EastEnders Mehmet Osman star Haluk Bilginer unrecognisable with bushy grey beard 39 years since soap
ok.co.ukAlbert Square has been graced by many faces since the BBC's flagship soap EastEnders first hit our screens in 1985. However, only a handful of those actors have gone on to achieve national acclaim, let alone international success.
Among the few who've managed to bag small roles in Hollywood blockbusters are some well-known personalities, such as Ben Hardy (who played Peter Beale) and Michelle Ryan (Zoe Slater).
But there's one former EastEnders star whose career really took off after leaving Walford in 1989, yet his success remains largely unknown in the UK.
Haluk Bilginer was an early addition to the EastEnders cast, playing Mehmet Osman from 1985 to 1989. His character, the brother of Ali Osman (played by Nejdet Salih), was introduced by soap writers Tony Holland and Julia Smith to represent London's growing Turkish Cypriot community.
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