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Warren Clarke | |
|---|---|
 Clarke inA Clockwork Orange | |
| Born | Alan James Clarke (1947-04-26)26 April 1947 Oldham, Lancashire, England |
| Died | 12 November 2014(2014-11-12) (aged 67) Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire, England |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1964–2014 |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 2 |
Warren Clarke (bornAlan James Clarke; 26 April 1947 – 12 November 2014) was an English actor. He appeared in many films after a significant role as Dim inStanley Kubrick'sA Clockwork Orange. His television appearances includedDalziel and Pascoe (as Detective Superintendent Andy Dalziel),The Manageress andSleepers.
Clarke was born inOldham, Lancashire. His father worked as astained-glass maker and his mother as a secretary.[1]He left Barlow Hall Secondary Modern School, Chorlton-cum-Hardy, Manchester, aged 15 and began work at theManchester Evening News as acopy boy.[1] He later moved on toamateur dramatics and performed at Huddersfield Rep before working as an actor full-time.[2] During this period he also decided to change his first name to Warren, a name he chose as his girlfriend of the time had a crush onWarren Beatty.[1] Clarke eventually worked with Beatty on the filmIshtar.
Clarke's first television appearance was in the long-runningGranada soap operaCoronation Street, initially as Kenny Pickup in 1966 and then as Gary Bailey in 1968. His first major film appearance was inStanley Kubrick'sA Clockwork Orange (1971) where he played a "droog" named Dim oppositeMalcolm McDowell. He appeared with McDowell again in the filmO Lucky Man! (1973) and in the TV filmGulag (1985).
Clarke appeared in a wide range of roles in television and film productions includingThe Breaking of Bumbo (1970),Home (1970) opposite SirRalph Richardson and SirJohn Gielgud,Charlton Heston'sAntony and Cleopatra (1972),Jennie: Lady Randolph Churchill (1972),The Frighteners (ep.4 "The Minder) (1974),Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (1979),S.O.S. Titanic (1979),Hammer House of Horror (series 1, ep. 2) (1980),Hawk the Slayer (1980),Masada (1981),Tales of the Unexpected: Never speak ill of the dead (1981),Enigma (1982),Lassiter (1984),Top Secret! (1984),Ishtar (1987) andI.D. (1995). He played a Russian dissident inClint Eastwood'sFirefox (1982).
InGranada Television's seriesThe Jewel in the Crown (1984) Clarke played the role of the overtly homosexual 'Sophie' Dixon, and he was Colonel Krieger in the first series ofLWT'sWish Me Luck (1988). In 1989 Clarke played Captain Lee in the filmCrusoe. The same year he played the role of Martin Fisher, the chairman of a football club, inThe Manageress and the role of Managing Director of an engineering firm, Vic Wilcox, in theTV adaptation of theDavid Lodge novelNice Work. He also starred in an episode ofLovejoy entitled "Bin Diving". In 1990 he appeared in the episode "Odi, et Amo" of the situation comedyChelmsford 123. He played Larry Patterson inGone to the Dogs (1991), which was followed by the seriesGone to Seed (1992), in which Clarke again starred. He also appeared inOur Mutual Friend (the 1976 TV mini-series) as Bradley Headstone.
InSleepers (1991), alongsideNigel Havers, Clarke played one of the two lead roles as two KGB sleeper agents living in Britain and leading their own lives until they are reactivated. He played Bamber in the ITV comedy-dramaMoving Story (1994). His comedic talents can be seen in the one-off specialBlackadder: The Cavalier Years, in which he playedOliver Cromwell and in the episode "Amy and Amiability" of the seriesBlackadder the Third.
Beginning in 1996, he starred for eleven series as Detective Superintendent Andy Dalziel in the TV seriesDalziel and Pascoe, based on the crime novels ofReginald Hill.
In 1997 he starred in the dramaThe Locksmith.[3] Between 2000 and 2003, Clarke played Brian Addis, a father who moved his family from the bustle of London to aDevon farm, in the BBC TV seriesDown to Earth. He appeared as Mr Boythorn in theBBC One dramatisation ofBleak House (2005) and starred alongsideAnthony Head in theBBC DramaThe Invisibles (2008) and in theChannel 4 trilogyRed Riding (2009).
