Frederick Christopher Kwabena Gyearbuor Asante (4 November 1941 – 2 August 2000) was a

Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and Tog ...

ian actor best remembered for his role in the

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a fourth television service ...

situation comedy A sitcom, a portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troupe may use new ...

Desmond's ''Desmond's'' is a British television situation comedy broadcast by Channel 4 from 1989 to 1994. Conceived and co-written by Trix Worrell, and produced by Charlie Hanson and Humphrey Barclay, ''Desmond's'' stars Norman Beaton as barber Des ...

'', in which he played the role of Gambian mature student Matthew.

Life and career

Born in

Accra Accra (; tw, Nkran; dag, Ankara; gaa, Ga or ''Gaga'') is the capital and largest city of Ghana, located on the southern coast at the Gulf of Guinea, which is part of the Atlantic Ocean. As of 2021 census, the Accra Metropolitan District, , ...

, Asante moved to the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...

in 1967 and trained to be an actor at the

Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts, formerly Mountview Theatre School, is a drama school in Peckham, south London, England, founded in 1945. The Academy provides specialist vocational training in acting and musical theatre, as well as production ...

. A "Gyearbuor Asante Prize for Acting" was subsequently instituted at the academy following his death. He appeared in a number of

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

TV shows during the 1970s and '80s, where he was billed as Christopher Asante. His credits included episodes of '' Space: 1999'', ''

Mind Your Language ''Mind Your Language'' is a British sitcom that premiered on ITV in 1977. It was produced by London Weekend Television and directed by Stuart Allen. Three series were made by the London Weekend Television between 1977 and 1979 and briefly re ...

'', '' Hazell'' and '' The Professionals'' as well as a TV performance of ''

Ubu Roi ''Ubu Roi'' (; "Ubu the King" or "King Ubu") is a play by French writer Alfred Jarry, then 23 years old. It was first performed in Paris in 1896, by Aurélien Lugné-Poe's Théâtre de l'Œuvre at the Nouveau-Théâtre (today, the Théâtre de ...

'' in 1976. He also played the minister in the 1983 film '' Local Hero''. He came from a long line of chiefs of his hometown

Kwahu Kwahu refers to an area and group of people that live in Ghana, part of the Twi-speaking Akan group. The region has been dubbed Asaase Aban, or the Natural Fortress, in view of its position as the highest habitable elevation in the country. Kwahu ...

Tafo but ruled himself out of carrying on the tradition in favour of pursuing a career in acting; the chieftaincy Asante was offered was taken up by his friend, television producer

Humphrey Barclay Humphrey Barclay BEM (born 24 March 1941, Dorking, Surrey, England) is a British comedy executive and producer. Career Barclay was educated at Harrow School, before reading Classics at Trinity College, Cambridge, where his first foray into sh ...

. He returned to his birthplace Ghana in 1995 where he was made a Cultural Ambassador. He died in the capital city of Accra with his funeral held in his ancestral village of Tafo

in the Eastern Region of Ghana.

Partial filmography

*''

The Strange Case of the End of Civilization as We Know It ''The Strange Case of the End of Civilization as We Know It'' is a 1977 comedy film directed by Joseph McGrath and starring John Cleese. It is a low-budget spoof of the Sherlock Holmes detective series, as well as the mystery genre in gener ...

'' (1977) - African Delegate *'' The Dogs of War'' (1980) - Geoffrey *'' Local Hero'' (1983) - Rev Macpherson *''

'' (1989-1994) - Matthew

References

External links

*
Biography
1941 births 2000 deaths Ghanaian male television actors Alumni of the Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts People from Accra Ghanaian expatriates in the United Kingdom Expatriate male actors in the United Kingdom 20th-century Ghanaian male actors {{Ghana-actor-stub