Dennis Waterman (24 February 1948 – 8 May 2022) was an English actor and singer. He was best known for his tough-guy leading roles in television series including '' The Sweeney'', '' Minder'' and ''

New Tricks ''New Tricks'' is a British television police procedural comedy drama, created by Nigel McCrery and Roy Mitchell, produced primarily by Wall to Wall (until its final year, when it was handled by Headstrong Pictures), and broadcast on BBC On ...

'', singing the theme tunes of the latter two. Waterman's acting career spanned 60 years, starting with his childhood roles in film and theatre, and adult roles in film, television and

West End theatre West End theatre is mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres in and near the West End of London.Christopher Innes"West End"in ''The Cambridge Guide to Theatre'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998), pp. 1194–1195, ...

. He was known for the range of roles he played, including drama ('' Up the Junction''), horror ('' Scars of Dracula''), adventure (''

Colditz Colditz () is a small town in the district of Leipzig (district), Leipzig, in Saxony, Germany. It is best known for Colditz Castle, the site of the Oflag IV-C prisoner-of-war camp, POW camp for officers in World War II. Geography Colditz is situa ...

''), comedy ('' Fair Exchange''), comedy-drama (''Minder''), musical ('' Windy City'') and sport ('' The World Cup: A Captain's Tale''). He appeared in 29 films, the last being released in 2020.

Early life and education

Waterman was born on 24 February 1948, as the youngest of nine children to Rose Juliana (née Saunders) and Harry Frank Waterman in

Clapham Clapham () is a district in south London, south west London, England, lying mostly within the London Borough of Lambeth, but with some areas (including Clapham Common) extending into the neighbouring London Borough of Wandsworth. History Ea ...

,Waterman and Arlon. – p.7. south west

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. The family, which included siblings Ken,

Peter Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a su ...

welterweight Welterweight is a weight class in combat sports. Originally the term ''welterweight'' was used only in boxing, but other combat sports like muay Thai, taekwondo, and mixed martial arts also use it for their own weight division system to classify th ...

boxing champion), Stella, Norma, and Myrna, lived at 2 Elms Road, Clapham Common South Side. Harry Waterman was a ticket collector for

British Railways British Railways (BR), which from 1965 traded as British Rail, was a state-owned company that operated most rail transport in Great Britain from 1948 to 1997. Originally a trading brand of the Railway Executive of the British Transport Commis ...

. Two older sisters, Joy and Vera, had already left home by the time Dennis was born, and another brother, Allen, had died as a young child.

Boxing Boxing is a combat sport and martial art. Taking place in a boxing ring, it involves two people – usually wearing protective equipment, such as boxing glove, protective gloves, hand wraps, and mouthguards – throwing Punch (combat), punch ...

was a big part of Waterman's childhood. His father had been an amateur boxer and made all of his sons box.Waterman and Arlon. – p.13-14. His older brother Ken first took Dennis boxing when he was three years old,Waterman and Arlon. – p.18. and when he was ten, Dennis joined Caius Boxing Club. Waterman was educated at the Granard Primary School, a state primary school on the Ashburton Estate in

Putney Putney () is an affluent district in southwest London, England, in the London Borough of Wandsworth, southwest of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. History Putney is an ...

, southwest London, followed by Corona Stage School, an

independent school A private school or independent school is a school not administered or funded by the government, unlike a State school, public school. Private schools are schools that are not dependent upon national or local government to finance their fina ...

at Ravenscourt Park in

Hammersmith Hammersmith is a district of West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It is the administrative centre of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, and identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. It ...

, West London.

Career

1960s

Waterman's acting career began in childhood. His first role was in '' Night Train for Inverness'' (1960) and then '' Snowball'' (1960) with Gordon Jackson. He appeared in two small stage roles for the

Royal Shakespeare Company The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) is a major British theatre company, based in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. The company employs over 1,000 staff and opens around 20 productions a year. The RSC plays regularly in London, Stratf ...

's 1960 season. In 1961, at the age of 13, he played the part of Winthrop Paroo in the Adelphi Theatre production of ''

The Music Man ''The Music Man'' is a musical theatre, musical with book, music, and lyrics by Meredith Willson, based on a story by Willson and Franklin Lacey. The plot concerns a confidence trick, con man Harold Hill, who poses as a boys' band organizer and ...

