| Michael Staniforth | |
|---|---|
| Born | 15 December 1942 Birmingham, England |
| Died | 31 July 1987 (aged 44) |
Michael Staniforth (15 December 1942 - 31 July 1987), born in Selly Oak, Birmingham, was a British stage actor who entertained both children and adults alike as ghostly jester Timothy Claypole, a mischievous medieval poltergeist, in the long-running BBC children's television comedy series Rentaghost. He died from an AIDS-related illness[1] in 1987.
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Staniforth played Claypole from 1976, when the show first aired, until 1984, and was the longest-standing member of the cast. Claypole was a bearded medieval jester, dressed in motley and bells. Claypole's longevity as a ghost meant that he had expert ghostly skills; coupled with his mischievous personality,and often boundless psychic energy, which caused mayhem for the rest of the Rentaghost cast.
The sheer energy of Michael Staniforth (who also performed the theme tune) as Claypole made it one of the longer-lasting children's television series, if not always the most fondly remembered.[2]
Staniforth also composed, played and sang the Rentaghost theme music, although he had to re-write it as "concern grew that it was too close to The Exorcist".[3]
In 1984 Michael had a significant role as "CB the Red Caboose" in the original line-up in the long-running Andrew Lloyd-Webber stage musical Starlight Express. [4]