John Edward Thaw (3 January 1942 – 21 February 2002) was an English actor in television, stage and cinema, best known for his starring roles in the television series Inspector Morse as Detective Chief Inspector Endeavour Morse and in The Sweeney as Detective Inspector Jack Regan.
John Thaw | |
|---|---|
 Thaw as Inspector Morse | |
| Born | John Edward Thaw 3 January 1942 Gorton, Manchester, England |
| Died | 21 February 2002 (aged 60) Luckington, Wiltshire, England |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1958–2001 |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 3, including Abigail Thaw |
Early life
editBorn in Gorton, Manchester, to John Edward ("Jack") Thaw, a tool-setter at the Fairey Aviation Company aircraft factory, later a long-distance lorry driver, and Dorothy (née Ablott).[1] Dorothy left when he was seven years old. He and his younger brother, Raymond Stuart (Ray) had a difficult childhood due to their father's long absences. Thaw grew up in Gorton and Burnage, attending the Ducie Technical High School for Boys, gaining just one O level. He entered the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) at the age of 16 (two years underage), and won the Academy's Vanburgh Award.[2][3] Ray emigrated to Australia in the mid-1960s.[4]
Career
editIn 1960, Thaw made his stage début in A Shred of Evidence at the Liverpool Playhouse and was awarded a contract with the theatre. His first film role was a bit part in The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner (1962) starring Tom Courtenay and he also acted on-stage opposite Sir Laurence Olivier in Semi-Detached (1962). In 1963/64, he appeared in several episodes of the BBC series Z-Cars as a detective constable. Between 1964 and 1966, he starred in two series of the ABC Weekend Television/ITV production Redcap, playing the hard-nosed military policeman Sergeant John Mann. He was also a guest star in an early episode of The Avengers. In 1967 he appeared in Bat Out of Hell and in the Granada TV/ITV series, Inheritance, alongside James Bolam and Michael Goodliffe; TV plays including The Talking Head, and episodes of series such as Budgie, where he played against type as an effeminate failed playwright with a full beard and a Welsh accent.
Thaw was only 32 when he was cast in The Sweeney (1975–1978) alongside Dennis Waterman and Garfield Morgan, although many viewers thought he was older. His role as the hard-bitten, tough-talking Flying Squad detective Jack Regan established him as a major star in the United Kingdom. He followed this dramatic series with the comedy series Home to Roost (1985–1990), which co-starred Reece Dinsdale, about a divorced father whose teenage son moves back in with him after choosing as a child to live with his mother. The show ran for four series.
It was his role as Detective Chief Inspector Endeavour Morse in Inspector Morse (1987–93, with later specials until 2000), which cemented his fame. Alongside his put-upon Detective Sergeant Robert "Robbie" Lewis (Kevin Whately), Morse became a high-profile character—"a cognitive curmudgeon with his love of classical music, his drinking, his classic Jaguar and spates of melancholy".[5] According to The Guardian, "Thaw was the definitive Morse, grumpy, crossword-fixated, drunk, slightly anti-feminist, and pedantic about grammar."[6] Inspector Morse became one of the UK's most loved TV series; at its peak in the mid-'90s, ratings hit 18 million people, about one third of the British population.[7][8] He won "Most Popular Actor" at the 1999 National Television Awards and won two BAFTA awards for his role as Morse.
He subsequently played liberal working-class Lancastrian barrister James Kavanagh in Kavanagh QC (1995–99, and a special in 2001). Thaw also appeared in two sitcoms—Thick as Thieves (London Weekend/ITV, 1974) with Bob Hoskins and Home to Roost (Yorkshire/ITV, 1985–90). Thaw is mainly known in America for the Morse series, as well as the BBC series A Year in Provence (1993) with Lindsay Duncan.
He appeared in a number of films for director Richard Attenborough, including Cry Freedom, where he portrayed the conservative South African justice minister Jimmy Kruger (for which he received a BAFTA nomination for Best Supporting Actor), and Chaplin alongside Robert Downey Jr.
Thaw also appeared in the TV adaptation of the Michelle Magorian book Goodnight Mister Tom (Carlton Television/ITV). It won "Most Popular Drama" at the National Television Awards, 1999.[9]
During the 1970s and 1980s, Thaw appeared in productions with the Royal Shakespeare Company and National Theatre.
