Steve Halliwell

Stephen Harold Halliwell was born on 19 March 1946 in Stockport, Cheshire, to parents Fred and Jenny Halliwell.^[1] He had a brother, Clive, who was two years older.^[2] Halliwell was an apprentice engineer and worked mainly in cotton and paper mills before drama training at the Mountview Theatre School.^[3] He was a founding member of the Interchange Theatre in Bury.^[3] Halliwell was once arrested for sleeping rough in an empty government building in London. He was sent to a prison in Ashford for two weeks and was later released on probation.^[4] He also spoke openly about his experiences with depression throughout this period of his life.^[5]

During the first two decades of his career, Halliwell featured in a number of British television series, including Here I Stand, Threads, Cracker, Crown Court, G.B.H., Heartbeat and Coronation Street.^[2] In 1994, he joined the cast of the ITV soap opera Emmerdale as Zak Dingle.^[5] Together with Emmerdale co-stars Billy Hartman and Alun Lewis, he was a member of UK 1990s country rock trio the Woolpackers who released the single "Hillbilly Rock Hillbilly Roll" in November 1996.^[2] In 2014, Halliwell released his autobiography titled If The Cap Fits: My Rocky Road to Emmerdale.^[6] Halliwell remained in Emmerdale for 29 years, with his final scenes airing in June 2023.^[7]

Halliwell had a child with his then-partner whilst he was a student; the child, a daughter, was given up for adoption. In 1997 it was reported that Halliwell was searching for her.^[8] Halliwell's first marriage to his childhood sweetheart Susan Woods in 1972 later ended in divorce.^[9][10] He married Valerie Kirkby in 1984, and their daughter Charlotte was born the same year.^[11] In 2003, Halliwell took a short break from Emmerdale for personal reasons. He later said that the break was due to staying at a rehabilitation centre for alcoholism.^[5] In September 2018, Halliwell had to take five months off from Emmerdale for health reasons, which he later revealed was due to having a heart surgery and a pacemaker fitted.^[5][12]

Halliwell died on 15 December 2023, at age 77 after a period of ill health.^[13] A statement from his family confirmed that he had "[died] peacefully with his loved ones around him".^[14] Several of his Emmerdale co-stars paid tribute to him, including his character's on-screen niece Lisa Riley, who thanked him for "years of laughter" and noted that he was "adored, loved and respected by [the cast]".^[15]