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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Entertainment
Kyle O'Sullivan

Where Waterloo Road cast are now - Hollywood stars, X Factor flop and celebrity clashes

The school bell is ringing once again as Waterloo Road is making it's long-awaited return tonight.

Someone has decided to reopen the world's worst school, which was not the best place to get your education but made for irresistible viewing.

To the horror of many the series was axed back in 2015, but the much-loved show is coming back with a bang with new faces and old.

"Psst. We've heard a rumour going around school," was the announcement tweet on their official Twitter account last year, alongside a note which read: "Brand new Waterloo Road coming soon!"

The nightmarish school moved from Rochdale to Scotland after being blown up by a gas explosion and ripped apart by a digger during its time, but the new series will be filmed in the north of England once again.

There were sex attacks, drug addiction, teachers being stabbed, students being shot, teacher and pupil affairs, brain tumour deaths, skeletal remains of babies being uncovered - so it was a pretty bleak place.

The original teaching cast of Waterloo Road back in 2006 (Shed Productions)

Do you have a story to s hare? Email webfeatures@trinitymirror.com.

Waterloo Road became known for its incredibly high turnover of characters, with a staggering 48 main characters, including six headteachers tearing their hair out, during its run from 2006 to 2015.

And viewers across the country were left in floods of tears at the deaths of some popular characters, including Tom Clarkson falling off the roof to his doom and Grantly Budgen dying peacefully.

Eventually, after a whopping 200 episodes across nine years, the doors to Waterloo Road finally slammed shut, so it's come as a nice surprise to discover the BBC are bringing the drama back.

Some of the original characters will return for the new series, Angela Griffin, Adam Thomas and Katie Griffiths, along with new faces such as Kym Marsh.

Here is a look at what happened to the Waterloo Road cast.

Tom Clarkson - Jason Done

Can Mr Clarkson come back from the dead? (BBC/Shed Productions (WR) Ltd)

Jason Done will forever be known as Tom Clarkson - and we still haven't gotten over his untimely death.

The English teacher became head of department and then deputy head teacher and was a constant source of support for the kids.

After the death of Izzie he looked after her daughters, Chlo and Mika, then was hit by the bombshell arrival of his son Josh.

For eight series he plated the teacher we all wished we could have, who met a devastating end when he tried to stop Kyle from taking his own life by jumping off the school roof.

Since the show, actor Jason Done has appeared in Casualty, Vera and Netflix original The Innocents.

Most recently he appeared as a prison guard in BBC prison drama Time, who was responsible for checking Sean Bean's in and out of jail.

Siobhan Mailey - Phoebe Dynevor

A young Phoebe Dynevor before she became a Duchess (BBC)

Few people will remember that breakout Bridgerton star Phoebe Dynevor was in the school-based drama.

Phoebe, who is famously the daughter of Coronation Street legend Sally Dynevor, looks unrecognisable in her first role in Waterloo Road in 2009.

The 26-year-old played pupil Siobhan Mailey in the school-based drama, who was best friends with Jenna Coleman's character.

Phoebe went on to have roles in BBC drama Prisoners' Wives, Dickensian, The Musketeers and the TV version of Snatch.

But her big rise to fame came last year as the eldest daughter in the Bridgerton family - Daphne.

The diamond of the season, Daphne had to face many obstacles and vile suitors before finding her dream man - the delightful Duke of Hastings.

Phoebe, who was in a relationship with US comedian Pete Davidson, appeared in a few episodes of the second series.

Her next project is Netflix movie Bank of Dave, which will be released later this month.

Grantly Budgen - Philip Martin Brown

Grantly was a terrible teacher but we loved him (Shed Productions)

Grantly Budgen was the grumpy Head of English who quickly became our favourite character.

He famously turned up to cover for a week and ended up staying for 29 years.

The sarcastic teacher, who frequently fell asleep in class, would often insult the kids to much amusement.

The longest-serving character, Grantly appeared from the first episode until series 9 when he developed kidney failure.

Grantly found out he had an organ donor, but died in his chair during an assembly.

The man behind the character, Philip Martin Brown went on to star in big budget films Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy and Darkest Hour.

He was also Steve McDonald's therapist in two episodes of Coronation Street in 2015.

Janeece Bryant - Chelsee Healey

Janeece was a student and later a school employee (BBC/Shed Productions)

One of Waterloo Road's most iconic characters, gobby Janeece was always getting into trouble.

She was left heartbroken by the death of best pal Maxine and left Waterloo Road in series 4.

