# Chris Chittell
**Chris Chittell** (Christopher John Chittell, BEM) is an English actor, born in 1948 in [Aldershot](https://www.edgepedia.org/aldershot), Hampshire, who has played the businessman Eric Pollard in the ITV soap opera *Emmerdale* since September 1986. He is the longest-serving actor in the show's history, a status he reached after the deaths of Clive Hornby in 2008 and Richard Thorp in 2013, and his on-screen debut came on 30 September 1986.[1](https://emmerdale.fandom.com/wiki/Christopher_Chittell) • [2](https://www.itv.com/news/calendar/2016-09-30/chris-chittell-marks-thirty-years-in-emmerdale)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Full name and honor | Christopher John Chittell, BEM; born 1948 in Aldershot, Hampshire[1](https://emmerdale.fandom.com/wiki/Christopher_Chittell) |
| Signature role | Eric Pollard in *Emmerdale*, first appearing on screen 30 September 1986; over 3,300 episodes credited by IMDb[2](https://www.itv.com/news/calendar/2016-09-30/chris-chittell-marks-thirty-years-in-emmerdale) • [3](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0158348/) |
| First acting role | Potter in the 1967 film *To Sir, with Love*, at age nineteen[1](https://emmerdale.fandom.com/wiki/Christopher_Chittell) |
| Early television | One of the leads in Southern Television's children's action serial *Freewheelers* (1968–1973); Chris in *The Tomorrow People* (1974–1975, 13 episodes)[1](https://emmerdale.fandom.com/wiki/Christopher_Chittell) • [3](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0158348/) |
| Feature films | *The Beast in the Cellar* (1970), *The Weekend Murders* (1971), *Erotic Inferno* (1975), *Golden Rendezvous* (1977), *Zulu Dawn* (1979)[1](https://emmerdale.fandom.com/wiki/Christopher_Chittell) |
| Marriage | Married actress Lesley Dunlop, who played Brenda Walker in *Emmerdale*, in 2016[1](https://emmerdale.fandom.com/wiki/Christopher_Chittell) |
| Tenure milestone | Signed a new contract in 2025 taking him to 40 years in the show in 2026[4](https://www.tvguide.co.uk/articles/emmerdale-chris-chittell-eric-pollard-future-contract-emmerdale-42699/) |
## Early life and film work
Chittell's father served in the [Indian Army](https://www.edgepedia.org/indian-army), and on leaving school Chittell intended to join the [Royal Navy](https://www.edgepedia.org/royal-navy). Instead he became a model, and his first acting role followed at nineteen, as Potter in the 1967 film *To Sir, with Love*.[1](https://emmerdale.fandom.com/wiki/Christopher_Chittell) By his own account he was spotted by an agent at fifteen and became a member of the National Theatre.[3](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0158348/)
In 1968 he appeared as a Trooper in *The Charge of the Light Brigade* and made an uncredited appearance in *If.....*. He then took a starring role in *Freewheelers*, an action and adventure children's serial made by Southern Television between 1968 and 1973.[1](https://emmerdale.fandom.com/wiki/Christopher_Chittell) He acted for two seasons in the 1970s science fiction drama *The Tomorrow People*, playing a character named Chris in 13 episodes broadcast in 1974 and 1975.[1](https://emmerdale.fandom.com/wiki/Christopher_Chittell) • [3](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0158348/) His film appearances through the decade included *The Beast in the Cellar* (1970), *The Weekend Murders* (1971), *Erotic Inferno* (1975), *Golden Rendezvous* (1977), and *[Zulu Dawn](https://www.edgepedia.org/zulu-dawn)* (1979).[1](https://emmerdale.fandom.com/wiki/Christopher_Chittell)
## Emmerdale and Eric Pollard
Chittell joined *Emmerdale*, then called *Emmerdale Farm*, in September 1986, creating the character of Eric Pollard. He was offered the role after being out of work for 18 months.[2](https://www.itv.com/news/calendar/2016-09-30/chris-chittell-marks-thirty-years-in-emmerdale) The length of his first contract is reported differently: an interview he gave in 2003 put it at 12 episodes,[5](https://emmerdale.net/interv/chrischitell/ericdesmel.html) while the *Irish Examiner* gives 14 episodes.[6](https://www.irishexaminer.com/lifestyle/arid-30050387.html) Either way, the short engagement became permanent, and by the show's 30th anniversary of his debut in 2016 he was its longest-serving cast member.[2](https://www.itv.com/news/calendar/2016-09-30/chris-chittell-marks-thirty-years-in-emmerdale)
