Riley Carter Millington (born 1993/1994) is an English
actor known for playing
Kyle Slater in the
BBCsoap operaEastEnders in 2015–2016.[2][3] He was the first
trans man to play a regular
transgender character in British soap history.[4][5]The Independent on Sunday, in its 2015 "
Rainbow List", named Millington the most influential LGBTI person in the UK, making him the first trans man to top the list. The judges stated him playing Kyle "could help trans people – even save lives – and represents a landmark cultural moment."[6][7]
In 2018, marking 100 years of the end of
World War One, Millington appeared as Evans in the stage adaptation by of
Birdsong, a novel written by
Sebastian Faulks, travelling the length and breadth of the UK with Mesh Theatre Company.
Early life
Millington, from
Stretford, studied drama at
Eccles Sixth Form Centre and on the BA (Hons) Acting at the University of Central Lancashire before being cast in EastEnders.[9] His character, Kyle, is also transgender.[10] Millington's casting was praised by presenter
Paris Lees as "the biggest thing to happen for the transgender community in Britain this decade. ... As a pop culture moment this is massive and a sign of the times."[1]
Personal life
Millington has been engaged to Carlene Holton since 2018.