However, pregnant Janice returned in series 6 as the school's secretary and named her baby Cheryl after the Girls Aloud singer.

She grew close to nerdy teacher Daniel Chalk and they had a brief fling, but Janeece wanted a change in life and left Waterloo Road for Ibiza with Cheryl.

Actress Chelsee Healey was runner-up in the 2011 series of Strictly with Pasha Kovalev.

After two years in Casualty as Honey Wright she was cast as feisty Goldie McQueen in Hollyoaks and has been there ever since.

She had a short break from the show to give birth to adorable baby daughter Coco in July 2017.

There were rumours that Chelsee would be going back to Waterloo Road - but nothing has been confirmed yet.

Guy Braxton - Regé-Jean Page

Rege-Jean Page was causing mischief in Waterloo Road (BBC)

Millions of us have been swooning over Regé-Jean Page in his role as Bridgerton's Duke of Hastings.

Dashing Simon Basset swept Daphne off her feet and after a roller coaster relationship they now look set to live happily ever after with their baby.

Before he became really famous, the Zimbabwean and English actor came into Waterloo Road as handsome teacher Guy Braxton in 2016.

He had a pretty rough ride and was caught sleeping in the school because he had nowhere to live.

Rege-Jean Page has been in countless TV shows we know and love, including Fresh Meat, miniseries Roots and American legal drama For The People.

Most surprising of all, Rege-Jean starred in the first part of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows for a mere three seconds as a guest at the wedding of Ron Weasly's brother while stood next to Emma Watson's Hermione.

Unfortunately he wasn't back for the second series of Bridgerton, but he is appearing in fantasy adventure movie Dungeons & Dragons with Chris Pine.

Lindsay James - Jenna-Louise Coleman

Jenna Louise Coleman in Waterloo Road (BBC/Matt Squire)
Jenna Coleman in The Serpent (BBC/© Mammoth Screen)

Lindsay arrived with a bang when Waterloo Road merged with John Foster Private School - leading the violent clashes between the rivals.

Worried Lindsay was hiding a big secret, that her dad has been killed by her mum.

But there was a twist when Lindsay confessed she actually murdered her abusive father to protect her mother and sister.

She was jailed for murder then ran away after she was released from jail - and was never seen again.

One of the biggest stars on this list, Jenna's biggest role has been Doctor Who assistant Clara Oswald.

She has appeared in the West End and plays the lead role of Queen Victoria in ITV series Victoria and starred in BBC crime thriller The Serpent.

Most recently she was in the Netflix adaptation of Neil Gaiman's graphic novel series The Sandman.

Donte Charles - Adam Thomas

Adam Thomas on his Waterloo Road wedding day (SHED PRODUCTIONS)

Donte started off as a bit of a bad boy but realised he had to change after his reckless behaviour caused the death f best friend Adam.

He married Chloe, who then cheated on him with her sister's boyfriend, but they got back together and had a baby.

After finishing school they moved to Manchester so Chloe could study.

Adam Thomas spent nine years playing Adam Barton in the Dales before leaving in 2018.

He then took on three days a week of work at a property management company owned by a businessman friend.

Adam went on to become a property executive for Kamani Property, but in 2021 he was back on telly with his brothers for Absolutely India: Mancs in Mumbai.

The actor is coming back to the new series in the same role, but this time it's a family affair.

Adam is joined by his son Teddy as well as his niece Scarlett, who play Chlo and Donte's children, Tommy and Izzy

Discussing his return to the show, Adam added: "We picked up where we left off, it was crazy, we've not seen each other for so long.

"It was quite a weird experience but it was amazing, I got all teary-eyed, this show and these people mean so much to me, especially seeing Angela and Katie again, it meant the world to us, not only being back on the show but being back in the same room and working together again."

Scout Allen - Katie McGlynn

The former Corrie star played Scout Allen (BBC/Matt Squire)
Katie looked very different on Waterloo Road (Shed Media)

Jodie Allen, better known as Scout, was a rough kid who lived in a squalid flat with her mum and brother.

She was forced to provide by stealing and dealing drugs, but proved herself to be an intelligent pupil and got a makeover.

The character was played by Katie McGlynn, who of course is famous for playing Sinead Tinker in Corrie.

She was on the soap for seven years until Sinead's tragic death from cancer - where she left behind husband Daniel and baby Bertie.

It was one of the saddest storylines in soap history and Katie won Best Serial Drama Performance at the NTAs in 2020.

She appeared in Strictly Come Dancing with Gorka Marquez in 2021 and swapped soaps to appear in Hollyoaks, but has now left after just one year.

