Joe Swash

Last updated

Joe Swash
Born
Joseph Adam Swash

1982 (age 4142)
London, England
Occupation(s)Actor, television presenter
Years active1991–present
Spouse
(m. 2022)
PartnerEmma Sophocleous (2005–2008)
Children4
Family Shana Swash (sister)

Joseph Adam Swash (born 1982) [1] is an English actor and television presenter, best known for his role of Mickey Miller in the BBC One soap opera EastEnders and various presenting roles with ITV2. He won the eighth series of I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! in 2008 and the twelfth series of Dancing on Ice in 2020.

Contents

Early life and education

Swash studied at Highbury Grove School in Islington, and attended Anna Scher Theatre School. [2]

Career

Early work

When Swash was seven, he made his first television appearance in an Andrex advertisement. In 1991 when he was nine years old he played the role of a little boy pretending to be an orphan in You Rang, M'Lord? then when he was eleven he was cast in the film The Adventures of Pinocchio , as The Fighting boy with Dawn French and Griff Rhys Jones and co-starring Jonathan Taylor Thomas, Richard Claxton and Correy Carrier. His character, known as Fighting Boy because he scuffled with Lampwick over a gun, was turned into a donkey after going on a Roller Coaster. He made minor appearances in several television series such as Casualty , The South Bank Show , The Bill , "Soldier Soldier" and Nickelodeon's LOL: Laugh Out Loud. In 2002, Joe Swash appeared as a participant in the ITV documentary Club Reps . [3]

EastEnders

Swash was about to give up on the idea of becoming an actor when he gained a role in BBC One soap opera EastEnders . He was cast as Mickey Miller and made his first appearance in EastEnders in April 2003 as a recurring character. Owing to a positive viewer reception, producer Louise Berridge turned Mickey into a regular character, and his on-screen family arrived a year later, including Mickey's little sister Demi, played by Swash's real sister, Shana. His son, Harry Swash, also appeared in the soap as his niece Summer Swann for a minimal period. On 26 February 2008, it was announced that Joe Swash, along with the actor who plays his stepfather, David Spinx, were being written out of EastEnders in a "big explosive storyline". He made his final appearance in July 2008. Since the announcement of his departure, Swash has been critical of the direction producers took with his character. He has blamed his three-month screen absence in 2005 on Mickey becoming little more than "light-relief". [4]

However, he has expressed an interest in returning. [5] He later reprised his role of Mickey Miller for two episodes on 19 and 20 September 2011, in order to coincide with his on screen brother's departure from the soap.

I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!

In November 2008, Swash entered the Australian jungle to appear in the eighth series of the British reality show I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! , which he went on to win. [6]

From 2009 onwards, Swash has been part of the presenting team on the spin-off series I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here, NOW! . He co-presented the show with Caroline Flack (2009–2010), Russell Kane (2009–2011), Laura Whitmore (2011–2015), Rob Beckett (2012–2014) and David Morgan (2015).

In 2016, the show was renamed I'm a Celebrity: Extra Camp . Swash has co-presented this show with Vicky Pattison (2016), Stacey Solomon (2016), Chris Ramsey (2016), Joel Dommett (2017–2018) and Scarlett Moffatt (2017–2018). On 20 July 2019, it was confirmed that Swash had left the show and would not return for the series that year. [7]

Dancing on Ice

In January 2020, Swash appeared as a contestant on the twelfth series of Dancing on Ice . Swash was partnered with Alexandra Schauman from week 1 until she sustained an injury in week 3. He was re-partnered with Alex Murphy in week 4. Swash and Murphy went on to win the series, beating Perri Kiely and his partner Vanessa Bauer. [8]

Other television appearances

In 2009, Swash, along with ex-rugby player Austin Healey, appeared in the second series of Hole in the Wall , as a team captain.

In 2010, he was a team captain on What Do Kids Know? with Rufus Hound and Sara Cox on Watch.

In 2011, Swash presented the children's show Gimme A Break on the CBBC Channel. In 2011, Swash and Caroline Flack worked on ITV2 game show Minute to Win It as team captains. In November 2011 Driving Academy aired on the CBBC Channel, with Swash as presenter/narrator. In 2014, a brand new series was aired with celebrities taking part called Celebrity Driving Academy.

In 2013 and 2014, Swash was a regular team captain on ITV2 panel show Fake Reaction . In 2016, he joined the line-up on The Jump as a contestant.