''. A year later, he starred as William Brown in the BBC TV series ''William'' based on the '' Just William'' books of

Richmal Crompton Richmal Crompton Lamburn (15 November 1890 – 11 January 1969) was a popular English writer, best known for her ''Just William (book series), Just William'' series of books, humorous short stories, and to a lesser extent adult fiction books. L ...

. Waterman played the role of

Oliver Twist ''Oliver Twist; or, The Parish Boy's Progress'', is the second novel by English author Charles Dickens. It was originally published as a serial from 1837 to 1839 and as a three-volume book in 1838. The story follows the titular orphan, who, ...

in the production of the

Lionel Bart Lionel Bart (1 August 1930 – 3 April 1999) was an English writer and composer of pop music and musicals. He wrote Tommy Steele's "Rock with the Caveman" and was the sole creator of the musical ''Oliver!'' (1960). With ''Oliver!'' and his work ...

musical '' Oliver!'' staged at the Mermaid Theatre, London, in the early 1960s, and appeared on the cast recording released in 1961. Waterman was a series regular in the 1962 CBS comedy '' Fair Exchange'', playing teenager Neville Finch. In 1963, he took a "starring" role in the

Children's Film Foundation The Children's Film Foundation (CFF) is a non-profit organisation which makes films and other media for children in the United Kingdom. Originally it made films to be shown as part of children's Saturday morning matinée cinema programming. Th ...

film ''Go Kart Go''. He later appeared in the premier of '' Carving a Statue'', produced by Peter Wood on 17 September 1964 at the Haymarket Theatre, London. Waterman played His Son, with Ralph Richardson as The Father. Waterman was also in the original cast of '' Saved'', the play written by

Edward Bond Thomas Edward Bond (18 July 1934 – 3 March 2024) was an English playwright, theatre director, poet, dramatic theorist and screenwriter. He was the author of some 50 plays, among them '' Saved'' (1965), the production of which was instrument ...

, and first produced at the

Royal Court Theatre The Royal Court Theatre, at different times known as the Court Theatre, the New Chelsea Theatre, and the Belgravia Theatre, is a West End theatre#London's non-commercial theatres, non-commercial theatre in Sloane Square, London, England, opene ...

in November 1965. He had a major role in the feature film version of ''Up the Junction'' (1968) in which he played Peter, boyfriend to Polly (Suzy Kendall).

1970s

In the early 1970s, Waterman appeared in the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

television series ''

'' as a young

Gestapo The (, ), Syllabic abbreviation, abbreviated Gestapo (), was the official secret police of Nazi Germany and in German-occupied Europe. The force was created by Hermann Göring in 1933 by combining the various political police agencies of F ...

officer. He played the brother of a victim of

Count Dracula Count Dracula () is the title character of Bram Stoker's 1897 gothic horror novel ''Dracula''. He is considered the prototypical and archetypal vampire in subsequent works of fiction. Aspects of the character are believed by some to have been i ...

( Christopher Lee) in the

Hammer A hammer is a tool, most often a hand tool, consisting of a weighted "head" fixed to a long handle that is swung to deliver an impact to a small area of an object. This can be, for example, to drive nail (fastener), nails into wood, to sh ...

film '' Scars of Dracula'' (1970), and the boyfriend of Susan George in ''Fright'' (1971). He appeared alongside

Richard Harris Richard St John Francis Harris (1 October 1930 – 25 October 2002) was an Irish actor and singer. Having studied at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art, he rose to prominence as an icon of the British New Wave. He received numerous a ...

and

John Huston John Marcellus Huston ( ; August 5, 1906 – August 28, 1987) was an American film director, screenwriter and actor. He wrote the screenplays for most of the 37 feature films he directed, many of which are today considered classics. He rec ...

in a Hollywood western, '' Man in the Wilderness'' (1971). Waterman appears on this episode BBC2 TV French farce Ooh La La! (1973). He was a member of the company of actors who featured in ''The Sextet'' (1972), a BBC 2 series which included the Dennis Potter drama '' Follow the Yellow Brick Road'', and Waterman later appeared in the same dramatist's '' Joe's Ark'' (''

Play for Today ''Play for Today'' is a British television anthology drama series, produced by the BBC and transmitted on BBC1 from 1970 to 1984. During the run, more than three hundred programmes, featuring original television plays, and adaptations of stage ...