Kim Campbell - Angela Griffin

Angela is coming back as Kim Campbell (BBC/Wall To Wall/Rope Ladder Fiction/Helen Williams)

Pastoral teacher Kim was friends with the kids and well-liked by the teachers.

Often the voice of reason, Kim left after series 2 to be with Andrew Teneman in Rwanda, but came back in series 4 along with a baby daughter, who turned out wasn't biologically hers and was taken illegally.

In series 5 she had a baby with executive head Max Tyler then ended up leaving, but she will be back for the brand new series.

Angela left to concentrate on her daytime talk show, Angela and Friends, and has appeared in Mount Pleasant, Ordinary Lies and White Lines.

Speaking about her role, Angela said: "I'm really honoured to be joining the new series of Waterloo Road. It is exciting to be stepping back into Kim’s shoes and I can’t wait to explore her life, character and how she has evolved since we last met her.

"The writers have some amazing storylines planned and I’m looking forward to welcoming viewers back to Waterloo Road."

Steph Haydock - Denise Welch

Steph was one of our favourite teachers (Shed Productions)

Head of French Steph Haydock was a force to be reckoned with.

While she was a pretty terrible teacher who couldn't control the class, she provided great pastoral care to the kids and had her eye on the male staff.

Steph fostered pupil Maxine Barlow and was devastated when she was murdered by her spiteful boyfriend.

She left Waterloo Road at the end of series 5, but came back for two episodes in the following series to help her pal Grantly.

In real life, Denise Welch is a popular Loose Women panellist, returning in 2018 after a five-year absence.

She competed on Dancing on Ice in 2011, has appeared on Benidorm, Casualty and EastEnders and is currently playing Maxine's mum in Hollyoaks.

Chris Mead - Will Ash

Will Ash is now in Emmerdale (ITV)

Appearing in series 5, 6 and 7, Chris was the deputy headteacher who ended up accidentally sleeping with a pupil.

Since then he has appeared in Death in Paradise, Silent Witness, Casualty and he recently joined the cast of Emmerdale as Cain's brother, Caleb Dingle.

Actor Will recently discussed joining Emmerdale, telling The Mirror of why he joined the show: "There were three things. The first thing was probably how complex he is, how kind of layered he is because he comes in having this quite dark backstory having been put into care as a child.

"So when he was like 15, 14, he finds Cain and tries to reconnect with his family and he’s told by Cain that his mum is dead, so to steer clear of the family basically.

"So he spends the rest of his time growing up in care so he comes into it, when he finds out Faith wasn't dead, with a lot of bitterness, and a lot of anger so that complexity and having an axe to grind with Cain.

"Also, I knew coming in to it that I'd be working a lot with Jeff who I have known for a long time, so that was a massive draw. Not to put anything down but it's work isn't it. It's nice to be working. The main thing was working with Jeff and the character cos the scripts have been amazing."

Kyle Stack - George Sampson

George Sampson (right) turned to acting after BGT (SHED PRODUCTIONS)

Britain's Got Talent winner George Sampson made a surprise turn to acting in 2011 - with his first role as nasty Kyle on Waterloo Road.

Kyle was expelled after he punched Miss Boston in the face then tried to kill Finn Sharkey, accidentally shooting Josh with a crossbow, then he was sentenced to two years in prison.

When Kyle was freed he was reluctantly admitted back into the school, but tried to kill himself after realising people would also see him as a convict.

Just at the last second Tom managed to pull him back from the edge but in a tragic twist of fate they switched places and he fell to his death.

After the tragedy, Kyle left the school because he blamed himself for Tom's demise.

The BGT winner starred in film StreetDance 2 as Eddie and also appeared in Sky One comedy drama Mount Pleasant.

He also had a recurring role in Emmerdale as Ryan Harred in 2016.

In 2017, George bravely opened up about going under the knife for a hair transplant at the age of 23.

He also competed in the Britain's Got Talent Champions series back in 2019.

Jonah Kirby - Lucien Laviscount

Jonah had a romance with a teacher (SHED PRODUCTIONS)

Home-schooled lad Jonah let loose when he attended Waterloo Road and got into a relationship with Jess Fisher.

They broke up when he realised she had slept with teacher Chris Mead.

Jonah's love life took a dark twist when he started an affair with Spanish teacher Francesca Montoya.

When she got pregnant they ran away to get married in Gretna Green but she was arrested as they left the registry office.

Hunky actor Lucien went on to star in Shameless, Skins and the TV version of British gangster film Snatch with Rupert Grint.