In 2021, Swash appeared on the cooking show Celebrity Masterchef , when he made the final 3.

In 2023, he appeared in I'm a Celebrity... South Africa . [9]

Theatre

Swash subsequently performed as Buttons in the pantomime Cinderella , at the Central Theatre in Chatham, Medway.

In 2009 and 2010, he appeared in the pantomime 'Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs' in Bristol.

Other work

In February 2009, Swash and TV presenter Tim Vincent broke a Guinness World Record for throwing the most pancakes to a partner as part of a challenge on Channel 4's The Paul O'Grady Show .

Personal life

Swash was forced to take a three-month break from EastEnders in 2005 after he contracted meningoencephalitis. [10]

On 16 June 2007, Swash's fiancée, Emma Sophocleous, gave birth to their first child, a boy. [11] On 19 January 2008, it was announced the couple had separated. [12] On 3 November 2009, Swash was declared bankrupt by London's High Court after failing to pay a £20,000 tax bill. Swash's agent Becca Barr said it was a mix-up and the actor was not in financial difficulty. [13]

Swash started dating Stacey Solomon in January 2016, after meeting on I'm a Celebrity several years previously. In 2019, the two announced that they were expecting their first child together, joining their family of Swash's son and Solomon's two sons. In May 2019, Solomon gave birth to their first child together, a boy. [14]

Swash and Solomon got engaged on 24 December 2020, after being together for five years. [15] In July 2021 the pair announced they were expecting a baby girl. [16] On 5 October 2021 Stacey announced on Instagram that the baby had been born. [17] On 24 July 2022 they were married in a small ceremony held at their home, Pickle Cottage, in Essex. [18]

On 28 December 2022, Solomon announced she was eight months pregnant with her fifth child and third with Swash. [19] The couple announced the birth of their second daughter on 11 February 2023. [20]

Filmography

Film

YearTitleRoleNotes
1996 The Adventures of Pinocchio Fighting Boy
2002 Shooters Boy #1Credited as Joseph Swash
2018The Best of EastEndersMickey MillerUncredited
Direct-to-video

Television

YearTitleRoleNotes
1995 Soldier Soldier Sam GarveyITV Season 4 episode 8 Baby Love and episode 10 Going Back
1996, 2001 London's Burning To be added
2000 Time Gentlemen Please Young hoodlum in bar
2003–2008, 2011 EastEnders Mickey Miller Regular role; 368 episodes
2006, 2008 The Weakest Link Himself
2008 I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here! Winner
All Star Family Fortunes
2008–2011 Gimmie a Break Co-presenter
2009 Hole in the Wall Team captain
The Sunday Night Project
Total Wipeout
2009–2012, 2014 Celebrity Juice Panelist
2009–2018 I'm a Celebrity: Extra Camp Co-presenter
2010What Do Kids Know?Team captain
The Cube: Celebrity Special Contestant
2011 Minute to Win It Team captain
Let's Dance for Comic Relief Participant
2011–2014Driving AcademyPresenter / narrator
2012 The Magicians
Mad Mad World
2013 Take Me Out: Christmas Special Contestant
2013–2014 Fake Reaction
2014 Through the Keyhole
Celebrity Dinner Date
Keep It in the Family
2014, 2020 Tipping Point: Lucky Stars
2015, 2016 The Dog Ate My Homework Panelist
2015 Reality Bites Guest panelist
Big Star's Little Star
Celebrity Benchmark Benchmarker
The Chase: Celebrity Special Contestant
2016 The Jump
2016, 2022 Pointless Celebrities
2017 The Crystal Maze
2020 Dancing on Ice Winner
Would I Lie to You?
2020–2021 Thomas & Friends Sonny (voice)
2023 I'm a Celebrity... South Africa Himself
Joe Swash: Teens In Care
EastEnders: The Six Presenter; 2 episodes
The Festive Pottery Throw Down Contestant

Books

Related Research Articles

Shana Frances Swash is an English actress, and the sister of actor and television presenter Joe Swash. She is best known for playing Demi Miller in the long-running BBC One soap opera EastEnders from 2004 to 2006.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lacey Turner</span> English actress (born 1988)

Lacey Amelia Turner is an English actress. With a career spanning two decades, she made her acting debut in the television soap opera EastEnders for her role of Stacey Slater, a character she initially played between 2004 and 2010 before returning in 2014.

