Leslie Grantham
Biography
While serving in the Army overseas, he shot a German taxi driver in a bungled robbery. During his spell in Wandsworth Prison, actress Louise Jameson (you know, off of Bergerac) persuaded him to take up acting. After his 10 year stretch, he got a small part in Doctor Who and shortly after auditioned for the role of 'Dirty' Den Watts in EastEnders with which he's best known, not always for the best reasons.
Trivia
Grantham took the role as the UK's Boyard when he realised that the producers wanted him to be deliberately nasty.