He finished fifth in Celebrity Big Brother 2011 and released a single, 'Dance With You' in 2012.

Now playing love interest Alfie in Netflix series Emily in Paris, Lucien is reportedly being considered to be the next James Bond.

It has been claimed that the British actor has caught the attention of those behind the 007 franchise. A source has told the Daily Mail : "Lucien ticks all of the boxes."

They said that he is a "super talented" actor, "extremely handsome" and has attracted new fans over the last 18 months since joining the cast of the Netflix's rom-com series.

The source further told the outlet: "Bond bosses are already saying how you can see him in the 007 tuxedo, how dapper and fitting to the role he will look."

Bex Fisher - Tina O'Brien

Corrie star Tina played Bex (SHED PRODUCTIONS)

Bex was initially missing when her family first joined, but made a shocking return at the start of series 6.

Her return caused a lot of tension as her family demanded answers - with it being revealed she was abused in the porn industry.

Tina O'Brien is known to everyone as Sarah Platt from Coronation Street.

The actress appeared in Strictly Come Dancing in 2010 before returning to Corrie in early 2015.

Since then, Sarah has been attacked by evil Callum, discovered her daughter was the victim of a sex gang and given birth to baby Harry.

Josh Stevenson - Will Rush

Josh did not have the X Factor (BBC/Shed Productions)

Josh made a bombshell arrival in series 5 as the son of Tom Clarkson, believing his dad had abandoned him at birth.

He eventually built a strong relationship with his dad and started to question his sexuality - starting a relationship with boyfriend Nate.

Josh was diagnosed with schizophrenia after becoming addicted to cannabis, but returned to finish his exams.

Actor Will went on to have roles in Casualty and Coronation Street as Ian in 2014.

His big break nearly came in 2016 when he stunned the X Factor judges with his incredible voice.

He made it well through the competition, but missed out on judges' houses after a car crash performance that failed to impress.

Simon Cowell called time on the audition, telling Will: "That was self-indulgent crap. And it was such a boring song."

After Will walked off the stage, Nicole said: "How can anyone sing along to that? I know these guys are better than this."

While Sharon added: "What on earth just happened?"

Josh later took to Twitter to claim it was 12am by the time he sang, the audience had all gone home and it wasn't his first choice song.

Eddie Lawson - Neil Morrissey

Eddie was a steady par of hands (SHED PRODUCTIONS)

Deputy headteacher Eddie was very down to earth and well respected by the kids.

After being rejected by Rachel, he started a relationship with her sister Melissa, who he was set to marry until she did a runner after being exposed as a bigamist.

Eddie left the school because he was unable to work alongside Rachel every day.

Neil Morrissey needs no introduction.

The popular Men Behaving Badly actor went on to appear in Line of Duty, The Night Manager and The Good Karma Hospital.

He continued to be the voice of Bob The Builder and owns a chain of pubs in Staffordshire.

Earl Kelly - Reece Noi

Earl was the vile hard man (BBC)

Nasty Earl was the violent psycho member of the Kelly family, who was willing to take on other pupils and teachers alike.

He started dating Maxine, but their relationship soon turned sour and ended horrifically.

Furious at being dumped by Maxine, Earl pulled the trigger on his girlfriend, resulting in her tragic death.

He was caught by police and sentenced to life imprisonment for murder.

After Waterloo Road, actor Reece Noi starred in Brit comedy classic Four Lions and played Ryan Hayworth in Emmerdale.

As well as appearances in Doctors, Casualty and The Bill, his biggest role came as Mossador in Game of Thrones.

Earl was meant to make a guest appearance in sister Sambuca's heartbreaking final episode, but Reece could not film the scene due to filming Game of Thrones in Croatia.

Chlo Grainger - Katie Griffiths

Chlo was part of the first few series (Shed Productions)

The main character of the first few series, Chlo married Donte at the age of 16 then had an affair with her sister's boyfriend.

She was looked after by Tom following her mum's sad death and had a teenage pregnancy.

When she finished school, Chloe moved to Manchester with Donte and their daughter to study at university.

Actress Katie Griffiths went on to appear in Only Fools and Horses prequel Rock & Chips.

She has also appeared as three separate characters in Casualty and Doctors.

Katie will be coming back to the new series - but this time her character has two kids as well as a hubby.

"I am incredibly excited to be returning to Waterloo Road - loved by all who make and watch it! Chlo was my first professional acting role, and I feel so lucky to be part of the show again. I can't wait to see what stories unfold!" Katie shared.

