Reid died with £900,000 debt

Former EastEnders actor Mike Reid owed £900,000 when he died, The Sun claims.

Reid, who played secondhand car salesman Frank Butcher in the soap for 18 years, died of a heart attack at his Marbella home last summer.

Accountants combined the value of Reid's assets and the High Court in Winchester declared he was worth £881,381. After all his bills were settled his estate was valued at nothing.

A family friend said: "Mike appears on paper to have died potless, which is incredible to me. He never seemed to be short of money but I don’t know what sorts of debts he had. It seems his financial affairs in the UK were disorganised and took a lot of sorting out."

Another source added that Reid's widow Shirley didn't have any financial worries.

"She is very comfortably off and living in their Spanish villa where she and Mike spent their last few years very happily together."

Reid had reportedly turned down several offers to return to EastEnders as Frank Butcher.

Frank's will is to be read to widow Peggy Mitchell, ex-wife Pat Butcher, son Ricky and daughter Diane on the soap this Friday.