Starke, who is best known for his role as Thomas ‘Sinbad’ Sweeney in Brookside, will appear on the BBC’s long-running medical drama later this year.

Confirming that the actor has already filmed his first scenes, his management company shared a post on Instagram, saying that Starke had “been busy” filming in Cardiff.

While the details of his role remain unknown, Casualty will be familiar ground for Starke, who previously appeared as a guest in four episodes of the soap between 2000 and 2018.

Starke’s performance as window cleaner Sinbad on Brookside was originally intended as a bit-part role, with the character appearing on a recurring basis until being made a regular in 1990. The actor left the Channel 4 soap in 2000, three years before its cancellation.

Starke went on to portray Jerry Morton on ITV soap Coronation Street in 2007, though his stint proved to be short-lived as he departed 18 months later. Since then, the actor has had brief roles in Doctors, Holby City and Hollyoaks.

While Starke’s role on Casualty is unclear, the medical drama looks set to undergo a period of change after BBC plans revealed that the soap would be changing its in-universe location.

Based on its former filming location of Bristol, the soap has been set in the fictional West Country city of Holby ever since it premiered in 1986.

Back in 2011, filming moved to Cardiff and it was revealed this month that the BBC, who are welcoming pitches from potential producers, are looking to move the fictional hospital to a Welsh setting.

“We are asking tenderers to include authentic representation of Wales and reflect the reality of the Welsh NHS,” reads an official document for potential producers. “This is not about radical change of the show, although the move to Welsh portrayal will mean a new fictional hospital based in Wales.”