Jeffrey Carl Brazier is an English television presenter. He rose to fame after appearing on the third series of Shipwrecked (2001), before going on to present television shows including Finders Keepers (2006), I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! NOW! (2006) and OK! TV (2011), as well as working as a showbiz presenter on This Morning and appearing in advertisements for ambassador for the People's Postcode Lottery. He has also appeared as a contestant on various television shows including I'm Famous and Frightened! (2004), The Farm (2004), Dancing on Ice (2011), Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins (2019) and Celebrity MasterChef (2020)

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mickey Miller</span> Fictional character from EastEnders

Mickey Miller is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Joe Swash. He made his first appearance on 15 April 2003. Introduced as a guest character, Mickey proved popular and was turned into a regular by executive producer Louise Berridge. The character is portrayed as a wheeler-dealer, involved in various money-making scams. A family was built around the character in 2004 when the other Millers moved to Albert Square. It was announced on 25 February 2008 that the characters of Mickey and his stepfather Keith had been axed by EastEnders' executive producer Diederick Santer. Mickey left on 1 July 2008. In July 2011, it was announced Swash would reprise his role for the departure storyline of his screen brother Darren and appeared for two episodes on 19 and 20 September 2011.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rosie Miller</span> Soap opera character

Rosie Swann is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Gerry Cowper. Her first appearance was 6 September 2004 and she was axed in 2006, with her final scenes airing July 2006.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Helen Flanagan</span> English actress (born 1990)

Helen Joyce Flanagan is an English actress and model. She is best known for playing the role of Rosie Webster in the ITV soap opera Coronation Street from 2000 to 2012; she returned to the role in 2017, before going on maternity leave on 8 June 2018, from which she did not return.

Keith Miller (<i>EastEnders</i>) Fictional character from EastEnders

Keith Miller is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by David Spinx. He made his first appearance on 6 September 2004. Throughout his tenure, he was shown to be a lazy, unmotivated and jobless character who sits around watching television all day.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nick Pickard</span> English actor (born 1975)

Nick Pickard is an English actor. He is known for his portrayal of Tony Hutchinson in the Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks, a role he has held since its first episode in 1995; he remains the longest-serving cast member and in 2017, won the British Soap Award for Outstanding Achievement.

I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here! returned to ITV1 for an eighth series from 16 November to 5 December 2008. Ant & Dec returned to present the main show on ITV, whilst Matt Willis, Emma Willis and Mark Durden-Smith returned to host spin-off show I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! NOW! on ITV2. It was the first series to use a redesigned logo, which imitates the Hollywood Sign. The winner of this series was Joe Swash.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stacey Solomon</span> English singer and television personality

Stacey Chanelle Clare Solomon is an English television personality and singer. She was a contestant on the sixth series of the ITV singing competition show The X Factor in 2009, which she finished in third place. The following year, Solomon appeared on the tenth series of the ITV reality show I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here! which she won.

I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! returned for its tenth series on 14 November 2010. It ran for 3 weeks. Ant & Dec returned as the presenters for the main show, and its spin off show Get Me out of Here... Now returned, with Caroline Flack and Joe Swash as main presenters. On 4 December 2010, singer Stacey Solomon won the show.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matt Willis</span> English singer (born 1983)

Matthew James Willis is an English musician, singer, songwriter, television personality and actor. He is known as co-founder, bassist and co-vocalist of the pop-punk band Busted. Willis released his debut solo album Don't Let It Go to Waste on 20 November 2006. It contains three top-20 singles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vicky Pattison</span> British television personality (born 1987)

VictoriaPattison is a British television and media personality. She is best known for appearing in the MTV shows Geordie Shore from 2011 until 2014, Ex on the Beach in 2014 and 2015 and her own show, Judge Geordie, in 2015.

<i>Lemon La Vida Loca</i> 2012 British TV series or programme

Lemon La Vida Loca is a British mock reality show created and written by, and starring, comedian Leigh Francis and actress Laura Aikman. The show's title is derived from Ricky Martin's 1999 hit single, "Livin' la Vida Loca".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chris Ramsey (comedian)</span> English actor and comedian

Christopher Ramsey is an English actor, comedian and presenter. After appearing in Hebburn as Jack (2012–2013), Ramsey began presenting series including I'm A Celebrity: Extra Camp (2016), Virtually Famous (2016–2017) and Stand Up Central (2017).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rob Beckett</span> English comedian

Robert Anthony Beckett is an English comedian, actor, and presenter. He was a co-host on the ITV2 spin-off show I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! NOW! from 2012 to 2014. Since 2016, Beckett has been a team captain on the E4 panel show 8 Out of 10 Cats and the narrator of the reality series Celebs Go Dating. He presented BBC One entertainment series Wedding Day Winners and All Together Now.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Natalie Cassidy</span> English actress (1983– )

Natalie Ann Cassidy is an English actress. She has played Sonia Fowler in EastEnders since 1993, appeared in the BBC Two sitcom-horror Psychoville and was a contestant on the seventh series of Strictly Come Dancing and the ninth series of Celebrity Big Brother.

