McBusted star Matt Willis is to join EastEnders to play the role of Luke, the boyfriend of Walford returnee Stacey Branning (Lacey Turner).
Willis – who can also be seen this Christmas playing Linda Robson’s screen son in ITV’s revival of Birds of a Feather – is to film his first scenes this week and will appear on screen from early 2014.
Show bosses have described Luke as an ambitious young man who is deeply in love and “working hard in the city for him and his family”, only to find that life with Stacey will not be plain sailing.
“I’m so thrilled to be a part of such an iconic show. I grew up watching EastEnders, so this is really exciting for me,” Willis said.
Executive producer Dominic Treadwell-Collins added: “I’ve always loved Matt and it will be a real treat for viewers to watch him and Lacey together on screen as part of her return to the Square. Luke gives as good as he gets, so is a great foil to Stacey. Pity she’s been lying to him since the day she met him…”
Matt Willis first found fame as part of pop rock band Busted before going on to win the sixth series of reality show I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here! In late 2013, Busted merged with McFly for a UK tour in 2014 – minus Busted founding member Charlie Simpson.
