Latest news with #BillyFletcher
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Emmerdale's Jay Kontzle's popstar past and 'best times' on Britain's Got Talent
Emmerdale fan favourite Billy Fletcher, played by Jay Kontzle, may be part of action-packed storylines in the Dales – but Jay's past career was quite the adventure too. The 34-year-old burst onto our screens in 2018, and has been at the centre of major storylines since then. However, Emmerdale isn't the first time Jay has been known for his TV appearances. Jay was a member of boyband The Mend, formed in 2008 by former Take That manager Nigel Martin-Smith. They first appeared on TV on The X Factor in 2011, but left abruptly when it was revealed that having a management deal was a rule break. Jay pictured with The Mend on Britain's Got Talent in 2012. (Image: ITV/ Britain's Got Talent) In 2012 The Mend then auditioned for Britain's Got Talent and made it all the way to final – receiving praise from head judge Simon Cowell. Although The Mend broke up in 2015, they went on to tour with the likes of Little Mix and secured a dedicated fanbase. While reflecting on his popstar days, he told Cheshire Live: "Being part of The Mend was a huge life experience for me and some of the best times of my life. "Obviously, being on tour and performing live on TV gave me so much experience, but as we grew older, we realised that as a boy band that catered for teenagers, we couldn't keep re-inventing ourselves." Recommended reading: Emmerdale's Matthew Wolfenden hints at return to ITV soap Emmerdale's Oliver Farnworth's partner is EastEnders star Emmerdale's Bradley Ritches almost played this ITV soap star Jay decided to take a different career route after his boyband days, and made the role of Billy his own in Emmerdale. Viewers were keen to tune in to see his on-screen antics with wife Dawn and the challenges they faced. Jay's acting credits before Emmerdale include Fresh Meat with Jack Whitehall, a role in Diana and I, a Moonpig advert and behind-the-scenes work on the films Underwater and Bring Back My Bonnie, reports The Mirror.
Daily Mirror
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Emmerdale fans only just realising where they've seen Billy star Jay Kontzle
Many people only know Jay Kontzie from his role in Emmerdale, but fans may not be aware that has been on our screens for many years now, and his career didn't start with the soap Jay Kontzle is currently best known for playing Billy Fletcher in Emmerdale, where he is now a fan favourite. However, long before he was tangled up in dramatic soap storylines from dodging punches in the illegal boxing rings or his young son's leukaemia diagnosis, he was belting out tunes on national TV, which found him with Simon Cowell's stamp of approval. Many fans haven't been able to connect the dots, but he was a member of The Mend, a Manchester-based group formed in 2008 by the former Take That manager Nigel Martin-Smith. They first appeared on TV on The X Factor in 2011. However, their stint quickly came to an end when, at boot camp, producers discovered they had a management deal, which is against the rules. But they decided to give it another try the following year, this time auditioning for Britain's Got Talent. During their performance, a young Jay said, 'We've all got problems at home, but we'll keep doing music until we can sort them out.' They performed a part-rapped, part-sung cover of Otis Redding's Sittin' On The Dock Of The Bay, blowing the audience away—and Cowell, too. 'I'm very happy you auditioned. I like you a lot,' he told them. The Mend made it all the way to the final, eventually finishing in seventh place. The group later supported Little Mix on their 2013 DNA tour, which helped them gain a solid teenage fanbase. In 2015, the group decided to call it quits. While reflecting on that chapter of his life, he told Cheshire Live, "Being part of The Mend was a huge life experience for me and some of the best times of my life.' "Obviously, being on tour and performing live on TV gave me so much experience, but as we grew older, we realised that as a boy band that catered for teenagers, we couldn't keep re-inventing ourselves." Although he rubbed shoulders with music royalty over the years, he admits the music industry wasn't for him. While he did enjoy the performing side, there was a side he didn't enjoy. "The best thing about being in a band was the insight I got into the industry,' he told Inside Soap. "We worked with people at the top of their game, like Simon Cowell. But in the end, the business side of music put me off. It was an experience! I don't really talk about it now because I've kind of moved on." And he decided to take a different route, after he was tipped off by a casting session by his friend Hollyoaks star Jamie Lomas in 2018, where he landed the part of Billy Fletcher - a reformed bad boy who turned into a doting Husband to Dawn. Viewers love the couple, but recent episodes have seen Billy hiding some major secrets - including the fact that he's risking his life in illegal fights to support his family. But this isn't his first explosive - including a wedding ambushed by serial killer Meena Jutla, and the heartbreak of their son Evan's illness. However his career started outside the Dingle Family, his acting credits include Fresh Meat with Jack Whitehall, a role in Diana and I, a cheeky Moonpig advert, and behind-the-scenes work on the films Underwater and Bring Back My Bonnie. Despite the different career avenues he has gone, this career seems to be exactly where he's meant to be. "It wasn't until I went that everything fell into place and the role really suited me. It's been a very busy and exciting time since then, and I am very happy," he said
Daily Mail
15-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Emmerdale star Jay Kontzle reveals heartbreaking family tragedy which saw him raised by his grandparents before talent show and soap fame
