Roy Kinnear

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Roy Kinnear

Born Roy Mitchell Kinnear
January 8, 1934(1934-01-08)
Wigan, Lancashire, England
Died September 20, 1988 (aged 54)
Madrid, Spain
Years active 1960 – 1988
Spouse(s) Carmel Cryan

Roy Mitchell Kinnear (January 8, 1934 – September 20, 1988) was a prolific English character actor.

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[edit] Early life

Kinnear was born in Wigan, Lancashire, England, the son of Annie Smith (née Durie) and Roy Muir Kinnear.[1] His father was a Great Britain Rugby League international, making one Lions appearance and three for Other Nationalities, and scoring 81 tries in 184 games for Wigan; he collapsed and died while playing rugby union with the RAF during the war - Scotland Rugby League have named their Student Player of the Year Award after him.

Kinnear was educated at George Heriot's School, in Edinburgh. At the age of 17, he enrolled in the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art; however, National Service conscription brought an interruption to his studies.

[edit] Career

From the 1950s, he began a career in repertory theatre, and in 1959 he joined Joan Littlewood's Theatre Workshop at the Theatre Royal Stratford East, performing in both the 1960 play and 1963 film of Sparrows Can't Sing. He continued to work on stage and radio before achieving fame as part of the television show That Was The Week That Was. He later appeared in many films and UK TV shows including George and Mildred, and starred in Cowboys, a sitcom about builders. Undoubtedly, his best-known films are those he made with director and close friend Richard Lester: Help!, A Funny Thing Happened On the Way to the Forum, How I Won the War, The Bed-Sitting Room, and the Musketeer series of the 1970s and 1980s. He played the father of spoiled rich girl Veruca Salt in the 1971 film Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, an adaptation of Roald Dahl's famous children's novel Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. He also guest starred in The Goodies' episode "Rome Antics", in which he appeared as the Roman Emperor. He also narrated and provided voices for the stop-motion kids television show Bertha. He also appeared in two music videos for Mike + The Mechanics's ("All I Need is a Miracle" and "Taken In") as the band's manager, the latter of which saw him reunited with his Help! co-star Victor Spinetti.

His final television role was the ITV sitcom Hardwicke House, which was cancelled after just two episodes.

[edit] Personal life & death

Kinnear was married to actress Carmel Cryan. They had three children, including TV actor Rory and Kirsty who has entered the film industry.

On 19 September 1988, Kinnear fell from a horse during the filming of The Return of the Musketeers in Toledo, Spain, sustaining a broken pelvis. He was taken to hospital in Madrid, and died from a heart attack the following day. He was 54 years old.[2] The film's director, Richard Lester, quit his own film career as a direct result of Kinnear's death.[3] Six years later the Roy Kinnear Trust was set up as a charity organisation which helps improve the life of young adults with multiple disabilities.

Kinnear is buried in East Sheen Cemetery.

[edit] Filmography

[edit] Theatre (selection)

[edit] References

  1. ^ http://www.filmreference.com/film/50/Roy-Kinnear.html
  2. ^ Roy Kinnear Is Dead At 54 After Falling From Horse in Film Susan Heller Anderson, September 23, 1988 The New York Times, accessed 28 April 2008
  3. ^ "Rory Kinnear: becoming an actor was a way of getting to know my father better", Telegraph, Telegraph Media Group. Retrieved on 2008-05-21. 

[edit] External links

Persondata
NAME Kinnear, Roy
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Kinnear, Roy
SHORT DESCRIPTION Actor comedian
DATE OF BIRTH January 8, 1934
PLACE OF BIRTH Wigan, Lancashire, England
DATE OF DEATH September 20, 1988
PLACE OF DEATH Madrid, Spain
Languages