Some Surrey residents could be seeing the face of their old schoolmate or neighbour on EastEnders.
Max Bowden , a former pupil of Woking High School and Godalming College, will be playing the character of Ben Mitchell in the popular TV soap and his first episode airs on Monday (April 1).
Max, 24, from Horsell , left Woking High in 2011 and was in college from 2011 to 2013. After completing his A-Levels in September 2013, he joined the cast of the BBC series Waterloo Road.
He is best known, so far, for playing Justin Fitzgerald in the series and has appeared in other television and theatre roles including the UK tour of Birdsong.
News for EastEnders fans
Max will be the sixth actor to play Ben Mitchell as he takes over the role from Harry Reid. Earlier this year, the young actor said: "I'm so excited to be joining the cast of EastEnders and taking on the role of Ben Mitchell.
"I've always been a fan of the show so to be joining one of the most iconic families in soap is beyond exciting. I can't wait to get started and see what's in store for Ben."
In the TV series, Ben was last seen in January 2018 fleeing the country after stealing money. But when he arrived in France, he found most of the money had disappeared. Ben had no choice but to start a life for himself away from Albert Square.
On Monday, Ben, along with Lola Pearce and their daughter Lexi, will return to Walford - but viewers are yet to find out why.
The character has been at the heart of many storylines including the killing of Heather Trott, his turbulent relationship with his father Phil, and his fake relationship with Abi Branning to hide his sexuality. In addition, he lost his lover Paul Coker after they were victims of a homophobic attack.
