Andrew Still: The Remarkable Rise of a Versatile Scottish Actor

From Hollyoaks to Coronation Street: Inside the Career of Scotland’s Versatile Screen and Stage Actor

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Andrew Still is a Scottish actor whose career has grown through early opportunity, professional resilience, and a willingness to take on emotionally demanding roles. Many viewers first discovered him as Joel Dexter in Hollyoaks. Others know him from Waterloo Road, Outlander, Granite Harbor, Annika, and his disturbing performance as Justin Rutherford in Coronation Street. Although television has brought him the widest recognition, his work also includes theatre, film, and voice performance, revealing a broader creative range than one soap role might suggest.

His professional story is especially interesting because he has moved between youth drama, continuing television, historical drama, crime series, independent film, and live performance. Rather than following a simple path from one permanent role to another, he has built longevity by adapting to different formats and continuing to develop beyond his first breakthrough.

This article explores Andrew Still’s background, career development, major television roles, performance style, and the significance of his work across British drama.

Quick Bio

Detail	Information
Full Name	Andrew Still
Birthplace	Glasgow, Scotland
Nationality	Scottish
Profession	Actor and voiceover artist
Career Began	2011
Hollyoaks Role	Joel Dexter
Waterloo Road Role	Scott Fairchild
Coronation Street Role	Justin Rutherford
Other Notable Work	Outlander, Annika, Granite Harbour, and Nobody Has to Know
Known For	British television, film, theatre, and voice acting

Andrew Still’s Early Life and Entry into Acting

Born and raised in Glasgow, Scotland, Andrew Still wanted to act from a young age, although he did not have established industry connections. That ambition became real when he attended an open casting call for Hollyoaks at the age of 17 and secured a major role. For a teenager with limited professional experience, entering a fast-moving soap production was both a breakthrough and an intensive education.

Soap actors must learn dialogue quickly, maintain emotional continuity, and work with different directors under tight schedules. Andrew’s first television job taught him the discipline and adaptability required for a sustainable career, while also showing how open casting can discover talent outside traditional entertainment networks.

The Hollyoaks Breakthrough That Changed His Life

Playing the Complicated Joel Dexter

Andrew Still joined Hollyoaks as Joel Dexter, a troubled young man drawn into dangerous family relationships and criminal storylines. Joel was not a straightforward hero or villain. He could appear threatening, insecure, ambitious, and emotionally confused, often within the same storyline. That complexity allowed Andrew to portray a young man whose behavior was shaped by family problems and a strong desire for status and approval.

In a 2012 interview, Andrew described Joel as a complicated character with father-related issues and an unrealistic sense of entitlement. This suggests that he approached the role through motivation rather than simply playing aggression. Understanding why a character behaves badly does not excuse the behavior, but it can make a performance more convincing and dramatically useful.

Andrew played Joel from 2011 to 2013 and also appeared in Hollyoaks Later. The role gave him national exposure and transformed acting from a teenage ambition into a professional career. When the character later returned, Rory Douglas-Speed took over the part, but Andrew Still’s portrayal remained the version through which viewers first came to know Joel Dexter.

Learning in a High-Pressure Production

The pace of soap production demands discipline because actors may film scenes out of sequence, handle large amounts of dialogue, and preserve emotional consistency across separate shooting days. Hollyoaks gave Andrew practical training while placing him in the public eye at a young age. He later avoided being defined by that first role by choosing characters with different backgrounds and dramatic purposes.

Andrew Still in Waterloo Road

After leaving Hollyoaks, Andrew appeared in the BBC school drama Waterloo Road as Scott Fairchild in 2015. Scott was a disruptive and intimidating student whose behavior created problems within the school. Although the role again involved a difficult young man, its dramatic setting was different from Joel Dexter’s world of soap crime and family conflict.

