77 television and film productions between 1940 and 1988.
Richard Coleman was a British film, television and stage actor.
Walter Llewellyn Rees was an English actor.
Victor Winding was a British actor born in Lambeth, London. He appeared in "The Faceless Ones", a Doctor Who serial broadcast from April to May 1967 starring Patrick Troughton in which he played the character called Spencer, an airline pilot at Gatwick Airport, where his identity was taken over by a chameleon. He also appeared in seasons 1-3 of the tv series The Expert from 1968 to 1971 as series regular Det. Chief Inspector Fleming alongside star Marius Goring. He had a long stint in daytime soap Crossroads as garage manager Victor Lee.