For an actor best known for playing volatile men, Danny Dyer comes across as anything but. Down to earth and buzzing with genuine enthusiasm for his craft, it’s a journey that has taken him from his east London home in Custom House to EastEnders.
Having appeared almost solely in British productions in a career that has spanned over three decades, Dyer is a true embodiment of the archetypal working-class man, and he has proven himself to be one of the most authentic actors and entertainment figures his native country has ever seen, a testament to his unique raw, genuine nature.
Dyer's first love, however, has always been West Ham United, with the Boleyn Ground a two-minute drive away from the house in which he grew up, and he often heard a faint hum of the fans cheering during the matches.
As we sit in the captain’s lounge at London Stadium, with his pointing finger, he takes me on a swift tour of his love for Club captain Jarrod Bowen, who, of course, is set to be Dyer’s future son-in-law, having announced his engagement to his daughter Dani Dyer in 2024.
You can sense the paternal pride in Danny’s voice when he speaks about his three grandchildren, Santiago, Summer and Star, and Dyer says he couldn't have picked a better person for his daughter to tie the knot with and is proud to have our No20 as part of his family…
You appeared on 1,150 episodes of EastEnders, Danny. How do you reflect on your nine years on the show, then?
“You play a better version of yourself, and no one can play me better than me. You look at any actors around you, it's quite obvious that if you're successful at doing something, then people want to recreate it because it earns money, and that's what I did.
“It was very emotional for me [to leave EastEnders]. Thirty years I’ve been knocking about in the industry and spent nearly ten on the show, so to make the decision I made, I didn’t make it lightly, and I just wanted it to be a fitting end. I didn’t think I’d last as long as nine years, not in a million years.”
So, let’s talk about Jarrod Bowen…
“I couldn't have handpicked a better human being for my daughter. It’s amazing to be around him as close as I am, because, first of all, I would want a beautiful man to look after my daughter and my three grandchildren.
“But the fact that he plays for West Ham and is also an unbelievable player and Club captain. I couldn't have asked for anything better.
“I get tearful watching him now because I'm very close to the man, and he's part of my family now, so it just adds to it, so long may it continue.”
What was it that hooked you to West Ham United as a young boy?
“The Club chooses you, whether you like it or not. There's something about [supporting your local club]. I lived a mile-and-a-half away from the ground, and I used to be able to walk to the ground.
“There is something about West Ham and our fans. I remember when it was all standing as well - the South Bank, the North Bank - there was just something magical about Saturday afternoon.”
When you were going to the Boleyn Ground as a boy, which players did you want to see?
“It was always the [Tony] Cottee and [Frank] McAvennie years when I started going when I was nine, ten, eleven. Mark Ward was another one I used to look up to, then you had [Alan] Devonshire and all that little mob.
“I remember my old man used to talk about Bobby Moore and those sorts of days, and I’d missed that era, unfortunately. I think that we’ve got the biggest history because the biggest prize in world football, the greatest accolade that you can get, which we have got nowhere near winning [since 1966], was raised by a West Ham captain, and I cling on to that for all my life!
“We have achieved things, and we have produced some of the best players that this country has ever seen.”
And, as you mentioned, Mark Noble is someone you’re close with, too?
“It’s very rare within football nowadays that you get a player who has lived and breathed it and played for their boyhood Club. It doesn't really happen, so we are blessed with him.”
What can this West Ham United side achieve?
“I've been supporting West Ham for a very, very long time. The first game I went to see was against Coventry, we lost one-nil. I just got hooked and remember walking in that ground, and it was just like: ‘wow, this is a bit of me.’
“Now, we've won the [UEFA Europa] Conference League and have a new Head Coach in Graham Potter. Why can't we be a top-six side? We are on the up, and only beautiful things await us in the future!”
