John Savident
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
John Savident (born January 21, 1938, Guernsey, Channel Islands) is a British actor, best known for playing the part of Fred Elliott in soap opera Coronation Street from 1994 to 2006.
[edit] Early life and career
Savident is a former police officer. During this time he acted with an amateur company, Prestwich Amateur Dramatic and Operatic Society (PADOS) of which he was also chair. He made his television début in 1968, and appeared in many dramatic roles, becoming a familiar face as a result of parts in films such as A Clockwork Orange, Waterloo, Mountains of the Moon, Battle Of Britain (in which he had a scene with Sir Laurence Olivier) and The Wicked Lady, as well as television series including The Avengers, Yes Minister, Blake's 7, Private Schulz, the Doctor Who episode The Visitation and Middlemarch. His stage roles include being a member of the original London cast of The Phantom of the Opera.
However, it was only during the [1990s when he joined the cast of Coronation Street as loud-mouthed butcher Fred Elliott that he became a household name.
In December 2000, Savident was stabbed in the neck by Michael Smith who claimed he was acting in self defence. Savident said at the time I suddenly felt somebody come up behind me and whizz me round so I was face down on the bed and then I felt a prick on my throat..[1] Savident had met Smith in a gay bar. They then went to Savident's home to apparently discuss the theatre, which Smith claimed was a metaphor for sex.
In December 2005, Savident announced that he was to leave the Coronation Street citing (undisclosed) "personal reasons" for his decision. His character was killed off on October 9, 2006.
Since leaving, he has been critical of the way the series is produced in a number of articles and television interviews, claiming that the programme is amongst other things "on too frequently" and "badly lit"
He was one of the readers on the BBC's online Advent Calendar in December 2006.
Savident starred in the 2006 pantomime Snow White and the Seven Dwarves as the henchman at Manchester Opera House. He stars alongside Suranne Jones, Justin Moorhouse, and the all star seven dwarves including Warwick Davis.