Scott’s behavior was explored through school authority, peer relationships, family pressure, and adolescent insecurity. Andrew appeared in ten episodes, giving him enough time to establish the character without turning the part into a repeat of Joel. His performance showed that he could bring a sharper, more grounded energy to a youth drama while maintaining the tension required by the storyline.

Expanding Beyond Soap and School Drama

Roles in Outlander, Granite Harbor, Annika, and Fried

Andrew Still’s later credits reveal a steady expansion into different genres. In Outlander, he appeared as Benjamin, joining a major historical production with detailed period design and an international audience. Historical drama requires performers to adjust their speech, physical behavior, and emotional tone to a world far removed from contemporary soap.

He later played Rory Dashford in Granite Harbor and Ross Kincaid in the second series of Annika, moving into modern crime drama. Such programs often rely on restraint, atmosphere, and gradual revelations rather than the heightened rhythm of continuing television. His appearance as Noah in Fried, a comedy series, further showed that his abilities were not limited to dark, confrontational characters.

Together, these projects support the view that Andrew Still is a versatile working actor rather than simply a former soap performer. He has entered productions with different visual styles, audiences, and storytelling rhythms while continuing to develop a recognizable screen presence.

Film Work in Nobody Has to Know

Andrew also appeared as Brian in the 2021 drama Nobody Has to Know, alongside Bouli Lanners and Michelle Fairley. The film offered a quieter and more cinematic form of storytelling focused on memory, identity, loneliness, and deception. Independent film often depends on silence, atmosphere, and subtle physical choices, creating a different challenge from the rapid dialogue and repeated filming patterns of soap.

Andrew Still’s Powerful Coronation Street Role

Becoming Justin Rutherford

Andrew Still gained renewed national attention when he joined Coronation Street in a recurring role as Justin Rutherford. Justin first encountered Daisy Midgeley at a hospital, but his interest quickly developed into obsessive stalking. He convinced himself that they shared a special relationship despite Daisy’s repeated rejection, turning unwanted attention into intimidation and danger.

The role required careful control. Justin had to feel believable enough to reflect recognizable patterns of stalking, but the performance could not romanticize or excuse his behavior. Andrew made the character unsettling through his certainty, entitlement, and refusal to respect boundaries. The threat came not only from anger but from Justin’s distorted belief that his actions were justified.

This approach made the character more disturbing because Justin did not always behave like an obvious television villain. He could appear calm, polite, or convinced that he was the injured party. That combination reflected how manipulation and obsession can hide behind apparently ordinary behavior. Andrew’s performance allowed the storyline to build tension gradually rather than relying entirely on sudden dramatic confrontations.

A Case Study in Responsible Social-Issue Drama

The storyline became especially serious when Justin attempted to attack Daisy with acid on her wedding day, injuring Ryan Connor when he intervened. Coronation Street developed the plot with guidance from organizations experienced in supporting survivors of burns, traumatic scarring, and acid violence. Their involvement helped the production consider both the immediate horror of the attack and its long-term physical, psychological, and social consequences.

This storyline is a strong case study in how popular drama can combine entertainment with public awareness. The production team explained that the purpose was not simply to create a shocking episode but to examine the lasting reality faced by survivors. Specialists connected with the storyline also stressed that recovery can continue for months or years and should not be treated as a short-term plot device.

The expert guidance was important because television storylines involving serious violence can become sensational if they focus only on the attack itself. In this case, the program explored medical treatment, visible scarring, trauma, changing relationships, self-confidence, and the reactions of other people. The storyline therefore moved beyond one dramatic episode and examined how a survivor’s daily life can be permanently affected.

Andrew’s performance was central to the storyline because Justin needed to feel disturbingly plausible. The acid-attack episode later received major recognition at the 2023 British Soap Awards, winning honors including Best Single Episode and Scene of the Year. Those awards recognized the wider cast and production, but Andrew’s portrayal was an essential part of the story’s impact.