Around the same time, Clarke appeared as Commander Peters in theITV production ofAgatha Christie's MarpleWhy Didn't They Ask Evans? (2009). In 2010 he guested in ITV seriesLewis ("Dark Matter"),Chuggington (2010), the BBC seriesInspector George Gently ("Peace and Love", 2010) and played Mr Bott in the BBC'sJust William. He guested as Robert Trevanion, the father ofStephen Tompkinson's character Danny Trevanion, inWild at Heart in 2011, as innkeeper Samuel Quested inMidsomer Murders ("The Night of the Stag", 2011) and as John Lacey inCall the Midwife (also 2011).
In 2014 he began filmingPoldark as Charles Poldark. The character's final scene in the series, in episode four, in which he lies on his deathbed before dying, was also Clarke's final scene as an actor: he was very ill at the time of filming and died a few weeks later; the first episode of the television series was then dedicated to his memory.[4][5]
Clarke was a keen golfer and had been aManchester City supporter from the age of seven.[6]
Clarke's marriage to his first wife ended in divorce a few years after his parents died. They had a son together, Rowan.[7] He had a daughter, Georgia, by his second wife, Michelle.[7][8][9]
He lived in Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire.[10]
On 12 November 2014 Clarke died in his sleep after a short illness.[11] He reportedly died almost destitute; his estate being worth just over £13,000 at his death. Amongst his financial problems, Clarke had apparently lost money investing in the 2013 action filmThe Numbers Station.[12]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1969 | The Virgin Soldiers | Soldier | Uncredited |
| 1970 | The Breaking of Bumbo | Guardsman Andrews | |
| 1971 | A Clockwork Orange | "Dim" | |
| 1972 | Antony and Cleopatra | Scarus | |
| 1973 | O Lucky Man! | Master of Ceremonies (Nightspot) / Warner / Male Nurse | |
| 1977 | The Hunchback of Notre Dame | Quasimodo | TV movie |
| 1979 | S.O.S. Titanic | 4th OfficerJoseph G. Boxhall | TV movie |
| 1979 | The Great Riviera Bank Robbery | Jean | |
| 1980 | Hawk the Slayer | "Scar" | |
| 1981 | From a Far Country | Wladek | |
| 1982 | Firefox | Pavel Upenskoy | |
| 1982 | Enigma | Konstantin | |
| 1984 | Real Life | Gerry | |
| 1984 | Lassiter | Max Hofer | |
| 1984 | Top Secret! | Colonel Von Horst | |
| 1985 | De flyvende djævle | Arno | |
| 1985 | Gulag | Hooker | TV movie |
| 1987 | Ishtar | English Gunrunner | |
| 1988 | Crusoe | Captain Lee | |
| 1995 | I.D. | Bob | |
| 2000 | Greenfingers | Governor Hodge | |
| 2001 | Blow Dry | Tony | |
| 2001 | Arthur's Dyke | Doug Manley | |
| 2010 | The Man Who Married Himself | Bishop Zatarga | Short |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1965 - 1968 | Coronation Street | Barry/ Kenny Pickup/ Gary Bailey | 9 episodes |
| 1965 - 1966 | Pardon the Expression | Terry Field/ Caterer's Man/ Johnnie | 3 episodes |
| 1967 | Inheritance | Matthew Mellor/ George Mellor | 2 episodes |
| 1968 | The Avengers | Trump | Episode: "Invasion of the Earthmen" |
| 1969 | Parkin's Patch | Nethercot | Episode: "The Way Home" |
| The Wednesday Play | Alec | Episode: "Sling Your Hook" | |
| 1970 | Callan | 2nd Porter | Episode: "Summoned to Appear" |
| 1972 - 1983 | Play for Today | Stevens/ Alfred/ Narrator | 3 episodes |
| 1973 | Armchair Theatre | Billy Turnbull | Episode: "The Death of Glory" |
| Softly Softly: Task Force | Det. Sgt. Stirling | 4 episodes | |
| 1974 | Jennie: Randolph Churchill | Winston Churchill | 4 episodes |
| 1975 | The Sweeney | Danny Keever | Episode: "Contract Breaker" |
| 1976 | The Expert | Detective Inspector Robbins | Episode: "Suspicious Death" |
| Our Mutual Friend | Bradley Headstone | 5 episodes | |
| 1978 | The Onedin Line | Josiah Beaumont | 8 episodes |
