EastEnders’ Joe Wicks hunk Paul Nicholls looks very different 25 years from soap exit

EastEnders actor Paul Nicholls, who played the popular Joe Wicks on the BBC soap, is barely recognisable 25 years after his dramatic exit from Walford.

The 44 year old star has taken on a new role in a BBC children's drama series Phoenix Rise.

Paul plays dad-of-two Carl, who is a struggling parent to 15 year old son Billy and 11 year old daughter Rihanna, and lots of antics will ensue as the youngsters are attending a school for excluded kids in the West Midlands.

Back in his days on Albert Square, Paul sported a set of 90s-style hair curtains, and baby blue eyes, and was the estranged son of ultra sexy bad boy David Wicks (Michael French).

David was known for having an affair with Cindy Beale and getting himself into all sorts of trouble, but Joe suffered from the trauma of losing his sister Karen in a car crash, and had a troubled time battling with schizophrenia too.

The character's iconic look has long gone though, as Paul has opted to now ditch the blond highlights and boyband-esque hairdo for a much more mature style instead.

The actor's dark locks are peppered with silver, and he's also sporting a salt and pepper beard.

Paul bowed out of EastEnders in 1997 as he was known to be battling alcoholism and drug addiction.

After managing to beat his substance abuse problems, the actor went on to have a steady career in TV.

He also had a scene-stealing role in major blockbuster romcom Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason.

Paul played bad boy Jed, whom Bridget meets on holiday in Thailand, and when he sneaks drugs into her suitcase, he ends up being to blame for her being sent to prison in the film.

The actor has previously said in interviews that his recent issues with addiction began when he ended up trapped at the base of a waterfall in Thailand following an accident.

Paul was rescued three days later, but during recovery for his injuries, the star became addicted to antibiotics.

In an interview with The Sun back in 2021, Paul admitted he “pressed the f**k it button” as his addiction peaked.

“I’ve had addiction issues before and relapsed last year. The rabbit hole I went down led to places that I never thought I’d end up in — in flats with people that I didn’t know.

“I was taking lots of dihydrocodeine, a very strong opiate pain killer and on top of that, cocaine… every time I relapsed cocaine is always present," the actor went on.

“At certain points I’d be gone for three or four days and not sleep at all. I stopped caring, I pressed the ‘f*** it’ button," Paul added at the time.

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