"EastEnders Star Michael Greco Poses Topless: 'I'm Buffier Than 20-Year-Olds' and Opens Up About His Struggles and Soap Snub"

WHEN he first swaggered into Albert Square, as Italian stallion Beppe di Marco, Michael Greco became an instant heartthrob.

But nearly 25 years since leaving , the actor is in even better shape in his 50s and has shown off his incredible physique in an exclusive photoshoot for The Sun.

The 56-year-old star has recently landed his biggest role to date in a gritty new drama – but that’s not why he has been hitting the gym. He has been working out to make sure he is in top shape for his two boys Gianluca, five, and two-year-old Gianni.

Michael revealed: “My main reason now is that I’m around for the next 30 years to look after my two boys.

“The thought of me not being there for my two beautiful boys as they grow up, it pains me.

“I’m a big advocate for , because there is no-one out there really that has any influence over our health.

“So many men from say age 30 upwards are like ‘Oh I’m too old now, I’m too old to lose weight, I’m too old to get fit – but you are not.”

Michael became a first time dad in his 50s and it has completely reshaped his priorities in life.

While his partner Helen Harris, 46, has two older children, Lily Mae, 19, and Charlie, 17, Michael is embracing fatherhood later in life, even turning down lucrative acting gigs to avoid missing breakfast with his boys.

He said: “I love the fact that I’m an older dad, and I did it this way round.

“I’d already enjoyed my life, I’d travelled the world and experienced a lot of things that you can’t do when you’ve got young children, and I think now being in my 50s having my first child, I’m able to give more of myself to make sure I’m the best dad I could ever be.

“I’ve turned down work to spend time with them, I’ve turned down touring productions of plays, I’ve turned down filming abroad for three months because I can’t be away from my children.

“I wake up in the morning and they sit with me and we watch Peppa Pig, Bluey. It’s such a great experience being a dad.”

Beppe was the longest surviving member of the di Marco family, who arrived on Albert Square in January 1998.

Having feuded with Grant Mitchell over his wife Tiffany (Martine McCutcheon) and been forced out of the police force, the ladies man left in June 2002.

But fans still come up to him on the school run.

He laughed: “I get recognised at the school gates all the time!

“You’ve got to remember back in those days we were getting 20 million viewers per episode which was crazy.

“And I love it because they remember you and they have fond memories of you from their childhood and I never get tired of it because it was five of the best years of my life, it really was.”

Reflecting on the soap’s golden era, Michael feels privileged to have worked alongside British television royalty.

He added: “You had Phil and Grant, Peggy, Frank Butcher, Pat Butcher, Dot Cotton, Wendy Richard… absolute icons of EastEnders that I watched before I even joined the show.

“Being part of that group of people was really special.”

And while producers have never officially asked him back, he refuses to close the door on Walford.

“There’s been talks but they’ve never asked me back” he explained. “I don’t have any family there anymore, so I get it.

“But of course I’d go back, I’d never shut that door because I loved it there. I live 20 minutes away from the studio.”

After EastEnders he became a professional poker player – reportedly earning over £1million in prize money – as well as appearing on Celebrity Love Island and acting in Casualty.

Right now, however, Michael is experiencing a career “rebirth” after bagging a dream role in the eight-part Fightland series on Sky, which was a hit in the United States.

Produced by rapper 50 Cent, it stars Howard Charles as fictional British heavyweight boxing champion Maduka “Duke” Kilroy who returns to London after serving an eight-year prison sentence in the US.

Michael said: “It was one of the most exhilarating ‘yeses’ I’ve ever had in my whole life.

“I’m so proud to be part of it because it’s a really big step in my career.

“It’s a huge show, I’ve got an amazing role, and it’s already opened in the States to amazing reviews.

“I’ve struggled a lot over the last five to ten years, but I’ve kept my head above water, had a family and have really come out firing again.

“It’s been like a rebirth for me and I can’t wait for people to watch it.”

Michael can’t give too much away about his character DS Gower, who arrives in episode four.

But he teased: “He’s a corrupt cop. I’m part of the baddies.

“I think people will be shocked but they are going to love him.”

Michael, who has been training at his local Rise Gym, didn’t have to ramp up his fitness regime for the role but he is very vocal about the dangerous shortcuts taken by muscle men.

He warned: “I’m a strong advocate against these young men who are dying of steroid abuse.

“It’s bodybuilders taking steroids, everyone wants a quick fix and it’s a really bad problem.

“I see these young guys in the gym and you know that they are on something.

“It’s terrible. As you get older your muscles don’t work as well, but you’ve just got to have discipline.

“I’m heading towards 60 now and I think I’m probably in better shape than most 20-year-olds.”

Fightland starts on Sky Atlantic on August 27 and will be available to stream on NOW.