London Actor Waits for His EastEnders Break

After Brushes With Numerous Castmembers


By Larry Jaffee

NEW YORK—English actor Peter Kosta knows dozens of actors who have been on EastEnders. He wonders whether his chance will ever come. We met at a Morningside Heights café near Columbia University when the actor was on holiday in New York in late February. We discussed his theatre career, which has involved many brushes with such thespians as Michael French (David Wicks), with whom he once shared a dressing room, and Nicola Stapleton (Mandy Salter), whom he met when she was promoting Peter Pan at a function where Kosta was playing Roland Rat. “We had an immediate rapport.”

And his CV includes an appearance in the British TV series Sunburn (1999), which starred Michelle Collins (Cindy Beale), whom he knew when they were both starting their careers and working at a London call centre. “A few years later, she made it big in EastEnders. When I auditioned for Sunburn, there was Michelle, and we chatted about the old days,” he said.

“All of these connections always cross my mind. Yet I've never been in [EastEnders]! I've never got a chance to play a part. I’ve auditioned a couple of times [at EE] for various things, but never got anywhere. It’s just amazing when I look at my life, how often I crossed paths with EastEnders. I’m not complaining.”

Kosta is also friends with Harry Landis (Felix Kawalski) —Walford’s one-time local barber. “I know him (Landis) very well,” says Kosta, who has watched EastEnders religiously since the very first episode.

He once picked up a charity contribution from Wendy Richard (Pauline Fowler) at her home, where he caught a glimpse of her ceramic frog collection.

Kosta played Puss to Debbie Arnold’s Princess in the pantomime Puss in Boots. She was April Branning in EastEnders (1995–1996).

Another friend of his, Pamela Cundell, played EastEnders’ Nora Swann, the ailing mother and grandmother of characters Mike Swann and Dawn Swann, not yet seen on public TV in the U.S.

“[Nora] died [in February 2006]; they killed her off after five episodes.”

Another new character, Shirley Carter, who arrived in Walford in December 2006, is played by Linda Henry, who was Potiphar’s continued on next page continued from last page wife to Kosta’s Potiphar in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.

Kosta notes that he sees Ross Kemp (Grant Mitchell) “all the time on the Kings Road” in Chelsea, where Kosta lives.

At Pinewood Studios, he’s also met John Altman (Nick Cotton), whom he called “a lovely man,” when he was promoting the fabulous musical adaptation of Fanny Hill by Ed Dixon, which was presented at the York Theatre in New York.

Like most actors, Kosta has a regular job between acting opportunities, making travel arrangements for transatlantic college exchange students, which allows him to periodically visit New York.

In college, Peter knew Pam St. Clement (Pat Evans) quite well. “I’ll always be eternally grateful to Pam for suggesting a song cycle of four Greek songs, which I’ve used to audition. It’s got me jobs.”

Actor Dennis Waterman, star of the original U.K. series Minder and father to Hannah Waterman (Laura Beale), also went to Kosta’s college.

Shane Richie (Alfie Moon) is starring in a new remake of Minder. "When I was on a national tour of Happy Days, the musical, Shane Richie was dating a member of the cast. He came to my birthday party when we were in Manchester.”

Also in the cast of Happy Days was Stephen Dean, the brother of Letitia Dean.

Yet another EastEnders connection for Kosta is through Elaine Lordan (Lynne Slater). “I just finished a Christmas show called Cindefella, in which I played an Ugly Sister, with Elaine’s cousin Kevin Lordan playing Cinderella. He’s a very popular drag artist. The girl who played the fairy in Cindefella also was a great friend of Barbara Windsor’s. When I was in Cindefella there was another show running parallel to us in this same little theatre. The young dancer there plays the barman in the [E20] club."

And before he became popular in EastEnders, French shared a dressing room with Kosta in the “real Cinderella, a pantomime in Nottingham.”

“Kenneth Williams, one of the Carry On team, was a great friend of mine. Of course, he was a great friend of Barbara Windsor’s (Peggy Mitchell).

“Another dear friend of mine, Helen Pearson, who was in three episodes of EastEnders in 1990 playing the character April McIntosh, is now one of the leads in [U.K. soap] Hollyoaks.” April is described on this fantastic resource within Wikipedia of minor EastEnders characters as “a market trader whose livelihood was under threat in 1990 when Walford Borough Council threatened to demolish the Market.”

The last time Kosta auditioned for an EastEnders part was when they were introducing a Greek Cypriot family, which would have been perfect for him because he’s of Greek Cypriot heritage. “My friend Peter Polycarpou got the part, was only in three episodes and never heard from again," says Kosta. In February 2006, Polycarpou appeared in EastEnders, playing Yanis Pappas, father-in-law of character Carly Wicks.

Kosta notes the only Cypriot who sometimes appears is Mr Papadopolous, who owns the launderette. “He’s made the odd appearance. Also, doesn’t anyone own a washing machine? That’s one of EastEnders’ anomalies. The guy who owned the B&B would even bring the laundry over to the launderette.”

Sometimes Kosta’s civic activism allows him to rub shoulders with EastEnders alumni. Edna Dore (Mo Butcher) served on the Save London’s Theatre Campaign committee with him.

Michael Cashman (Colin Russell), now a Labour politician, was treasurer of British Equity when Kosta was on Equity Council and became a friend. “He is now a member of the European Parliament and I’m still on Equity Council,” Kosta adds, with a laugh.

On that same council, he became acquainted with Susan Tully (Michelle Fowler). Michael Leader, who plays EastEnders’ recurring milkman, is also “a great friend” of his.

I tell Peter I’ve talked to Michael on the phone, and he was reluctant to do an interview for fear of repercussions by the powers that be.

“Probably after this interview they wouldn’t bother to interview me for anything. Oh well, I’m too old to worry about it. You get to the point where you don’t really care any more,” he says philosophically.




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