'', 1974). Also in 1974, Waterman appeared in episode 4 of the second series of the comedy programme '' Man About the House'' entitled "Did You Ever Meet Rommel", in which he played a friend of Robin, a German student by the name of Franz Wasserman. Waterman guest starred in a 1974 ''

Special Branch Special Branch is a label customarily used to identify units responsible for matters of national security and Intelligence (information gathering), intelligence in Policing in the United Kingdom, British, Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth, ...

'' episode entitled "Stand and Deliver" He became a household name as DS George Carter in '' The Sweeney'' during the 1970s. As well as starring as Terry McCann in '' Minder'', Waterman sang the theme song, " I Could Be So Good for You", which was a top three UK hit in 1980 and a top ten hit in Australia. It was written by his then-wife Patricia along with Gerard Kenny. Waterman also wrote and recorded a song with George Cole: "What Are We Gonna Get For 'Er Indoors?". Based on their 'Minder' characters, it reached No. 21 in the UK charts at Christmas 1983. In 1976, Waterman released his first album, ''Downwind of Angels'', arranged and produced by

Brian Bennett Brian Laurence Bennett (born 9 February 1940) is an English drummer, pianist, composer and producer of popular music. He is best known as the drummer of the UK rock and roll group the Shadows. He is the father of musician and Shadows band memb ...

. A single, "I Will Glide", was released from the album. In 1978, Waterman returned to the RSC to play Sackett in Bronson Howard's comedy ''Saratoga''.

1980s

Waterman starred in a

television film A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie, telefilm, telemovie or TV film/movie, is a film with a running time similar to a feature film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a Terrestr ...

made by Tyne Tees Television entitled ''The World Cup: A Captain's Tale'' (1982). It was the true story of West Auckland Town F.C., a part-time side who won the Sir Thomas Lipton Trophy, sometimes described as the 'First World Cup', in 1909 and 1911. Waterman played the part of Bob Jones, the club captain. It cost £1.5 million to make, most of which was funded by Waterman. Shooting took place in the North East and in

Turin Turin ( , ; ; , then ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. The city is main ...

in Italy. Scenes were shot in

County Durham County Durham, officially simply Durham, is a ceremonial county in North East England.UK General Acts 1997 c. 23Lieutenancies Act 1997 Schedule 1(3). From legislation.gov.uk, retrieved 6 April 2022. The county borders Northumberland and Tyne an ...

pit villages and in

Ashington Ashington is a town and civil parish in Northumberland, England, with a population of 27,864 at the 2011 Census. It was once a centre of the coal mining industry. The town is north of Newcastle upon Tyne, west of the A189 and bordered to the ...

Northumberland Northumberland ( ) is a ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North East England, on the Anglo-Scottish border, border with Scotland. It is bordered by the North Sea to the east, Tyne and Wear and County Durham to the south, Cumb ...

, where goalposts and a grandstand were erected in a public park with a colliery headframe in the background. In 1982, Waterman starred in the musical ''Windy City''. A relatively short-lived production. The cast included Amanda Redman, with whom Waterman had an eighteen-month affair during the run of the musical and with whom he later went on to star in the TV series ''

''. ''Windy City'' closed after 250 performances. Waterman took the lead male role in the

BAFTA Award The British Academy Film Awards, more commonly known as the BAFTAs or BAFTA Awards, is an annual film award show hosted by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) to honour the best British and international contributions to f ...

-winning BBC adaptation of Fay Weldon's ''

The Life and Loves of a She-Devil ''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The ...

'' (1986). In an Australian television film, '' The First Kangaroos'' (1988), Waterman's depiction of the rugby player Albert Goldthorpe drew formal complaints from Goldthorpe's granddaughter. In 1988, Waterman voiced Vernon's sidekick Toaster in the children's animated series '' Tube Mice'', which also starred George Cole.

1990s

After leaving ''Minder'', Waterman appeared as Thomas Gynn in the comedy drama '' Stay Lucky'' (1989–93), with Jan Francis and Emma Wray; self made millionaire Tony Carpenter in the

sitcom A sitcom (short for situation comedy or situational comedy) is a genre of comedy produced for radio and television, that centers on a recurring cast of character (arts), characters as they navigate humorous situations within a consistent settin ...

'' On the Up'' (1990–92) and John Neil in the mini series '' Circles of Deceit'' (1995–96). Between 1997 and 1999, he appeared in series 3 and 4 of the crime drama '' The Knock''.

