Entertainment

Shane Richie slept rough and lost almost £700k during bankruptcy hell


I’m A Celebrity’s Shane Ritchie has opened up on his struggles before finding fame, which saw him sleeping rough on the streets.

The actor, best known for playing Alfie Moon in EastEnders, is currently braving the wet and wind on the latest series of the hit ITV reality show.

Before he was propelled to stardom and became a household name, Shane was homeless and faced bankruptcy after losing almost £700,000.

When Shane was a teenager, he quit his job at a holiday park and moved away from London to Plymouth.



I’m A Celebrity’s Shane Ritchie has opened up on his struggles before finding fame

But the promise of a gig at a nightclub fell through and the jobless teen was forced to sleep rough on the streets and rely on the kindness of strangers.

He wrote in his 2003 autobiography Rags To Richie: “I was too proud to ask my parents or anyone else for help.

“I had my jeans, a shirt and a jumper and an old parka-jacket and I stayed for a couple of weeks on this bench under a tree. During the day I’d beg at the railway station although I never got very far.

“I’d ask for five pence for a cup of tea but I’d always do it with a smile on my face and the combination of that and my London accent meant people thought I was always taking the mick.



The actor is best known for playing Alfie Moon in EastEnders

“But what had started out as a laugh was no longer funny. I was cold, hungry, dirty, tired and starting to smell.”

A pal he’d made was able to loan a hand, and Shane went on to win castings in a number of stage shows.

But Shane almost £700,000 and was close to losing his home when he learned he’d landed the role on EastEnders.

The actor was close to bankruptcy after investing a six-figure sum in the film Shoreditch which flopped and was seen by just 300 people upon release in 2004.

In 2002, Shane’s Alfie made his EastEnders debut, and played him for three years until 2005.

The character was known for his fiery marriage with Jessie Wallace’s Kat.

Shane briefly reprised the role in 2010, two episodes on from Kat’s return.

The soap legend opened up to Victoria Derbyshire around the camp fire during last night’s show, explaining how EastEnders had lifted him out of bankruptcy.

Casting agents originally thought he wasn’t right for the part, but he eventually got a call back.

“The phone goes,” he told Victoria, “and it’s my manager.

“He goes, ‘EastEnders want you.'”

Shane added: “I started getting teary and he told me about this character called Alfie Moon and in my first episode I’d be coming in and taking over the Queen Vic, I started crying.”

*I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here! airs this evening on ITV at 9pm.





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