Partridge initially had trained in ballet at the
Royal Ballet Lower School, appearing in the television adaptation of
Stan Barstow's novel
A Kind of Loving in 1982. He went on to train in musical theatre at the
Bush Davies School of Theatre Arts and
Doreen Bird College of Performing Arts. He left college early at the age of 16, to join the cast of the original UK tour of
Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical
Cats. He played the roles of
Alonzo and
Rumpus Cat and
understudied the roles of
Mr. Mistoffelees and Rum Tum Tugger. Later he joined the
West End production of the show at the
New London Theatre, playing the roles of
Rum Tum Tugger and
Munkustrap and in 1998, he appeared as
Rum Tum Tugger in the official film production of the show, produced by Lloyd Webber and filmed at the
Adelphi Theatre. Partridge later returned to the West End cast of the show prior to its closure in 2002 and has also appeared as
Rum Tum Tugger in the German production in
Düsseldorf. He has also been a guest on daytime chat shows such as
This Morning and
Pebble Mill. From January 2008 to November 2012, Partridge was a permanent cast member of the
BBC One soap opera,
EastEnders playing the role of
Christian Clarke, the gay brother of
Jane Beale and was typically recognised as a member of the
Beale family. His last appearance was on 15 November 2012. Partridge also worked as a choreographer on the show. Partridge has worked with several rock and pop acts, including
U2,
Pet Shop Boys,
Kim Wilde,
Neneh Cherry,
Pete Townshend,
Mica Paris and
Ultra Nate. In 2010, Partridge, together with
Sheila Hancock and
Charlotte Church, was one of the judges for the new
Andrew Lloyd Webber TV show
Over The Rainbow, in search to find a young girl to play Dorothy in a new production of
The Wizard of Oz. and has co-presented the programme with
Jenni Falconer since 2011. On 12 December 2010 he appeared on
All Star Family Fortunes to raise money for the
Terrence Higgins Trust but lost to
Caroline Flack. During Christmas and New Year of 2011 and 2012, Partridge starred as
Prince Charming in the
pantomime Cinderella at the
Marlowe Theatre in
Canterbury. In July 2012, it was announced at a press launch that Partridge will be once again taking on the role of Prince Charming in
Cinderella, this time at the
Theatre Royal, Nottingham, which ran from 8 December 2012 until 13 January 2013. On 7 September 2012, Partridge announced that he would be leaving
EastEnders filming his final scenes two weeks later. Partridge briefly reprised the role in May 2014 for two episodes when his character attended the funeral of
Lucy Beale. In January 2015, it was announced that Partridge will be reprising the role once again for a week-long stint to celebrate
EastEnders 30th anniversary celebrations in February 2015. Starting in February 2013, Partridge took on the role of Zach in the West End revival of
A Chorus Line. He later appeared on ''
Let's Dance for Comic Relief in 2013 with his co-stars to perform one of the numbers from A Chorus Line''. In August 2014, Partridge appeared in
Tumble, a gymnastics reality show airing on
BBC One. He became the third celebrity to leave the competition. In September 2014, Partridge released his first album, entitled
Dames, Dudes + Cowboys Too, an 11-song, 10-track album (10 official tracks, with an additional surprise song embedded in the final track). He held a launch party to promote the release of the album at The Borderline, a London club, on Wednesday 17 September 2014. In November 2015 it was announced that he will play
Billy Flynn in the 2016 UK tour of
Chicago. In January 2016 it was announced that he would be taking part in the seventeenth series of
Celebrity Big Brother. He left the house on 5 February having finished in sixth place. In April 2016 Partridge said he was "thrilled" to be returning to
EastEnders later that year. In May 2018 it was announced that he would be appearing on
Celebrity Masterchef later that year. He won the competition, beating
Martin Bayfield and
Spencer Matthews. Later that month, he appeared on
Greatest Talent Show Moments, broadcast by
Channel 5 to discuss the judging on
Over The Rainbow. In June 2018, Partridge announced via
Twitter that he would be joining the cast of
The Case of the Frightened Lady. In September 2018, it was announced that he would be appearing as King Rat in the pantomime
Dick Whittington at the Theatre Royal, Plymouth. From August 2019 to April 2020 Partridge appeared in the UK Tour of
Cabaret, alongside Anita Harris and Kara Lily Hayworth. Partridge appeared on a
Netflix documentary, "
Queen Cleopatra" as
Julius Caesar, which aired in early May 2023. In 2024/2025, he embarks on a solo tour across the UK. ‘Dancing Man’ On Friday, 01 May 2026, Partridge appeared as a contestant on BBC’s Celebrity
Bridge of Lies, where he competed to win money for the charity Acting for Others. ==Personal life==