Pollard is written as a schemer, and Chittell has attributed the character's longevity to the fact that "he has never got away with it" over the decades, adding that "underneath he's as much of a scoundrel as he always was."[2](https://www.itv.com/news/calendar/2016-09-30/chris-chittell-marks-thirty-years-in-emmerdale) His colleague Tony Audenshaw, who plays [Bob Hope](https://www.edgepedia.org/bob-hope), described the contrast between actor and role: "Eric Pollard is a vile person, and yet Chris is the antithesis of that."[2](https://www.itv.com/news/calendar/2016-09-30/chris-chittell-marks-thirty-years-in-emmerdale)
In a 2023 storyline, Pollard was diagnosed with [Parkinson's disease](https://www.edgepedia.org/parkinsons-disease), and subsequent episodes showed his condition declining to the point where the character hired Kerry to help with day-to-day tasks.[4](https://www.tvguide.co.uk/articles/emmerdale-chris-chittell-eric-pollard-future-contract-emmerdale-42699/) In 2025, according to *The Sun*, Chittell signed a new contract to stay with the show for another year, taking him to his 40th anniversary in 2026, with celebrations planned for the milestone.[4](https://www.tvguide.co.uk/articles/emmerdale-chris-chittell-eric-pollard-future-contract-emmerdale-42699/) He has said that when the writers stop writing for Pollard, he would leave, though he would "hate" to.[4](https://www.tvguide.co.uk/articles/emmerdale-chris-chittell-eric-pollard-future-contract-emmerdale-42699/)
## Personal life
While working on location for *Zulu Dawn*, Chittell met Caroline Hunt, who was working as an extra, and they married. After returning to England they ran a shop in Devon for a time before he returned to the stage in [Peter O'Toole](https://www.edgepedia.org/peter-otoole)'s *Macbeth*. They had two children, Ben, born in 1982, and Rebecca, born in 1984, and divorced in 2005.[1](https://emmerdale.fandom.com/wiki/Christopher_Chittell) • [3](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0158348/) In 2016 he married [Lesley Dunlop](https://www.edgepedia.org/lesley-dunlop), his *Emmerdale* co-star, who played Brenda Walker in the program from 2008 to 2025.[1](https://emmerdale.fandom.com/wiki/Christopher_Chittell) • [7](https://www.tvguide.co.uk/articles/inside-emmerdale-co-stars-lesley-dunlop-and-chris-chittells-off-screen-romance-as-brendas-reported-exit-nears-emmerdale-35559/)
Away from acting, he has run marathons, with a personal best time of 4 hours 5 minutes, and has climbed [Ben Nevis](https://www.edgepedia.org/ben-nevis) and Snowdon.[5](https://emmerdale.net/interv/chrischitell/ericdesmel.html)
## References
1. [Christopher Chittell, Emmerdale Wiki](https://emmerdale.fandom.com/wiki/Christopher_Chittell)
2. [Chris Chittell marks thirty years in Emmerdale, ITV News Calendar (30 September 2016)](https://www.itv.com/news/calendar/2016-09-30/chris-chittell-marks-thirty-years-in-emmerdale)
3. [Christopher Chittell, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0158348/)
4. [Emmerdale icon Chris Chittell proves Eric is going nowhere as he signs new contract, TV Guide UK (4 July 2025)](https://www.tvguide.co.uk/articles/emmerdale-chris-chittell-eric-pollard-future-contract-emmerdale-42699/)
5. [Chris on Des and Mel (12 March 2003), emmerdale.net](https://emmerdale.net/interv/chrischitell/ericdesmel.html)
6. [Eric's epic sixteen years on, Irish Examiner](https://www.irishexaminer.com/lifestyle/arid-30050387.html)
7. [Inside Emmerdale co-stars Lesley Dunlop and Chris Chittell's off-screen romance, TV Guide UK (28 March 2025)](https://www.tvguide.co.uk/articles/inside-emmerdale-co-stars-lesley-dunlop-and-chris-chittells-off-screen-romance-as-brendas-reported-exit-nears-emmerdale-35559/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Series and fictional screen worlds › Soap operas and continuing serials › British and Australasian soaps and characters › Emmerdale*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 17, 2026; Sep 20, 2026; Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 20, 2026; Sep 30, 2026; Oct 11, 2026; Oct 12, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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