Michael Leader (12 September 1938 – 22 August 2016)[1][2] was an English actor known for his roles in the British television programmes, notably the soap opera EastEnders, and for a minor part in the 1977 film Star Wars.

[citation needed] Leader had a number of minor parts and appeared as an extra in a range of television programmes.

Although only on-screen for a matter of seconds, Leader's appearance has attracted particular interest in Star Wars fan culture as he has claimed to be the stormtrooper who bangs his helmeted head on a door frame in a scene on board the Death Star.

[5] A rival claim to the part of the "clumsy stormtrooper" has been made by fellow actor Laurie Goode, who has stated that it was he who bumped his head in the scene, not Leader.

The role was not a speaking part until the 1991 Christmas Eve episode when Frank Butcher (Mike Reid) invites him into the B&B for a drink.