Who did Cliff Parisi play in EastEnders and what happened to his character?

29 November 2021, 15:04

Ant and Dec throw shade at Cliff Parisi on I'm A Celeb

Why did Cliff Parisi leave EastEnders and where is he now?

EastEnders fans will remember Cliff Parisi joined the cast all the way back in 2002.

Starring as lovable mechanic Minty, Cliff was part of some huge storylines before he left in 2010.

But why did Cliff Parisi leave EastEnders and where is he now? Here’s what we know…

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Who did Cliff Parisi play in EastEnders?

Cliff Parisi played Ricky ‘Minty’ Peterson in EastEnders for eight years.

Minty arrived in Walford as Phil Mitchell’s mate and was part of some big storylines during his time in the soap.

His nickname was given to him because he was always late for work, turning up ‘after eight’ when he was an apprentice.

The character was known for being unlucky in love, and had a brief relationship with an Australian stripper called SJ, until he discovered she was using him for money.

He then started a romance with his best friend - Garry Hobbs’ - mum, Hazel Hobbs and the pair even got engaged.

Unfortunately, this ended when Hazel went through the menopause because she knew Minty wanted a child.

Minty ended up marrying Heather Trott but this also ended swiftly when he cheated on her with Sam Mitchell.

What happened to Minty in EastEnders?

After cheating on his girlfriend, Minty left The Square to go and live with fellow mechanic Garry Hobbs.

At the time, it was announced that Cliff, along with five other actors, would be cut from EastEnders to make way for new characters.

A BBC spokesperson said at the time: “It’s sad to see characters leave the Square but obviously when a new executive producer like Bryan Kirkwood comes on board they’re always keen to refresh the show and make some changes.

“It’s the way soaps work, characters run their course and new characters come along.”

When did Cliff Parisi leave EastEnders?

Cliff Parisi left EastEnders in 2010 after eight years. He then went on to join the cast of Call the Midwife in 2012 as shop owner and handyman, Fred Buckle.

The same year, Cliff filmed a guest role in Channel 4’s Hollyoaks, playing the character of Walt.[6]

He has also starred in Hustle and Outnumbered and in 2019 he took part in the nineteenth series of I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! and was the third contestant to leave.