Peter Devine (stage name Andy Devine, 28 February 1942 – 27 January 2022) was a British actor primarily on television, whose best known role was Shadrach Dingle on one of ITV's long-running

soap opera A soap opera, or ''soap'' for short, is a typically long-running radio or television serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term "soap opera" originated from radio dramas originally being sponsored ...

s, ''

Emmerdale ''Emmerdale'' (known as ''Emmerdale Farm'' until 1989) is a British soap opera that is broadcast on ITV1. The show is set in Emmerdale (known as Beckindale until 1994), a fictional village in the Yorkshire Dales. Created by Kevin Laffa ...

''. He played Shadrach on and off starting in 2000 and made his final appearance in July 2010. His credits have occasionally been confused with those of the American actor

Andy Devine Andrew Vabre Devine (October 7, 1905 – February 18, 1977) was an American character actor known for his distinctive raspy, crackly voice and roles in Western films, including his role as Cookie, the sidekick of Roy Rogers in 10 feature f ...

(1905–1977). Devine served in the Royal Navy for eight years after joining at aged 17 in 1959. He was also a classical actor before going into the soaps.

Life and career

Devine began his acting career in 1963. He mainly had minor roles, such as an uncredited Draconian Guard in several episodes of the '' Doctor Who'' story ''

Frontier in Space ''Frontier in Space'' is the third serial of the tenth season of the British science fiction television series '' Doctor Who''. The serial was first broadcast in six weekly parts on BBC1 from 24 February to 31 March 1973. It was the last serial t ...

''. He also had a memorably prominent role as a gay man in the iconic

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

series ''

Queer As Folk ''Queer as Folk'' may refer to: * ''Queer as Folk'' (British TV series), 1999–2000 * ''Queer as Folk'' (American TV series), a 2000–2005 American and Canadian version of the UK series ** ''Queer as Folk'' soundtracks, soundtrack albums from ...

'', and he appeared in an episode of ''

Linda Green ''Linda Green'' is a British comedy-drama television series that aired on BBC One from 30 October 2001 to 17 December 2002. It was produced for the BBC by the independent Red Production Company. The series was created by Paul Abbott, and othe ...

'', playing the eponymous lead character's abrasive and lecherous boss Syd Jenkins. He also performed his ''Emmerdale'' character Shadrach Dingle character on the ITV show ''

Harry Hill's TV Burp ''Harry Hill's TV Burp'' (also known as just ''TV Burp'') is a British television comedy programme broadcast between 2001 and 2012 on ITV. The show was produced by Avalon Television and was written and hosted by comedian Harry Hill. Each e ...

''. On 23 July 2010, Devine left ''

'' after over ten years on the soap as his character Shadrach Dingle was killed off in an emotional storyline related to

alcohol abuse Alcohol abuse encompasses a spectrum of unhealthy alcohol drinking behaviors, ranging from binge drinking to alcohol dependence, in extreme cases resulting in health problems for individuals and large scale social problems such as alcohol-re ...

. Devine died in Southport Hospital on 27 January 2022, at the age of 79 of a "hospital-acquired pneumonia" following a fall at his home.

Filmography

References

External links

* * 1942 births 2022 deaths English male soap opera actors People from Cheetham Hill Actors from Manchester Accidental deaths from falls {{UK-tv-actor-1940s-stub