| Z-Cars | Robbie | Episode: "The First Offender" | |
| 1979 | Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy | Alwyn | Episode: "How It All Fits Together" |
| 1979 - 1982 | Crown Court | Det. Sgt. Ralph McCovey/ William Johnson/ Joe Withycombe | 9 episodes |
| 1980 | Hammer House of Horror | Ben | Episode: "The Thirteenth Reunion" |
| 1980 - 1984 | Shelley | Paul England | 4 episodes |
| 1981 | Masada | Plinius | 3 episodes (TV mini-series) |
| Tales of the Unexpected | Bob | Episode: "Never Speak Ill of the Dead" | |
| Wolcott | Terry Rowe | 4 episodes | |
| 1981 - 1985 | Bergerac | Philip Bernard/ Henry Hoffmann | 2 episodes |
| 1982 | Minder | Ashmole | Episode: "Another Bride, Another Groom" |
| 1983 | The Home Front | Hallam Place/ Curtis | 4 episodes |
| Reilly, Ace of Spies | Yakushov | 2 episodes | |
| 1984 | Big Deal | Stephen Chambers | Episode: "Video Man" |
| The Jewel in the Crown | Corporal 'Sophie' Dixon | 3 episodes | |
| 1986 | Boon | Geoff Greenaway | Episode: "Unto Us Four a Son" |
| The Return of the Antelope | Bosco | Episode: "The Antelope Christmas" | |
| Unnatural Causes | Dan | Episode: "Partners" | |
| 1987 | Blackadder the Third | Mr. Harwood | Episode: "Amy and Amiability" |
| 1988 | Blackadder: The Cavalier Years | Oliver Cromwell | Short |
| The Comic Strip Presents... | Nigel | Episode: "The Yob | |
| Tickets for the Titanic | Mitch Gridgley | Episode: "Everyone a Winner" | |
| Wish Me Luck | Colonel Werner Kreiger | 5 episodes | |
| Worlds Beyond | Joe Weller | Episode: "Home" | |
| 1989 | Nice Work | Vic Wilcox | 4 episodes |
| 1989 - 1990 | The Manageress | Martin Fisher | 12 episodes |
| 1990 | All Creatures Great and Small | Mr. Sutcliffe | Episode: "Promises to Keep" |
| Chelmsford 123 | Iken of Mori | Episode: "Odi et Amo" | |
| Stay Lucky | Jack Finch | Episode: "Bring Barry Back to Me" | |
| 1991 | All Good Things | Phil Frame | 6 episodes |
| Boon | Stan Keating | Episode: "Bad Pennies" | |
| Gone to the Dogs | Larry Patterson | 6 episodes | |
| Lovejoy | Brian Nun | Episode: "Bin Diving" | |
| Sleepers | Albert Robinson/ Vladimir Zelenski | 4 episodes | |
| 1992 | Gone to Seed | Winston | 6 episodes |
| The Secret Agent | Chief Inspector Heat | 3 episodes | |
| 1993 | All in a Game | Kenny Dawes | 6 episodes |
| Conjugal Rights | Toby (voice) | 6 episodes | |
| 1994 | The House of Windsor | Max Kelvin | 4 episodes |
| 1994 - 1995 | Moving Story | Bamber | 13 episodes |
| 1995 | Joseph | Ednan | 2 episodes (TV mini-series) |
| 1996 - 2007 | Dalziel and Pascoe | Det. Supt. Andy Dalziel | 61 episodes |
| 1997 | The Locksmith | Ronald Pierce | 6 episodes |
| 1998 | A Respectable Trade | Josiah Cole | 2 episodes |
| In the Red | George Cragge | 3 episodes | |
| 2000 - 2003 | Down to Earth | Brian | 18 episodes |
| 2005 | Bleak House | Boythorn | 5 episodes |
| 2008 | The Invisibles | Sid Woolsey | 6 episodes |
| 2008 - 2013 | Chuggington | Speedy McAllister (voice) | 21 episodes |
| 2009 | Marple | Comander Peters | Episode: "Why Don't They Ask Evans?" |
| Red Riding | DCS/ACC Bill Molloy | 3 episode (TV mini-series) | |
| 2010 | Inspector George Gently | Charles Hexton | Episode: "Peace & Love" |
| Just William | Mr. Bott | 2 episodes | |
| Lewis | Roger Temple | Episode: "Dark Matter" | |
| 2011 | Midsomer Murders | Samuel Quested | Episode: "The Night of the Stag" |
| Wild at Heart | Robert | 1 episode | |
| 2011 - 2012 | In with the Flynns | Jim Flynn | 12 episodes |
| 2012 | Trollied | Barry Hound | Episode: "Christmas Special" |
| 2013 | Call the Midwife | John Lacey | 1 episode |
| Way to Go | Nigel | Episode: "The End of the Beginning" | |
| 2015 | Poldark | Charles Poldark | 4 episodes (final role) |
And I watch football, Man City. They've been my team for 55 years since I was a nipper.
