Emmerdale icon John Middleton looks so different with giant beard five years after soap exit
Emmerdale icon John Middleton looks hugely different in recent photographs, with the soap star now sporting a large grey beard. The 69 year old, who portrayed Ashley Thomas in the hit ITV soap from 1996 until 2017, looked nearly unrecognisable in new videos and photographs shared on social media. John is currently starring as Colonel Pickering in the UK tour production of the musical My Fair Lady, and he's appeared on the official Instagram account for the musical on a handful of occasions.