<i>Im a Celebrity: Extra Camp</i> British television series

I'm a Celebrity: The Daily Drop (known as I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! Now!. I'm a Celebrity: ExtraCamp is the companion series to I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!, that was broadcast on ITV2 from August 2002 to December 2020. It features behind-the-scenes footage and interviews with contestants after they have been voted off by the public.

Malique Thompson-Dwyer is an English actor, known for portraying the role of Prince McQueen in the Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks from 2016 to 2019 and 2021 onwards.

<i>CelebAbility</i> British game show

CelebAbility is a British panel show that aired on ITV2 from 15 June 2017 to 27 July 2023 and is presented by Iain Stirling.

References

  1. Hall, Tasha (27 April 2023). "Inside life of Joe Swash as he's rumoured for I'm A Celeb South Africa return". Daily Record. Retrieved 2 May 2023.
  2. "Famous attendees of the Anna Scher Theatre School". Anna Scher Theatre. Retrieved 8 December 2019.
  3. "See a naughty Joe Swash get thrown out of a hotel, Heat online, retrieved 26 November 2008
  4. O'Sullivan, Kyle (16 June 2021). "Joe Swash's devastating illness which led to EastEnders axe and double bankruptcy". Daily Mirror . Retrieved 24 June 2021.
  5. "Joe Swash wants return to EastEnders". This is South Wales. 31 January 2009. Retrieved 16 February 2009.
  6. Busk-Cowley, Mark (2014). I'm A Celebrity, Get Me Out Of Here!: The Inside Story. Bantam Press. pp. 210–211. ISBN   978-0593073483.
  7. "Joe Swash quits I'm A Celebrity… Extra Camp after 10 years as he says goodbye to 'jungle family'". Metro. 20 July 2019. Retrieved 8 December 2019.
  8. "Dancing On Ice: 4.6m watch Joe Swash crowned winner of ITV show". BBC News. 9 March 2020. Retrieved 24 June 2021.
  9. "I'm A Celebrity Unveils Line-Up For Upcoming All Stars Series In South Africa". HuffPost UK. 26 March 2023. Retrieved 26 March 2023.
  10. "EastEnder Joe has deadly brain bug". Daily Mirror . 4 October 2005. Retrieved 22 July 2016.
  11. "EastEnders Joe Swash becomes father for the first time". Celebrity Baby Blog. 25 June 2007. Retrieved 26 June 2007.
  12. CelebsNow (19 January 2008). "EastEnders star Joe Swash splits from girlfriend". CelebsNow. Retrieved 8 December 2019.
  13. Kilkelly, Daniel (4 November 2009). "Joe Swash is declared bankrupt". Digital Spy . Retrieved 4 November 2009.
  14. Kadrou, Hayley (22 February 2019). "Stacey Solomon and Joe Swash's dating timeline". OK! Magazine. Retrieved 19 March 2019.
  15. "Stacy Solomon and Joe Swash Get Engaged as He Proposes on Christmas Eve". Mirror. 24 December 2020. Retrieved 31 December 2020.
  16. Novak, Kim (2 July 2021). "Stacey Solomon and Joe Swash confirm they are having a baby girl after four boys". Metro. Retrieved 22 July 2021.
  17. "Stacey Solomon gives birth to her baby girl on her birthday". 5 October 2021.
  18. "Stacey Solomon marries Joe Swash in Jewish wedding at Pickle Cottage home". Daily Mirror . 25 July 2022.
  19. Harp, Justin (28 December 2022). "Loose Women's Stacey Solomon reveals she's pregnant with third child with Joe Swash". Digital Spy. Retrieved 19 May 2023.
  20. Soguksu, Ayla (13 February 2023). "Stacey Solomon announces baby girl's name after welcoming fifth child". OK! Magazine. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
Preceded by I'm A Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here!
Winner & King of the Jungle

2008
Succeeded by