Matthew Wolfenden

For the footballer, see Matthew Wolfenden (footballer).

Matthew Wolfenden
Born (1980-05-05) 5 May 1980 (age 44)
Norwood Green, West Yorkshire, England
OccupationActor
Years active2004–present
TelevisionEmmerdale (2006–2023)
Spouse
​
​
(m. 2018; sep. 2023)​
[1]
Children3
RelativesJamie Lomas (brother-in-law)

Matthew Wolfenden (born 5 May 1980) is an English actor best known for his role as David Metcalfe in the British soap opera Emmerdale.

Early life

Wolfenden was born in Norwood Green, West Yorkshire. He was educated at Brighouse High School.

Wolfenden was a member of the British gymnastics squad until, aged 16, he fell whilst practising on the rings and broke his back. This prevented him from continuing gymnastics and he turned to acting.[2][3]

Acting career

Before becoming part of the Emmerdale cast, Wolfenden was a cast member in the musical Saturday Night Fever.

Emmerdale

Wolfenden plays David Metcalfe, son of Eric Pollard, in ITV's Emmerdale.[4] His first acting job was as an extra on the programme, later he originally auditioned for the role of Eli Dingle, but lost out to Joseph Gilgun; then he was called back for the role of David Metcalfe.[5]

Hollyoaks: Let Loose

Wolfenden has also appeared in Hollyoaks: Let Loose, a spin-off of Hollyoaks.

Soapstar Superstar

In early 2007, Wolfenden finished ninth on the second series of Soapstar Superstar. He performed the songs "Bad Day" (Daniel Powter) and "Don't Stop Me Now" (Queen).[6]

Dancing on Ice

Wolfenden was partnered with Russian ice dancer Nina Ulanova for the seventh series of Dancing on Ice. His gymnastic and dance background proved to be an advantage and he ended up in the final, against Hollyoaks actress Jorgie Porter and The X Factor contestant Chico Slimani. Wolfenden continued his role in Emmerdale while training for Dancing on Ice.[7] Matthew became the "King of the Ice" after beating Porter.

Other work

Wolfenden has appeared on several chat shows with various co-stars including Natalie Anderson and Fiona Wade. On 7 January 2014, Wolfenden provided the soap news on ITV's This Morning, a topic usually covered by journalist and writer Sharon Marshall.

On 12 April 2015, Wolfenden appeared on a celebrity special of the game show The Chase. He advanced to the final of game with fellow contestant Lesley Joseph and they won the show, taking home £5500 each for their respective charities of choice, Wolfenden's being Speak Up, a charity for adults' with learning disabilities.

On 11 September 2016, Wolfenden, alongside Emmerdale co-star Eden Taylor-Draper, took part in the Great North Run to raise funds for Bloodwise.[8]

Personal life

Wolfenden was married to his Emmerdale co-star Charley Webb and the couple have three sons. Wolfenden proposed to Webb on Christmas Day in 2009.[9] They married in February 2018, and have three sons together; their third son was born on 26 July 2019.[10][11] They separated in September 2023.

Awards and nominations

Year Award Category Result Ref.
2007 The British Soap Awards Sexiest Male Nominated [12]
2008 Digital Spy Soap Awards Sexiest Male Nominated [13]
2008 The British Soap Awards Sexiest Male Nominated [14]
2008 Inside Soap Awards Sexiest Male Nominated [15]
2009 The British Soap Awards Sexiest Male Nominated [16]
2012 The British Soap Awards Sexiest Male Shortlisted [17]
2012 Inside Soap Awards Funniest Male Nominated [18]
2012 Inside Soap Awards Sexiest Male Shortlisted [19]
2013 18th National Television Awards Serial Drama Performance Nominated [20]
2013 The British Soap Awards Sexiest Male Shortlisted [21]
2013 Inside Soap Awards Sexiest Male Shortlisted [22]
2014 The British Soap Awards Sexiest Male Shortlisted [23]
2015 Inside Soap Awards Funniest Male Nominated [24]
2016 TV Choice Awards Best Soap Actor Nominated [25]
2016 The British Soap Awards Best Comedy Performance Nominated [26]
2016 Inside Soap Awards Best Actor Nominated [27]
2016 Inside Soap Awards Funniest Male Shortlisted [28]
2017 22nd National Television Awards Serial Drama Performance Nominated [29]
2017 The British Soap Awards Best Actor Nominated [30]
2017 Inside Soap Awards Sexiest Male Shortlisted [31]
2019 TV Choice Awards Best Soap Actor Nominated [32]
2019 Inside Soap Awards Best Actor Nominated [33]

