Inside the real ‘bad-boy’ life of EastEnders actor Max Bowden after his character Ben Mitchell leaves a child dying

MAX Bowden has made his mark on EastEnders since he joined as the new Ben Mitchell earlier this year, with the 24-year-old actor the sixth person to play the troubled character over the years.

It is fair to say that Max has brought out Ben's evil streak since joining the BBC One soap, with fans being left horrified earlier this week when his plan to kill off Billy Mitchell ended in disaster, leaving Billy's young son William fighting for his life.

And although Max's real life is a far cry from the Walford bad boy, and he certainly doesn't have any murder convictions under his belt like his soap opera alter ego, Max's day-to-day isn't as squeaky clean as it could be.

The young star enjoys a busy life of partying, smoking, and enjoying the occasional tipple - and even has his villainous pose in a pair of dark sunglasses down to a T when he is off-screen.

Posing for a photo with his co-star Danny Walters [Keanu Taylor] back in March, Max looked effortlessly cool as he smirked in a pair of shades while clutching onto an Academy Award.

With his jacket buttoned up to the neck, and Danny beside him holding onto a Bafta, the two certainly make an impressive pair.

Max donned the trademark shades again last month, posing outside of a pub with a group of male friends holding beers.

All of the men are looking dapper in smart suits, with Max front and centre as he peers over his glasses into the camera.

Another snap shows Max with his "squad" in Las Vegas, holding onto what appears to be a cocktail as he grins in an oversized, white shirt that he has left unbuttoned - teasing a glimpse of his toned torso.

The actor is joined by two stunning female pals as they enjoy their time in Sin City.

There are multiple other pictures of Max enjoying nights out in the pub with his friends, and a festive Christmas snap shows the hunk holding a bottle of champagne to celebrate his 24th birthday on New Year's Eve last year.

A photo from the summer shows Max puffing on a cigarette in the garden, alongside the rebellious caption: "Smoking is clinically proven to be bad for your lungs, hairline, fertility, heart etc. I have none of the above so here’s a photo of me smoking x".

An arty black and white pic of him smoking earlier in the year was simply captioned: "Portrait mode bangs ya know."

The star also enjoys skateboarding, uploading photos of himself skating down a pathway in on-trend ripped jeans and a white T-shirt.

Before joining EastEnders, Max was already close friends with ex cast member Danny-Boy Hatchard, who played Lee Carter in the soap.

The two men enjoyed various nights out on the town together, with Max posting several photos of himself with Danny-Boy, who he referred to as his "brother".

Before finding fame in the soap, Max starred in popular BBC drama Waterloo Road, playing Justin Fitzgerald in the programme's final series between 2014 and 2015.

He made his 'Enders debut in April this year, with Ben returning to Albert Square with Lola Pearce and their daughter Lexi.

Earlier this week, fans were left panicked when Ben was shown handing over a wad of cash to a hitman, paying him to kill off Billy after Billy told his dad Phil Mitchell that Ben was out to get him.

The character initially had fans thinking that he was meeting a mystery man for sex after he received a text message and told his friends "booty calls".

His brother, Jay Brown, warned Ben to be safe as he told him "I hope it's not an axe murderer" - and it was only when the scene cut to Ben in an alleyway with the killer that Jay's words got a whole new meaning.

Handing over a huge wad of cash, Ben told the assassin: "I want blaze of glory, the more tragic better."

However, Billy had picked up his two young children from school when the attack was due to take place - meaning that the hitman accidentally rode into schoolboy William, leaving him fighting for his life.

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