He entered the
Anna Scher Theatre School in 1989. He debuted in The Listening on
Channel Four. He has participated in other TV shows such as
EastEnders,
Emmerdale,
Bramwell,
Prime Suspect, and ''
London's Burning. He later became a regular appearance on the British television police drama The Bill'', playing PC
Luke Ashton, a character coming to terms with his sexuality. PC Ashton and Sgt.
Craig Gilmore, played by
Hywel Simons, shared the first romantic gay kiss between uniformed police officers on
ITV (Episode No. 48 on 22 August 2002), prompting 160 complaints. Neal later admitted the storyline helped him confront his own sexual identity He is widely recognised for having appeared in the 1996 gay drama film
Beautiful Thing, where he played an abused teenager who falls for the unpopular boy next door played by
Glen Berry, also a student at Anna Scher Theatre School. Scott Neal is featured in
Isolation and portrays Charlie, the lead male character in
The Wonderland Experience, a feature film directed by Ben Hardyment and shot on location in southern India. In addition, he has participated in the plays
Yours Fondly,
Zekk Baxter and
Morning Glory (2001) as well as in the musical
Last Song of the Nightingale (2001). In 2010 Neal was cast in
Hollyoaks by former executive producer of
The Bill Paul Marquess. == Personal life ==