References

  1. ^ "'Emmerdale' Stars Charley Webb And Matthew Wolfenden Split". The Huffington Post UK. 8 August 2013. Retrieved 11 September 2016.
  2. ^ Daniels, Colin (14 January 2012). "Matthew Wolfenden: 'Dancing on Ice win would be like Olympic gold'". Digital Spy. Hearst Magazines UK. Retrieved 2 February 2021.
  3. ^ Gilmour, Lyndsey (5 April 2015). "Emmerdale's Matthew Wolfenden: 'I'm having an early mid-life crisis'". Daily Mirror. MGN Ltd. Retrieved 2 February 2021.
  4. ^ "David Metcalfe". itv.com.
  5. ^ "Matthew Wolfenden". TV.com. CBS Interactive.
  6. ^ metrowebukmetro. "Soapstar Superstar top moments - Metro News". Metro.
  7. ^ Nina Ulanova
  8. ^ "Great North Run". Retrieved 11 September 2016.
  9. ^ Green, Kris (6 April 2010). "Emmerdale's Charley Webb gives birth". Digital Spy. Retrieved 6 April 2010.
  10. ^ Richardson, Hollie (3 February 2019). "Emmerdale couple Charley Webb and Matthew Wolfenden announce baby number three". Hello Magazine. Hello Magazine.
  11. ^ OK! Magazine
  12. ^ "The British Soap Awards 2007: The Winners". Digital Spy. Archived from the original on 4 August 2019. Retrieved 26 January 2020.
  13. ^ Green, Kris (21 March 2008). "Digital Spy Soap Awards 2008: The Winners". Digital Spy. Retrieved 3 January 2017.
  14. ^ "The British Soap Awards 2008: The Winners". Digital Spy. Retrieved 26 January 2020.
  15. ^ "Inside Soap Awards 2008 – Nominations". MSN. Microsoft. 16 July 2008. Retrieved 31 August 2010.
  16. ^ Green, Kris; KilKelly, Daniel (10 May 2009). "British Soap Awards 2009: The Winners". Digital Spy. Retrieved 10 May 2009.
  17. ^ Kilkelly, Daniel (29 April 2012). "British Soap Awards 2012 – winners in full". Digital Spy. Hearst Magazines UK. Archived from the original on 3 January 2019. Retrieved 3 January 2019.
  18. ^ Kilkelly, Daniel (19 July 2012). "Inside Soap Awards 2012 - longlist nominees in full". Digital Spy. Retrieved 16 July 2012.
  19. ^ Kilkelly, Daniel (17 September 2012). "'Coronation Street' leads Inside Soap Awards 2012 shortlist". Digital Spy. Retrieved 4 January 2013.
  20. ^ Fletcher, Alex (22 September 2012). "National Television Awards 2013: Longlist nominations in full - vote". Digital Spy. Retrieved 2 October 2012.
  21. ^ Kilkelly, Daniel (22 April 2013). "'Coronation Street' leads British Soap Awards shortlist". Digital Spy. Retrieved 22 April 2013.
  22. ^ Kilkelly, Daniel (21 October 2013). "Inside Soap Awards 2013 - winners list in full". Digital Spy. Retrieved 22 October 2013.
  23. ^ Kilkelly, Daniel; Dainty, Sophie (25 May 2014). "British Soap Awards 2014 – winners in full". Digital Spy. Hearst Magazines UK. Archived from the original on 3 January 2019. Retrieved 3 January 2019.
  24. ^ Dainty, Sophie (14 July 2015). "Inside Soap Awards 2015 longlist revealed: Who's in line for Best Actor, Actress and Newcomer?". Digital Spy. Retrieved 14 July 2015.
  25. ^ "TVChoice Awards 2016: Emmerdale nominated!". ITV. 18 May 2016. Retrieved 4 March 2017.
  26. ^ "British Soap Awards 2016 full winners list: Did your favourites take home prizes?". Digital Spy. Archived from the original on 19 December 2019. Retrieved 5 February 2020.
  27. ^ Sandwell, Ian (21 June 2016). "Inside Soap Awards 2016 longlist revealed". Digital Spy. Retrieved 23 June 2016.
  28. ^ Lindsay, Duncan (26 September 2016). "Coronation Street, EastEnders, Emmerdale: Inside Soap Awards shortlist is revealed". Metro. Retrieved 4 October 2016.
  29. ^ Deene, Sarah (11 October 2016). "This is the BBC's last chance to bag an National Television Award for The Great British Bake Off/". Metro. Retrieved 23 September 2020.
  30. ^ Dainty, Sophie (18 April 2017). "British Soap Awards 2017: the longlist is revealed". Digital Spy.
  31. ^ Kilkelly, Daniel (31 October 2017). "Inside Soap Awards 2017 shortlist revealed – which Corrie, EastEnders, Emmerdale and Hollyoaks stars are up for prizes?". Digital Spy. Hearst Magazines UK. Retrieved 31 October 2017.
  32. ^ "TVCA Long List 2019". TV Choice. Archived from the original on 30 May 2019. Retrieved 31 May 2019.
  33. ^ "Inside Soap Awards 2019 longlist has been revealed". Digital Spy. July 2019.