VICTORIAN thriller The Black Veil, based on a short story by Charles Dickens, will be spooking audiences at The Haymarket in April.

James Alexandrou – best known as Martin Fowler in EastEnders – is among the three-strong cast, playing a young doctor in Victorian London.

Speaking to The Gazette before embarking on a six-week tour, Alexandrou said: “It’s a bit like Woman in Black but not as supernatural.

“A lady turns up saying that somebody might die if I don’t help them, and in the morning there’s a dead man, but I can’t say much more without spoiling the thriller.”

Alexandrou is joined on stage by Beatrice Curnew and Andrew Ryan. Since bowing out of the BBC soap three years ago, Alexandrou – the son of an English mother and Greek Cypriot father – has pushed himself to try different roles, including a spot of Shakespeare, and toured the country.

He said: “I’m having a great time as a jobbing actor. I do love both TV and theatre but after EastEnders, I didn’t want to do TV any more. I grew up in it from 11, so when I was 21, I left to learn a bit more about the craft.”

He added: “Touring is alright. I did a long tour of 18 months, which was quite hard, living out of a suitcase and being far from family, but this is quite a short tour and I can commute home for a lot of it.”

Following his break from the camera, Alexandrou has started getting a taste for it again.

Just before starting rehearsals for The Black Veil, he spent a month in Cuba playing a US Marine in an independent American film.

“The American accent was quite a challenge,” he said. “But I was the only English person so I just spent the month in that accent.

“The other day in rehearsals, I slipped back into it for about 20 seconds. I now feel like this is the accent I’m putting on!”

He said the experience has left him itching to get back in front of the camera and work on more films.

The Black Veil is running from April 6 to 10 at 7.30pm, with 2pm matinee performances on April 8 and 10.

Tickets are priced from £17.50 – or £14.50 for matinees – with concessions available, and can be booked from the box office, on 01256 844244 or online at anvilarts.org.uk.