2000s

He was a regular cast member in every series of ''

'', from 2003 to 2014, and also sang the theme song. Waterman appeared on stage in '' Jeffrey Bernard is Unwell'' by

Keith Waterhouse Keith Spencer Waterhouse Order of British Empire, CBE (6 February 1929 – 4 September 2009) was a British novelist and newspaper columnist and the writer of many television series. He was also a noted arbiter of newspaper style and journalisti ...

and as Alfred P. Doolittle in the 2001 London revival of ''

My Fair Lady ''My Fair Lady'' is a musical theatre, musical with a book and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner and music by Frederick Loewe. The story, based on George Bernard Shaw's 1913 play ''Pygmalion (play), Pygmalion'' and on the Pygmalion (1938 film), 1938 film ...

''. In 2005-06 he was the voice of Walter Thompson in Churchill's Bodyguard for the 13-part TV documentary based on Thompson's journals. Waterman narrated the reality-format television programme '' Bad Lads' Army'' and appeared in the 2009 BBC2 miniseries '' Moses Jones''.

2020s

In 2020, Waterman starred in the Australian drama-comedy film '' Never Too Late'' which had been filmed in

Adelaide Adelaide ( , ; ) is the list of Australian capital cities, capital and most populous city of South Australia, as well as the list of cities in Australia by population, fifth-most populous city in Australia. The name "Adelaide" may refer to ei ...

, Australia, the previous year. ''The Minder Podcast'' revealed that Waterman was semi-retired and living in Spain. The podcast referred to Waterman as "a truly underrated actor" and following Waterman's death pledged to go off air for seven weeks, one for each series of ''Minder'' he had appeared in, in commemoration. An audio tribute episode was released after seven weeks. In May 2023 the show broadcast a second tribute, Revisiting Reminder.

Personal life

Waterman was married four times: *Penny Dixon (1967–1976) * Patricia Maynard (1977–1987), an actress with whom he had two daughters, one of whom, Hannah Waterman, is also an actress. Hannah is best known for playing Laura Beale in the

BBC1 BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's oldest and Flagship (broadcasting), flagship channel, and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includ ...

soap opera ''

EastEnders ''EastEnders'' is a British television soap opera created by Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the East End of London, the ...

'', and later appeared in ''New Tricks'' alongside Waterman as his character's daughter. *

Rula Lenska Rula Lenska (born Roza Maria Leopoldyna Lubienski 30 September 1947) is an English actress. She mainly appears in British stage and television productions and is known in the United States for a series of television advertisements in the 1970s ...

(1987–1998) *Pam Flint (November 2011–2022) Waterman's marriage to Lenska ended because of his violent behaviour towards her. In March 2012, he caused controversy with some comments on this issue: "It's not difficult for a woman to make a man hit her. She certainly wasn't a beaten wife, she was hit and that's different." Lenska said there was a "violent, abusive pattern"; Waterman himself admitted he might have "drunk too much" to remember details. The interview was broadcast in full on '' Piers Morgan's Life Stories'' on ITV in May 2012. Waterman emigrated to Spain with his wife Pam in 2015 after ''New Tricks'' ended, living at a

villa A villa is a type of house that was originally an ancient Roman upper class country house that provided an escape from urban life. Since its origins in the Roman villa, the idea and function of a villa have evolved considerably. After the f ...

La Manga La Manga (), or La Manga del Mar Menor (meaning "The Sandbar of the Minor Sea") is a seaside spit (landform), spit of Mar Menor in the Region of Murcia, Spain. The strip is 21 km long and 100 metres wide (average), separating the Mediterran ...

, and playing golf at the La Manga Club. Waterman was banned from driving for three years in January 1991, following his second drunk-driving conviction in four years. He was a fan of Chelsea F.C. His love of football was reflected in his being chosen to present '' Match of the Seventies'' from 1995 to 1996, a nostalgic BBC show celebrating the best football matches from the 1970s. In 2015, his friend of many years, George Cole, who had played Arthur Daley in ''Minder,'' died aged 90. Waterman delivered the eulogy at Cole's funeral on 12 August.

Death

Waterman died from

lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma, is a malignant tumor that begins in the lung. Lung cancer is caused by genetic damage to the DNA of cells in the airways, often caused by cigarette smoking or inhaling damaging chemicals. Damaged ...

at his home in

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

on 8 May 2022 at the age of 74.

