Todd Carty walking in Manchester, sporting a moustache, navy baseball cap, navy jacket and blue jeans, and carrying a green Waitrose carrier bag
He was a huge soap star (Picture: Aaron Parfitt/SplashNews.com)

Former EastEnders star Todd Carty has changed a lot since leaving the BBC One soap.

The actor portrayed Mark Fowler from 1990-2003.

Mark was the eldest son of Pauline and Arthur Fowler (Wendy Richard and Bill Treacher), who were also parents to Michelle (Susan Tully) and Martin.

Mark was diagnosed with HIV prior to his on-screen return, something which he kept to himself at first, before ultimately confiding in Diane Butcher (Sophie Lawrence), who he’d grown close to.

After a year to process his diagnosis, he revealed that he was HIV-positive to Pauline and Arthur during one of EastEnders’ most-watched episodes ever, which aired on Boxing Day 1991. Pauline was heartbroken, while Arthur was more hostile, but he ultimately saw sense and proved supportive towards Mark.

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Todd Carty smiles during a walk in Manchester, sporting a moustache, navy baseball cap, navy jacket and blue jeans, and carrying a green Waitrose carrier bag
He’s also best known for a very iconic appearance in Dancing on Ice (Picture: Aaron Parfitt/SplashNews.com)

Mark was told by a doctor in 2003 that his body was rejecting the AIDS medication, and therefore he resolved to leave Walford for good. The last he was seen on screen was when he was riding out of Albert Square on his motorbike.

In April of 2004, Martin (played by James Alexandrou at the time) received a phone call, notifying him that Mark had died of AIDS-related non-hodgkin’s lymphoma.

Since Todd’s departure in 2003, he’s gone on to appear in a variety of shows including Doctors, Holby City and A Touch of Cloth.

He was recently pictured out after doing a spot of shopping at Waitrose. Keeping relatively dry amid the autumnal weather, Todd can be seen sporting a hat, blue jacket and glasses.

Todd Carty as Mark Fowler in EastEnders
He played Mark from 1990 (Picture: BBC)

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In 2014, Todd appeared in ITV’s Dancing on Ice.

During a routine to The Beatles’ hit Help, the EastEnders actor needed all the help he could get after skating out the tunnel unannounced, midway through his performance – which saw it get the Harry Hill treatment a few days later.

The brief moment went pretty viral, and is still talked about to this day.

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