Jay Kontzle has revealed the heartbreaking family tragedy that saw him raised by his grandparents. The Emmerdale star, 34, first found fame with his band The Mend, who went on to support Little Mix, before he joined the soap as Billy Fletcher. But Jay's childhood ahead of his career in the limelight was rocked by tragedy when his single mother Louise died when he was just four years old. Louise, a DJ at Manchester's Hacienda club, was tragically killed in a car accident while on her way to a gig in Derby. Jay was then raised by grandparents Ann and Mike Kontzle, who he says 'gave up their whole lives to push me forward'. 'They got nothing for it and had no reason to do it other than their love for me' he told The Mirror. The Emmerdale star, 34, first found fame with his band The Mend, who went on to support Little Mix, before he joined the soap as Billy Fletcher (Seen as Billy) 'I would have been put in foster care and not enjoying the life I have now if my grandparents hadn't taken me in.' Jay first appeared in the spotlight as one quarter of boyband The Mend, who originally auditioned for The X Factor, before appearing on Britain's Got Talent a year later. They band it to the semi-finals of the variety talent show, before being sent home by the public vote - with Jay then turning his hand to acting. He joined Emmerdale as the son of Jessie Dingle in 2018, and has been at the forefront of a slew of the show's dramatic storylines. The actor is married to artist Mimi and the couple live in Yorkshire with their kids Kaibo, eight, Zian, six, and Xiao, two. Announcing the birth of Xiao in 2022, Jay took to Instagram by sharing an adorable family snap. Jay uploaded a photograph of his two older children standing either side of the newborn in a woven basket, and joked: 'Here's hoping it's our last!' Sharing the baby news with OK! Online, Jay reassured fans that both his wife and their newborn were safe and well after the labour. He told the publication: 'We're excited to announce that on Friday 18th November we were blessed with our third child. Mummy did amazing and both her and the baby are healthy and well. He jokingly added: 'Here's hoping it's our last!' In July of that year, Jay announced that he was set to become a dad again, admitting that while Mimi's pregnancy had come as a 'shock', it's was nice surprise for the growing family. The pair, who wed in 2017, shared a 'Family of 5 pending' post to Instagram as they prepared to add to their brood. Breaking the news to OK! Magazine, Jay detailed just how impromptu the announcement was, as he found out at work: 'Mimi called me during my lunch break on set and told me. 'I was sitting eating lunch in the sun and all of a sudden I went hot and started dripping with sweat. I was a bit shocked!' The pair had jested about having another baby prior, with Mimi admitting she had been 'winding Jay up' about falling pregnant another time. She explained: 'I'd been winding Jay up for months before, saying I really wanted another child – but his answer was always no. 'So I think that made me want another one more, basically just to be spiteful. But then it kind of backfired and I did end up getting pregnant. 'The main thing that made me want another one is Zian and KaiBo are getting so grown-up now and there's not a baby or little one around the house any more. I've really missed that,' continued Mimi.
The Sun
12-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Sun
Emmerdale finally reveals who pushed Joe Tate after his horror fall – but did you guess right?
EMMERDALE has seemingly confirmed the identity of who pushed Joe Tate out of the Home Farm window. Speculation has been rife as to who could have been the reason the suave businessman was hauled from a bedroom window. 5 5 Many Dales residents have seen themselves in the frame but one made a stunning confession at the end of the latest episode. Before that, it seemed that the heat was firmly on Billy Fletcher as he was hauled in for questioning by the cops. His previous violent past, as well as his rage at discovering the affair, were determined as being his primary factors in wanting to push and kill Joe. After bungling his way through a police interview, the cops decided to arrest and charge Billy with the crime. Banging him up in a holding cell, the cops were then soon forced to make a quick U-turn owing to a "new development". It later transpired that Dawn had given the cops an alibi for Billy by telling them they were in bed together. She told them that Billy had chosen to keep this a secret in order to not look foolish for having bedded his wife so fresh off the back of her ongoing affair. Although the cops never told Billy of this, they let him go and cited Dawn's alibi as credible. Speaking to one another at Home Farm, Billy questioned why Dawn would want to protect him - especially given that she cannot be 100% sure that he was the pusher. With Dawn confessing to Billy that Clemmie had been out of sorts, it prompts him to suspect that his daughter could be invovled. Emmerdale's Joe Tate's fate revealed after horror window fall - as list of suspects for whodunnit plot continues to mount Demanding to get to the bottom of this, he races up the stairs at Home Farm to speak to Clemmie but is soon interrupted by Dawn. Dawn shouted at him: "Billy, stop it. Stop... Billy, come here!" She continued: "She can't tell you anything, OK? "It wasn't her." Dawn then added: "I pushed him. It was me!" But did you suspect that it was Dawn? Or are there more twists still to come? Soap's biggest whodunnits EastEnders - Who shot Phil Mitchell? The "Who Shot Phil?" storyline was a whodunit mystery that captured the attention of viewers and the media. The episode revealing the culprit was watched by 23 million viewers. Lisa Shaw, Phil Mitchell's former girlfriend and the mother of his child Louise, was revealed as the killer as Phil slept with Lisa's best friend. Phil forgave Lisa, and they agreed to keep the truth a secret. Coronation Street - Who killed Tina McIntyre ? The popular actress Michelle Keegan played Tina McIntyre for several years on the Cobbles, but she ended up being killed by Rob Donovan in a tragic turn of events back in 2014 when he chased her onto the balcony of the Builder's Yard. When she tried to leave, he pushed her and she fell off the roof, with Rob convinced he killed her. With Tina still alive, he attacked her with an iron bar but she survived that attack and was rushed to hospital as doctors tried to save her. Emmerdale - Who pushed Emma Barton? Emma was then pushed off a viaduct by Moira after she talked ill of her dead daughter Holly, who died of an overdose in October 2017. Although Moira was responsible for Emma's death, her son, Adam Barton, took the fall for the murder since he was already a prime suspect and he didn't want Isaac to grow up motherless. Hollyoaks - Glove Hand Killer The Gloved Hand Killer was a mystery serial killer, who claimed the lives of 7 characters between January and October 2015, all by injecting them with potassium chloride. The Gloved Hand Killer's targets were all people who had done wrong in some shape or form. There were 6 suspects for who the Gloved Hand Killer was, and the killer's identity was revealed in October 2015. It was revealed to be doctor Lindsey Butterfield who had been killing people at the hospital. 5 5