Comparing Joel Dexter and Justin Rutherford

Joel Dexter and Justin Rutherford are both troubled characters, but they represent different kinds of danger. Joel was shaped by family instability, criminal influences, insecurity, and a desire to prove himself. His behavior could be reckless and threatening, yet the character still contained vulnerability and the possibility of change.

Justin, by contrast, was defined by obsession and entitlement. He repeatedly ignored Daisy’s boundaries and interpreted rejection as encouragement or unfair treatment. His danger came from his refusal to accept reality. Portraying the two characters required different emotional approaches, even though both roles placed Andrew in darker storylines.

This comparison demonstrates Andrew Still’s ability to avoid repeating the same villainous performance. Joel’s anger was connected to identity and family conflict, while Justin’s behavior grew from control, fantasy, and obsession. The distinction helped both characters feel individual rather than interchangeable.

Theatre and Voice Work

Andrew Still’s career extends beyond television and film. His theatre credits include The James Plays, Trainspotting Live, The Last Ones, and other productions performed in the United Kingdom and internationally. Theatre demands a different discipline because actors must sustain a performance in real time, project physically and vocally, and respond directly to a live audience.

His work as Sick Boy in Trainspotting Live required intensity, confidence, and close audience engagement. At the same time, his involvement with the National Theatre of Scotland placed him in ambitious ensemble productions shaped by history and national identity. These experiences likely strengthened the vocal and physical control visible in his screen work.

Stage performance can also help actors become more adaptable. Unlike television, where another take may be possible, live theatre requires the performer to continue even when something unexpected happens. The ability to remain focused, respond to fellow actors, and maintain a character throughout an entire performance is valuable training for every part of the acting profession.

Andrew has also developed professionally as a voiceover artist, using his natural Scottish voice alongside a range of accents and character styles. Voice performance relies on tone, timing, rhythm, and emotional clarity because there is no facial expression or body language to support the meaning. This additional work reflects a practical understanding of the modern creative industry, where versatility can provide both artistic opportunities and long-term stability.

What Makes Andrew Still’s Career Distinctive?

The most distinctive feature of Andrew Still’s career is his ability to move between different areas of performance. He began with an unusually early soap breakthrough, then developed through school drama, historical television, crime series, comedy, independent film, theatre, and voice work. Each format requires a different approach, and his career shows a willingness to adapt rather than remain inside a familiar category.

His journey also offers a realistic example of persistence. Acting careers rarely move upward without interruption, and even recognized performers must continue auditioning, traveling, retraining, and dealing with uncertainty. Andrew’s sustained work over more than a decade shows that professional endurance is often as important as early success.

There is also a clear pattern in the characters that have brought him the most attention. Joel Dexter, Scott Fairchild, and Justin Rutherford all contain elements of anger, insecurity, or harmful behavior, yet they belong to very different dramatic worlds. Andrew’s strength lies in finding the internal logic of such characters while ensuring that each performance feels separate.

His career demonstrates that success does not always mean becoming a permanent lead in one program. A durable career may instead be built through varied roles, theatre tours, film appearances, guest performances, and creative work behind a microphone. This flexibility has allowed Andrew to continue developing while avoiding dependence on a single television identity.

Conclusion

Andrew Still has built a strong and varied career through talent, adaptability, and persistence. From securing the role of Joel Dexter through an open casting call at 17 to taking on the disturbing part of Justin Rutherford in Coronation Street, he has repeatedly shown that he can handle complex characters and demanding storylines. His appearances in Waterloo Road, Outlander, Granite Harbor, Annika, Fried, and Nobody Has to Know have expanded his profile beyond soap. At the same time, his theatre and voiceover work demonstrate further creative depth.

His portrayal of Justin became one of the most significant chapters of his career because it placed him at the center of a carefully researched storyline about stalking, acid violence, and the long-term experiences of survivors. At the same time, his wider body of work proves that a single villainous character should not define him. Andrew Still’s professional journey is ultimately the story of a Scottish actor who turned an unexpected teenage opportunity into a lasting, multidimensional career across British entertainment.