Born in Sidcup in 1987, English actor Charlie Clements studied for his A-levels and worked part-time at a Waitrose in Bromley before beginning his acting career.
Charlie made his screen debut in 2005 in The Bill, playing Adrian Bickman, a teenager with high-functioning autism.
In January 2006, at the age of 18, he joined EastEnders as Bradley Branning.
Bradley quickly became a fan favourite thanks to his warm personality and his complicated relationship with Stacey Slater, played by Lacey Turner.
Their romance, marriage and eventual split formed one of the show’s central storylines in the late 2000s, with Stacey later having an affair with Bradley’s father, Max Branning, played by Jake Wood.
The Christmas Day revelation drew in over 14 million viewers.
Bradley was also shown struggling with mental health issues, most notably when he experienced depression after his marriage breakdown.
Other storylines saw him working at the car lot, finding himself at odds with his scheming dad, and rebuilding his relationship with Stacey, with the pair planning a fresh start together.
In February 2010, Bradley’s story came to a tragic end during the soap’s live 25th-anniversary episode.
Wrongly suspected of murdering Archie Mitchell, played by Larry Lamb, he tried to flee the police with Stacey.
In a dramatic rooftop chase, Bradley slipped and fell from the Queen Vic roof in front of millions of viewers watching live.
Stacey then revealed to Max that she had been Archie’s killer.
The episode, broadcast live to mark EastEnders’ 25 years on air, was seen by more than 16 million viewers and cemented Bradley’s death as one of the most unforgettable moments in soap history.
Charlie’s performance won him multiple awards, including Best Newcomer and Best Soap Actor.
After leaving EastEnders, Charlie went on to appear in stage productions including The Haunting and Faith, and on screen in shows such as Casualty and Elizabeth and Her Enemies.
He also plays guitar in his band, Brooks Lives, a passion since his school days.
Charlie married Rebecca Clatworthy in 2018, and the couple now have three children.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, he briefly stepped away from acting.
He worked as a chef and in a garden centre before later returning to the craft.
