What Happened to the Actors from 'Benidorm' — Where Are They Now?

Seven years after ITV axed "Benidorm", the cast have had some truly remarkable — and in one case devastating — stories to tell.

When "Benidorm" was cancelled in 2018 after ten series, it left behind a devoted fanbase and a cast of household names who had spent years pretending to holiday in Spain whilst actually freezing on a set in Tenerife.

The ITV comedy, which followed the chaotic misadventures of British tourists at the fictional Solana resort, earned a cult following for its warmth, slapstick and sharply drawn characters.

Seven years on, the stars have gone in wildly different directions — from BAFTA glory to near-death experiences, and everything in between.

Steve Pemberton — Mick Garvey

Steve Pemberton played Mick Garvey, the long-suffering, work-shy patriarch of the Garvey family, for six series — clashing memorably with his sharp-tongued mother-in-law Madge throughout.

Leaving the show was not a decision Pemberton took lightly. The sheer amount of time away from home had become the sticking point, and ultimately the deciding factor. It turned out to be the best career move he ever made.

Pemberton is one half of the writing and performing duo behind "Inside No. 9", the critically acclaimed anthology series co-created with Reece Shearsmith.

In 2019, he won a BAFTA for Best Male Comedy Performance for the show — and in April 2025, the pair picked up the Writer: Comedy BAFTA Television Craft Award together, cementing the series' reputation as one of British television's finest achievements of recent years.

He has also made memorable appearances beyond the anthology format. Most recently, Pemberton played Peter Williams — the troubled, larger-than-life father of Robbie Williams — in the singer's 2024 musical biopic "Better Man".

Now 58, he currently lives in London with his partner Alison Rowles and their three children.

Siobhan Finneran — Janice Garvey

As Janice Garvey, the long-suffering mum at the centre of the Garvey clan, Siobhan Finneran was the emotional anchor of "Benidorm" for six series before departing in 2015. What followed was a remarkable run of high-profile, critically lauded television.

She found international recognition playing the cold and calculating lady's maid Sarah O'Brien in the period drama "Downton Abbey", appearing through to the third series.

Then came two series of "Happy Valley" (2014–2023), in which she played Claire Cartwright, a recovering addict and the sister of the show's central character — a performance that earned her a BAFTA nomination for Best Supporting Actress.

In 2025, Finneran stepped into the lead role of DI Liz Nyles in the ITV crime drama "Protection". She has also appeared in "The Syndicate", "The Moorside", "The Loch", "Cold Feet" and Sean Bean's crime drama "Time".

Now 59, she has two children with ex-husband Mark Jordan, from whom she separated in 2014.

Johnny Vegas — Geoff 'The Oracle' Maltby

Johnny Vegas was already one of British comedy's most recognisable larger-than-life personalities when he joined "Benidorm" as Geoff "The Oracle" Maltby — a man of encyclopaedic yet utterly useless trivia knowledge.

He left the show in 2010 following a reported falling out with the show creator (which both parties denied), before returning in 2015. His biggest story since, however, has had nothing to do with television.

Vegas underwent a remarkable physical transformation, losing five stone entirely through lifestyle changes rather than formal dieting. Speaking on "Loose Women", he was characteristically candid about how he did it:

"I have not done a diet in any way whatsoever. I have cut out things, it's a lifestyle change. Then you can live with it and you don't feel like you are denying yourself anything — apart from cheese!"

On "This Morning", he revealed the deeper motivation behind the change: after losing his father to cancer, he felt a profound sense of responsibility towards his own children.

"The big thing is my smoking that I want to stop," he added, "but the last time I stopped I piled weight on. So I need to get light enough to exercise… it's taken 15 months of walking past bread, and cheese and everything I love!"

The transformation was genuinely striking. Vegas went from being one of comedy's most instantly identifiable silhouettes to being, by many accounts, barely recognisable.

He has remained active on screen, appearing in "Carry On Glamping" and is set to voice Mr Twit in an animated adaptation of Roald Dahl's classic children's book, as well as Giro in the upcoming "Wombles Movie".

His net worth is reported to be around £8 million, a far cry from the "Oracle's" bar-stool philosophising at Neptune's Bar.

Tim Healy — Les/Lesley Conroy

Tim Healy joined "Benidorm" in series three as Les Conroy, a character who — in one of the show's more daring comic conceits — gradually revealed himself to be a cross-dresser named Lesley, a role Healy played with considerable warmth and commitment.

He went on to become one of the show's most beloved regulars. But it is what happened to him off screen that is truly extraordinary.

While filming the ninth series in Spain, Healy was struck down by a mystery illness and rushed to hospital. He flatlined on the operating table. Show creator Derren Litten later revealed the full, shocking truth:

"He died, he flatlined, they had to resuscitate him. He was in intensive care for a month."

Healy was eventually airlifted back to the UK. His recovery, he has said, was aided in an unexpected way: by listening to his son's music on a loop for several days.

"After a few days I started smiling and then I came round — so my son's music brought me back to the land of the living," he told The Mirror.

That son is Matty Healy, frontman of The 1975, who has spoken openly about his own struggles, including overcoming a heroin addiction and achieving sobriety in 2018.

