WHEN his Hollywood work looked like drying up and he had a family to feed, EastEnders “saved” his life by hiring him to play love rat Dan Sullivan.
But even though the BBC has asked Craig Fairbrass “many times” to return to Albert Square there is no way he’d go back.
Craig Fairbrass in Rise of the Footsoldier: Retribution Credit: Signature Entertainment
Patsy Palmer as Bianca with Craig Fairbrass as Dan in EastEnders in 1999 Credit: BBC
“Why would I?” Craig asks, during an exclusive interview with The Jattvibe.
The 62-year-old East Londoner points out that while the soap opera’s viewing figures have plummeted, The Rise of the Footsoldier films, which he has starred in seven times, are going from strength to strength.
The British-made action movies, inspired by the Essex Boys murders in 1995, have a huge following.
Craig, who worked alongside Sylvester Stallone in the blockbuster Cliffhanger and Jason Statham in The Bank Job, plays a fictionalised version of drug dealer Pat Tate in the latest outing, Rise of the Footsoldier: Retribution.
The actor knows a thing or two about real life gangsters.
Two of his uncles were notorious East End criminals who were associates of the Kray twins.
Craig’s docker dad Jack made sure he stayed well clear of underworld types, but surviving in the world of acting has been tough for this former roofer.
Now the actor, who is married to former Jattvibe Page 3 model Elke Kellick, is enjoying the best period of his long career.
Talking about the thought of going back to EastEnders, he reveals: “They’ve asked me many times. I’m very, very, very grateful for that show.
“It saved my life. At that time, I had two young children.
“At the time it was great, but now there’s too much going on. And it’s not the same show.
“When I was in it, they had massive viewing figures.”
It’s not difficult to see why both the BBC and The Rise of the Footsoldier casting teams would want to give Craig starring roles.
The two times National Film Awards winner is what is termed “authentic” these days.
His dad was one of 11 children and not all of them followed a straight and narrow path.
Craig’s uncles George and Alan Dixon were jailed for 21 years for a protection racket which demanded money from pub landlords.
Craig Fairbrass is in demand Credit: Alamy
Craig with wife Elke, a former Jattvibe Page 3 girl, and their first son Jack Credit: Alamy
They were friends with the Kray twins, although Ronnie took aim at George at a gambling den before his brother Reggie Kray knocked the gun away.
Craig says: “As a child, I visited most of the prisons, visited family members. Albany, Parkhurst, they’re all very surreal places for a child.
“My dad was one of 11. So you had all of these big brothers, groups. They were gangs, you know, in the 60s. It was just part and parcel, I think, of surviving in that time.
“There was something very romantic about those villains in those days to how the way London is now.
“It’s changed dramatically. But there was something very Robin Hood-esque about the villains.”
When Craig was older the actor went to visit Ronnie Kray in Broadmoor.
He recalls: “He asked me about the family because he knew Georgie and Alan and me dad and things like that.”
Fortunately, Craig’s dad did not approve of stealing from anyone and instilled a strong work ethic.
Craig with wife Elke Credit: Getty
He says: “My dad brought me up in a certain way. The villainy, we were shielded from it as children. It wasn’t the right thing to do.”
Having got into trouble at school, Craig discovered a love for acting and wanted to be an action hero like his cinematic heroes Lee Marvin, Charles Bronson and Steve McQueen.
His parents were “100 percent” behind his dreams and he joined the National Youth Theatre.
Acting work, on shows such as Emmerdale and Tucker’s Luck, proved to be sporadic.
He married Elke in 1987 and they had two sons, Jack and Luke, to support, so Craig worked as a roofer, doorman and even ran his own sandwich shop.
He explains: “You’ve got to have money, I’m afraid. I had two young babies and without readies, you’re back in trouble.
“I did anything to earn money when I was young so that I could chase the dream, as simple as that.
“I was very, very, very driven as a young man. I bought my own business when I was 26.
“I did every conceivable job there was. I was an asphalter for like four or five years in between jobs.”
Hollywood came knocking after he starred in the 1988 Denzel Washington movie For Queen and Country.
Craig Fairbrass and Steve McFadden in EastEnders Credit: BBC
Craig as hardman Dan Sullivan, alongside co-star Tamsin Outhwaite Credit: BBC
A key role in Stallone’s 1993 hit Cliffhanger afforded him a “lovely house” and he kept “chasing” the dream.
He says: “I went there for two or three years with a family. I went through a really bad time after I did a couple of films, and it just got difficult. We ran out of money and we came home.
“I kept going back because I wouldn’t give up. So instead of dragging the family there, I said, right, I’ll do the trips.
“So I would do six weeks, come back for three weeks, go back for two months, best I could. And I ended up nicking work.”
When he arrived on Albert Square in 1999 as hardman Dan the soap opera was must-see television.
The key Who Shot Phil? episode, in which Craig’s character was the prime suspect, was watched by over 23million people in 2001.
Dan was written out later that year, but was not killed off.
These days only three million people watch the soap on a daily basis.
It isn’t Cliffhanger or EastEnders that fans want to talk to Craig about when they come up to him in the street.
What they are most interested in is Rise of the Footsoldier, which is on its seventh movie since the original was released in 2007.
Craig has featured in all of them as Tate, who was discovered shot dead along with his partners in crime Tony Tucker and Craig Rolfe in a Range Rover on a country lane in Rettendon, Essex in December 1995.
There are numerous theories around the grisly deaths and even some former police detectives believe that the wrong men landed behind bars for the murders.
Craig says: “There was always a fascination for the original story. We all know there’s very many conspiracy theories.
“I think it’s down to the individual to make their own mind up.”
People “constantly” tell Craig their own theories about the Essex Boys, but he has no desire to play the armchair detective.
“I don’t care,” he smiles “I’m just an actor.”
In Rise of the Footsoldier: Retribution, which opens in cinemas on August 28, Pat heads to the Spanish party island of Ibiza in 1994 seeking revenge for the murder of a friend.
His quest brings him into conflict with American secret agents, British drug dealers and Eastern European arms smugglers.
The result is the most explosive Footsoldier movie yet, with an underground baddie lair, a high speed bike chase and Pat evading an armed helicopter.
The latest in the Footsoldiers franchise is out now Credit: Alamy
Craig, right, in the BBC drama Boat Story Credit: PA
Craig smiles: “It’s like James Bond apart from snorting cocaine in a Range Rover.”
The film, which also stars Tamer Hassan and Phil Davis, takes very dramatic licence with the real Tate story.
With the plot coming so close to Tate’s brutal slaying in 1995 I ask Craig whether that means the Rise of the Footsoldier soon has to end?
He replies: “No one cares, trust me. You know, it’s entertainment, darling.”
The seven films have gone backwards and forwards in time, so there really isn’t much to prevent plenty more being made.
Craig thinks there is a lot of appetite for them.
He says: “It’s got bigger and bigger and bigger. And the fans are very loyal.
“You don’t get a lot of films like this, mate. So there’s a real audience for this.
“We were bombarded with American movies and when you get a British crime film people like it.”
Craig, who also recently appeared in the BBC drama Boat Story, the Netflix series One Piece and the 2020 movie Villain, thinks this is the best moment of his career.
He says: “The last ten years have been incredible. Everything that I dreamt of doing, I always wanted to play the lead in films.”
The Londoner’s work has also received the seal of approval from his uncle George, who is still alive.
Craig concludes: “He loved Villain. He likes a lot of the movies I do. And I would say he’s proud.”
Rise of the Footsoldier: Retribution is in cinemas from August 28.
The new movie is the seventh in the series Credit: Alamy