In popular culture

''Little Britain''

Waterman was caricatured by David Walliams in the radio and TV comedy series '' Little Britain'', in sketches where he visits his agent, Jeremy Rent (played by

Matt Lucas Matthew Richard Lucas (born 5 March 1974) is an English actor, comedian, writer and television host. He is best known for his work with David Walliams on the BBC sketch comedy series ''Little Britain (TV series), Little Britain'' (2003–2006) ...

) looking for parts. Most of the jokes in these sketches feature Waterman being extremely small, with common objects being made to appear massive in comparison. The Waterman caricature is offered, but always declines, respectable parts because he is not allowed to "write the theme tune, sing the theme tune" of the particular production. This running joke is based on Waterman having sung the theme tunes for at least four of the programmes in which he starred, namely for ''Minder'', ''Stay Lucky'', ''On the Up'' and ''New Tricks''. In November 2006, Waterman made a guest appearance in ''Comic Relief Does Little Britain Live'', alongside the comedy character version of himself.

Bibliography

*2000: Waterman, Dennis; and Jill Arlon. – ''ReMinder''. – London: Hutchinson. – .

Filmography

* '' Night Train for Inverness'' (1960) – Ted Lewis * ''Ali and the Camel'' (1960) – (voice) * '' Snowball'' (1960) – Mickey Donovan * '' Crooks Anonymous'' (1962) – Boy in Park * '' The Pirates of Blood River'' (1962) – Timothy Blackthorne * ''Go Kart Go'' (1963) – Jimpy * '' Up the Junction'' (1968) – Pete * ''

Oh! What a Lovely War ''Oh! What a Lovely War'' is a 1969 British epic comedy historical musical war film directed by Richard Attenborough (in his directorial debut), with an ensemble cast, including Maggie Smith, Dirk Bogarde, John Gielgud, John Mills, Kenneth Mo ...

'' (1969) * '' The Smashing Bird I Used to Know'' (1969) – Peter * '' Wedding Night'' (1970) – Joe O'Reilly – Groom * '' My Lover My Son'' (1970) – James Anderson * '' A Promise of Bed'' (also known as ''This, That and the Other'') (1970) – Photographer * '' Scars of Dracula'' (1970) – Simon Carlson * '' Fright'' (1971) – Chris * '' Man in the Wilderness'' (1971) – Lowrie * ''

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' (also known as ''Alice in Wonderland'') is an 1865 English Children's literature, children's novel by Lewis Carroll, a mathematics university don, don at the University of Oxford. It details the story of a ...

'' (1972) – 2 of Spades * '' The Belstone Fox'' (1973) – Stephen Durno * '' Sweeney!'' (1977) – Det. Sgt. George Carter * '' Sweeney 2'' (1978) – Det. Sgt. George Carter * '' The World Cup: A Captain's Tale'' (1982) * '' Minder on the Orient Express'' (1985) * ''

'' (TV, 1986) – Bobbo * '' The First Kangaroos'' (1988) – Albert Goldthorpe * ''Cold Justice'' (1989) – Father Jim * '' Fiddley Foodle Bird'' (1991) * ''

Vol-au-vent A ''vol-au-vent'' (pronounced , French for "windblown", to describe its lightness) is a small hollow case of puff pastry. It was formerly also called a patty case. . A ''vol-au-vent'' is typically made by cutting two circles in rolled out p ...

'' (1996) – Pete / Kevin * '' Arthur's Dyke'' (2001) – Derek Doubleday * ''Back in Business'' (2007) – Jarvis * '' Run for Your Wife'' (2012, Cameo role) * '' Never Too Late'' (2020) – Jeremiah Caine

Discography

Albums

Singles

References

External links

* * * as Dennis Waterman Band
New Tricks at BBC Drama
{{DEFAULTSORT:Waterman, Dennis 1948 births 2022 deaths Deaths from lung cancer in Spain 20th-century English male actors 20th-century English singers 21st-century English male actors 21st-century English singers English male film actors English male Shakespearean actors English male singers English male stage actors English male child actors English male television actors English male voice actors Male actors from London Actors from the London Borough of Lambeth Singers from the London Borough of Lambeth People from Clapham Royal Shakespeare Company members Violence against women in England DJM Records artists