Matty's mother — and Tim's ex-wife of 24 years — is "Loose Women" panellist Denise Welch, whose frank public comments about their former relationship once caused a very public row.

The pair divorced in 2012, though both have maintained they remain close friends, and have even spent Christmases together with their respective new partners. Healy married Joan Anderton in a quiet ceremony in 2015.

It is worth noting that the 2016 illness was not Healy's first serious health scare. In 2011, he underwent an operation to unblock arteries in both legs after being diagnosed with intermittent claudication.

Since "Benidorm", he has appeared in "Still Open All Hours" and most recently narrated a short film titled "You Are Not Alone". He is 74.

Sherrie Hewson — Joyce Temple-Savage

Sherrie Hewson arrived in "Benidorm" from series five onwards, playing the magnificently imperious resort manager Joyce Temple-Savage — a woman of towering self-regard and withering contempt for everyone around her. Joyce was, Hewson has said, wonderful to play and absolutely nothing like her.

"She was a right madam," she once told The Sun. "She was very curt with everyone. Joyce thought she was absolutely sensational and that everyone else was as common as muck. It was wonderful to play. But it's not who I am."

Now 75, Hewson has had a turbulent few years away from the Solana. In 2020, as she turned 70, she marked the milestone with a second facelift — though the circumstances around it were far from celebratory.

Her beloved older brother Brett Hutchinson had died of a brain tumour in April that year, and she had been unable to be with him due to coronavirus restrictions.

She described herself as "completely broken" at the time.

Living alone, she found lockdown "awful" — and admitted to turning to wine every night just to get through it. When she eventually stopped for two months, she found she didn't miss it at all.

What was harder to shake, however, was the grief.

"Whenever I hear any Motown music, which he loved, I just cry," she told the Sunday Mirror. "The pain is so terrible, my heart is broken." Brett had been only a couple of years older than her — and his death, she said, made her want to live every day to the full.

That determination to embrace life again is what led her, as she turned 70, to the treatment room.

The procedure she opted for was a so-called "love handle facelift" (LHF) — a minimally invasive treatment involving fat removed from the hips and stomach, combined with blood to release stem cells, then injected into the face.

She walked out to lunch straight after. "It's given me such a boost," she said. "It's natural looking with no cutting, and it was all done in under an hour. I absolutely love the results."

Her first facelift had been at 50; this, she said, was about giving herself the confidence to hold her head up high again.

She has since joined Channel 4 soap "Hollyoaks" and was a regular on "Loose Women" between 2003 and 2017.

As for romance: her marriage to Ken Boyd ended in 2001 after he had an affair, and she has said she hasn't had a proper date since. She tried online dating and found the results alarming. But she is, she insists, hopeful.

Oliver Stokes — Michael Garvey

Oliver Stokes was just a teenager when he played Michael Garvey, the put-upon adolescent son of the Garvey family. Now 26, he is very much grown up — and his life has taken a rather different path to the one many child actors follow.

Stokes has a son of his own, little Archie, whose photos he shares proudly on social media.

He has had acting roles in the soaps "Doctors" and "Casualty" since "Benidorm" wrapped, but his day job appears to be with luxury caravan manufacturer Victory Leisure Homes in Yorkshire.

Away from work, Stokes has described himself as a "mountain walker & outdoor enthusiast" and has now climbed 142 of the 214 Wainwright Peaks. He may be the most quietly contented person on this list.

Elsie Kelly — Noreen Maltby

It is with sadness that we note this section last. Elsie Kelly, who played the lovably dotty Noreen Maltby — mother to Johnny Vegas's character Geoff — throughout the run of "Benidorm", passed away on 21 April 2026. She was 89.

Kelly had played Noreen for more than a decade, and in the tenth series took on the additional role of Noreen's identical twin sister Doreen — a dual performance that showcased her considerable comic gifts.

A statement from her agent confirmed she had died peacefully after a short illness, surrounded by her family. The tributes were immediate and heartfelt. Co-star Crissy Rock described her as "an absolute joy to work with" who "brought so much warmth and laughter wherever she went."

Show creator Derren Litten called her "a comedic genius", adding, "Elsie's acting abilities and comic genius were so natural they were almost taken for granted. Thanks for your talent but most of all your friendship, Elsie."

ITV said that in Noreen Maltby, Kelly had created "one of British comedy's best loved characters, quickly becoming a Benidorm audience favourite with an always underplayed wit and spark in her eye."

Before "Benidorm" made her a household name in her later years, Kelly had a career spanning five decades across television, theatre and film — including roles in "Crossroads", "Skins", the 1996 adaptation of "The Famous Five", and "Inside No. 9". She will be greatly missed.

Could 'Benidorm' Return?

There is, it seems, unfinished business with the Solana. According to The Sun, ITV bosses have held multiple secret meetings with Litten about bringing "Benidorm" back for an eleventh series — though as of writing, nothing has been formally commissioned.

Insiders suggest the show's decision to stream on ITVX has introduced it to an entirely new generation of viewers, reigniting affection for the Solana and its residents. Hewson, for her part, has already let slip on a podcast. "Benidorm is coming back," she said. Whether the Oracle himself would approve remains to be seen.