Mika Grainger - Lauren Drummond

Mika with her sister and mum (BBC)

Mika seemed like the calmer sister but turned out to be more fiery and opionated.

She suffered the agony of her mother's death and the turmoil of finding out her sister slept with her boyfriend.

But she forgave Chlo and made up with Brett before going off to university.

In the real world, actress Laura Drummond had made multiple appearances in Doctors and Holby City, eventually getting a regular role in the hospital series as Chantelle Lane.

She has also appeared in Silent Witness and Coronation Street in 2019.

Harry Fisher - Ceallach Spellman

Ceallach Spellman (far left) was Harry Fisher (Shed Productions)

The son of headteacher Karen Fisher, Harry found out his dad was having an affair and suffered from bulimia.

He moved away with his family when mum Karen was fired from the top job.

Luckily for Ceallach he's gone on to big things, hosting CBBC show Friday Download and presenting his own show on BBC Radio 1 on Sunday Afternoons for five years.

He's still been acting, starring as Matthew in Cold Feet and the younger version of Marcus in Netflix series White Lines.

Matt Wilding - Chris Geere

Matt Wilding (second from left) was played by Chris Geere (BBC/Shed Productions)

Handsome Matt Wilding was the enthusiastic music and drama teacher who always had time to help the kids.

During his two separate stints there as a teacher, Matt bravely came out as gay to the school and had a bay with his friend.

Chris went on to have roles in Outnumbered, Holby City and Death in Paradise.

But his biggest role was nine episodes as teacher Dr Arvin Fennerman in American mockumentary sitcom Modern Family.

He also starred in 2019 movie Detective Pikachu alongside Ryan Reynolds.

Ros McCain - Sophie McShera

Sophie went on to star in Downton Abbey (ITV)

Geeky Ros was a main character in series 5 and had a relationship with Philip.

But that was ruined when she gained a crush on her teacher, Jo Lipsett, resulting in a very illegal kiss.

After leaving the school, actress Sophie McShera joined the cast of Downton Abbey as Daisy the kitchen maid.

She played one of the wicked stepsisters in 2015 Disney film Cinderella and was in the Downton movie.

Bolton Smilie - Tachia Newall

Bolton was never smiling (Shed Productions)
Brett was a bit of a snob (BBC)

Bolton was more focused on the ladies than his studies.

He spent so much time in the cooler the teachers wanted to charge him rent and was involved in that big boxing match.

After staying on an extra two years in Sixth Form, Bolton finally left to become a soldier in the army.

He returned for a guest appearance in series 8 while running away from the military police after leaving Afghanistan.

Actor Tachia Newall has had roles in Casualty and Silent Witness and is also a rapper.

Brett Aspinall - Tom Payne

Brett was the snobby son of posh millionaire Roger, who wanted to turn Waterloo Road into an academy.

He came to Waterloo Road to get a taste of real life after a sheltered upbringing and eventually left with girlfriend Mica.

When Tom Payne left in 2009, he played legendary footballer George Best in BBC Two film Best: His Mother's Son.

His biggest role has been Jesus in The Walking Dead, who was brutally killed in season nine.

Sambuca Kelly - Holly Kenny

Sambuca was named after the drink (SHED PRODUCTIONS)

Sambuca didn't have much chance after being named after her mum's favourite alcoholic beverage.

The troubled teen joined in series 4 alongside the rest of her wayward family, but she seemed to be the most compassionate.

The feisty teenager met a tragic end after being diagnosed with a brain tumour - and died in the arms of her mum and Tom while boyfriend Finn held the ring she gave him.

In real life, actress Holly Kenny went on to star in BBC pregnancy drama In the Club and Channel 4 period drama The Mill - both in 2014.

Ronan Burley - Ben Ryan Davies

Ronan got down on one knee (Shed Media)

Ronan was an Alan Sugar wannabe who always had a scheme to make money.

His father was a big time gangster played by Martin Kemp - and he grassed his own dad up to the police.

Ronan got engaged to Vicki but discovered she was pregnant with best mate Aiden's baby.

He supported her through a miscarriage but she started to physically abuse him so he broke off their relationship.

Actor Ben has appeared in Vera and Casualty, but his biggest role came as Nick Savage in Hollyoaks.

Nick went back with a drunken Ellie during Freshers Week and had sex with her when she had drunkenly fallen asleep.

Ellie was horrified the next morning and reported Nick to the police, but they dropped the charges and he went on to rape Holly.

Ben left the soap when his character was sentenced to seven years in prison - with the actor heavily praised for his portrayal and raising awareness.

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