Anthony Valentine
asA. J. Raffles (1977)
Born	(1939-08-17)17 August 1939 Blackburn,Lancashire, England
Died	2 December 2015(2015-12-02) (aged 76) Guildford,Surrey, England
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1949–2015
Spouse	Susan Skipper ​ (m. 1982)​

Anthony Valentine (17 August 1939 – 2 December 2015) was an English actor best known for his television roles: the ruthless Toby Meres inCallan (1967–72), the sadistic Major Horst Mohn inColditz (1972–74), the suavetitular gentleman thief inRaffles (1977), and the murderous Baron Gruner in theSherlock Holmes episode "The Illustrious Client" (1991).

Valentine was born inBlackburn,Lancashire; he moved with his family toChiswick,West London when he was 6 years old, going on to attendActon County Grammar School.^[1]

Aged 9, Valentine was spottedtap-dancing in a stage version ofRobin Hood atEaling Town Hall.^[2] He made his professional acting debut at the age of 10 in theNettlefold Studios filmNo Way Back (1949), and at the age of 12 he played a boy sleuth inThe Girl on the Pier (1953).^[3] He worked regularly as a child actor for theBBC, most notably as Harry Wharton in the 1950s adaptation ofBilly Bunter of Greyfriars School, having initially played Lord Mauleverer in earlier episodes.^[1]

In 1958 he appeared in a television production ofIbsen'sJohn Gabriel Borkman, withLaurence Olivier as Borkman andIrene Worth as his wife, as part ofITV's seriesThe Play of the Week.^[4]

Valentine's early stage credits include the premiere ofArnold Wesker'sChicken Soup with Barley (Royal Court Theatre, 1958);John Osborne'sEpitaph for George Dillon (Royal Court Theatre, 1958); the Australian dramaThe Shifting Heart (Duke of York's Theatre, 1959, withLeo McKern);John Mortimer'sTwo Stars for Comfort (Garrick Theatre, 1962, withTrevor Howard); the original production ofHalf a Sixpence (Cambridge Theatre, 1963, withTommy Steele); andThe Platinum Cat (Wyndham's Theatre, London, 1965, withKenneth Williams).^[5]

Valentine continued to work on stage, but he became best known for his striking performances on television: as the ruthless Toby Meres in the seriesCallan (1967–72), theLuftwaffe officer Major Horst Mohn in theBBC dramaColditz (1974), the eponym inYorkshire TV'sRaffles (1975-1977), and the suave crook George Webster inThe Knock (1994–96).^[6]

Valentine's later stage credits includeNo Sex Please, We're British (Strand Theatre, 1971);Anthony Shaffer'sSleuth (St Martin's Theatre, 1972, withMarius Goring); a revival ofHans Christian Andersen (London Palladium, 1977, again with Tommy Steele);'Art' (Wyndham's Theatre, 1999–2000); and, as Cardinal Monticelso, inWebster'sThe White Devil (Lyric Theatre, 2000).^[5]

Valentine made his debut as a writer and director in 1998 atThe Mill at Sonning withThe Waiting Game. He went on to direct regularly at the Mill, including productions ofSeparate Tables (2005),The Odd Couple (2009) andCalifornia Suite (2012).^[5] On 12 November 2005 Valentine became a patron of the Thwaites Empire Theatre in his birthplace,Blackburn.^[1]

He narrated threeWildlife Explorer documentary films:Powerful Predators,Animal Defences, andWeird and Wonderful. He was also the voice of Dr. X on the Americanheavy metal bandQueensrÿche's 1988 albumOperation: Mindcrime.^[1] He narrated a 1980 NOVA documentary entitledIt's About Time, presented byDudley Moore and featuringIsaac Asimov. He also voiced a television commercial for Gordon's gin.

Valentine died on 2 December 2015 inGuildford,Surrey.^[2] He had suffered fromParkinson's disease since 2012. He was survived by his wife, actressSusan Skipper. The couple married in 1982, having met during the filming of the successfulRaffles television series, and later appeared together again in a television film ofIvor Novello's showThe Dancing Years (1979).^[7]

Interviewed in 1995, Valentine recalled two earlier brushes with death. First, when he was dangerously ill withmeningitis at the age of 26; and secondly in 1974, when caught up in theTurkish invasion of Cyprus, he was holed up for two days in a holiday hotel as gunfire raged outside. "I've always felt that everything since has been an incredible bonus," he said.^[3]

• Anthony Valentine atIMDb
• Anthony Valentine profile, Aveleyman.com; accessed 1 January 2016.

• 1939 births
• 2015 deaths
• Deaths from Parkinson's disease in England
• English male child actors
• English male film actors
• English male stage actors
• English male television actors
• English male voice actors
• Male actors from Blackburn
• People educated at Acton County Grammar School
• People from Chiswick

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