EastEnders’ Yusef Khan actor Ace Bhatti now after chilling on-screen death
Ex-EastEnders actor Ace Bhatti has gone on to star in a number of major TV dramas, including Death in Paradise
Yusef Khan launched a chilling domestic violence plot against Zainab
Ace Bhatti has featured in some major TV dramas since his departure.
It has been almost 15 years since Yusef Khan met his accidental demise in spine-tingling EastEnders scenes, and Ace Bhatti continues to flourish with a stellar acting career.
Villainous Yusef first emerged on the BBC soap in 2010 when he was brought in as a mate of Afia Masood (played by Meryl Fernandes), who turned out to be his daughter.
A dodgy character through and through, Yusef spent his stint in Walford winning over the residents while concealing a deeply sinister nature until it emerged that he had deliberately torched his first wife, Zainab Masood (Nina Wadia), after she had an affair.
EastEnders’ Yusef Khan was killed in an explosive arson attack
Yusuf relocated to Walford to work as a local GP, but also to reignite his romance with Zainab from their days together in Pakistan, and love soon flourished, reports the Mirror.
Their smooth relationship proved fleeting as Zainab became more acquainted with him, and it became apparent that Yusef wasn’t everything he had claimed to be.
During this period, Yusuf repeatedly manipulated and assaulted Zainab, driving her to even desert her own son. In the end, she opened up to ex-husband Masood (Nitin Ganatra) about her domestic violence after finding nowhere else to turn.
When Yusuf discovered this, he flew into a rage and deliberately set fire to the Albert Square bed-and-breakfast during a party. His scheme was to murder Zainab, but in an unexpected turn, Zainab informed him that Afia was trapped inside the building, despite this being untrue.
Rushing inside to rescue his daughter, Yusef found himself trapped and consumed by the blaze. The building subsequently exploded, and Yusef perished on Boxing Day in 2011.
Ace Bhatti went on to star in Line of Duty
What else has Ace Bhatti starred in?
Prior to securing his EastEnders role, Ace, who hails from Nottinghamshire, had already built an impressive television portfolio, notably featuring in Grease Monkeys as Dave Dhillon, Coronation Street as Jayesh Parekh, and Secret Diary of a Call Girl as Ashok.
Following his soap exit, Ace portrayed Rohan Sindwhani in Line of Duty between 2019 and 2021, and in 2022, he featured in The Good Karma Hospital as Jules Fonseca. Between 2020 and 2024, he played Crawley in Alex Rider.
His credits also include ITV drama Protection as DCI Arun Kapoor, Malpractice as Arun Mansoor, and The Hack as Rahul Shah. Additional appearances encompass The Stranger, Three Girls, Vera, and Shetland.
Alasdair Hartnell is played by actor Ace Bhatti in Death in Paradise(Image: BBC)
This year, Ace featured in the celebrated series Death in Paradise as Alasdair Hartnell, a barrister wrestling with matrimonial troubles and his daughter’s tragic demise.
Beyond television, Ace appeared in the biographical drama Bohemian Rhapsody, which chronicled the life of Queen frontman Freddie Mercury.
He portrayed Bomi Bulsara, Freddie’s father, in the multi-Oscar-winning film, which also featured former EastEnders actor Ben Hardy as Roger Taylor, alongside Rami Malek in the lead role.
EastEnders airs Monday to Thursday on BBC One and iPlayer
