Al Hunter Ashton | |
|---|---|
 Hunter playing an army drill instructor in "Back to School Mr. Bean" (1994) | |
| Born | Alan Hunter (1957-06-26)26 June 1957 Birmingham,Warwickshire, England |
| Died | 27 April 2007(2007-04-27) (aged 49) High Wycombe,Buckinghamshire, England |
| Spouse | Sue Gibson (divorced) |
| Children | 3 |
Al Hunter Ashton (26 June 1957 – 27 April 2007), bornAlan Hunter,[1][2] was a Britishactor andscript writer.
Hunter was born inBirmingham,Warwickshire, and came from a working-class background. Born Alan Hunter (he later changed his name by deed poll to Al Hunter), he wrote scripts for his own amusement from the age of 15; he worked in his spare time as a stand-up comedian in clubs for £15 a night but became a stripper on discovering that he could earn the same amount for shedding his clothes every evening. "My stripping routine was actually funnier than my stand-up one," he said.[2][3]
He acted under the name "Al Ashton", choosing this to ensure he appeared high up in any alphabetical credits. He wrote under the name "Al Hunter". Later he combined the two, acting and writing under the name "Al Hunter Ashton".[1] He also wrote under the aliasAlun Nipper.[4]
His first professional acting work was with a Theatre in Education company inMelton Mowbray,Leicestershire, and he was subsequently cast inWilly Russell plays such asBreezeblock Park (at theLiverpool Playhouse) andBlood Brothers (at theDerby Playhouse). Russell also later commissioned him to write the BBC Schools television playTeaching Matthew (in which Hunter also had a small role as a policeman, 1985), a satire on Russell's ownEducating Rita.[1]
Hunter worked very closely with the Stage 22 School of Arts Network in the UK and upon his death, children from the school made their own version of theQueen hitOnly the Good Die Young which was dedicated to him and his three young children.
On 27 April 2007 Al Hunter Ashton died of heart failure in his home inHigh Wycombe,Buckinghamshire.[1][5] Episode eight of series five ofNew Tricks, titled "Mad Dogs", was dedicated to his memory.
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | Remembrance | John | |
| 1986 | Agent on Ice | Thug | |
| 1988 | A Fish Called Wanda | Warder | |
| 1998 | Ever After | Cargomaster | |
| 1999 | Treasure Island | George Merry | |
| 2000 | Gladiator | Rome Trainer #1 | |
| The Wedding Tackle | Taxi Driver | ||
| 2001 | From Hell | Stonecutter | |
| Mr In-Between | Fat Dave | ||
| 2008 | Incendiary | Male Survivor | |
| Sisterhood | Reggie | (final film role) |
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link){{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) BBC Comedy Guidealias : Alun NIPPER, Al HUNTER ASHTON, Al HUNTER-ASHTON,
