I Had A Few Detentions

Ackley Bridge actor Paul Nicholls on the challenges of being a childhood star and his own schooldays

- Victoria Wilson

The young stars of C4 drama Ackley Bridge need not go too far for career advice because Paul Nicholls knows all about growing up on screen.

Having made his acting debut aged 10 in ITV’s Children’s Ward, the Bolton-born actor played Tim Marshall in CBBC drama The Biz before becoming a household name in 1996 after joining East Enders as troubled teenager Joe Wicks.

In recent years Paul’s co-starred in, among other things, Law & Order: UK and In the Club, but in Ackley Bridge, his character, PE teacher Steve Bell, takes centre stage.

While Steve’s doing everything he can to make the school’s integrated rugby team a success, he worries about how closely his head teacher wife Mandy Carter (Jo Joyner) is working with school sponsor Sadiq Nawaz (Adil Ray).