He was the subject of This Is Your Life in 1981 when he was surprised by Eamonn Andrews in the foyer of the National Theatre in London.[citation needed]
Personal life
editIn 1964, Thaw married Sally Alexander,[10] a feminist activist and stage manager, now professor of history at Goldsmiths, University of London. They divorced four years later.[11] He met actress Sheila Hancock in 1969 on the set of So What About Love?[12] She was married to fellow actor Alexander "Alec" Ross. They became friends, but she refused to have an affair as she did not want to disrupt her daughter's life.[12] Following the death of her husband (from oesophageal cancer) in 1971, Thaw and Hancock married on 24 December 1973 in Cirencester.[12][13] They remained together until his death in 2002 (also from oesophageal cancer).[14]
He had three daughters (all actresses): Abigail from his first marriage to Sally Alexander, Joanna from his second marriage to Sheila Hancock, and he also adopted Sheila Hancock's daughter Melanie Jane, from Hancock's first marriage to Alec Ross.[11][15] His granddaughter Molly Whitmey made a cameo in the Endeavour episode Oracle (series 7, episode 1, broadcast 9 February 2020) as the younger version of her grandmother Sally Alexander.[16]
Thaw was a committed socialist[17] and a lifelong supporter of the Labour Party.[18] He was appointed a Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (CBE) in March 1993 by Queen Elizabeth II.[19] In September 2006, Thaw was voted by the general public as number 3, after David Jason and Morecambe and Wise, in a poll of TV's 50 Greatest Stars for the past 50 years.[20]
Illness and death
editA heavy drinker until going teetotal in 1995,[12] and a heavy smoker from the age of 12,[15] Thaw was diagnosed with cancer of the oesophagus in June 2001.[21][22] He underwent chemotherapy in hope of overcoming the illness, and at first had appeared to respond well to the treatment. However, just before Christmas 2001 he was informed that the cancer had spread and the prognosis was terminal.[23]
He died on 21 February 2002,[15] seven weeks after his 60th birthday, the day after he signed a new contract with ITV,[24] and the day before his wife's birthday. At the time of his death he was living at his country home, near the villages of Luckington and Sherston in Wiltshire,[25] and was cremated in Westerleigh, near Yate in South Gloucestershire, in a private service.[26] A memorial service was held on 4 September 2002 at St Martin-in-the-Fields church in Trafalgar Square, attended by 800 people including Charles, Prince of Wales, Richard Attenborough, Tom Courtenay and Cherie Blair.[27]
Television, film and stage performances
editTelevision series
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1961 | The Younger Generation | Customer / Max / Edward / Charlie / Peter / Denny / Martin | |
| 1963–1965 | Edgar Wallace Mysteries | Alan Roper / David Jones | "Five to One" / "Dead Man's Chest" |
| 1963 | Z Cars | Detective Constable Elliot | |
| 1964–1966 | Redcap | Sergeant John Mann | 2 series |
| 1966 | Bat Out of Hell (TV series) | Mark Paxton | Five episodes |
| 1967 | Inheritance | Will Oldroyd | |
| 1969 | Strange Report | Inspector Jenner | Episode: "Revenge - When a Man Hates" |
| 1972 | The Frighteners | Wood | Episode: "Old Comrades" |
| 1974 | Thick As Thieves | Stan | |
| The Capone Investment | Tom | ||
| 1975–1978 | The Sweeney | Det. Insp. Jack Regan | 4 series & 2 films |
| 1984 | Mitch | Mitch | |
| 1985–1990 | Home to Roost | Henry Willows | 4 series |
| 1987–2000 | Inspector Morse | Detective Chief Inspector Endeavour Morse | 33 television films |
| 1991 | Stanley and the Women | Stanley Duke | |
| 1992 | A Year in Provence | Peter Mayle | |
| 1995–2001 | Kavanagh QC | James Kavanagh, Q.C. | 6 series |
| 1999 | Plastic Man | Joe McConnell | |
| 1999 | The Second World War in Colour | Narrator | |
| 2000 | Monsignor Renard | Monsignor Augustine Renard | |
| 2001 | The Glass | Jim Proctor | (final TV role) |
Television films and plays
edit| Year | Title | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | Serjeant Musgrave's Dance | |
| 1962 | Nil Carborundum[28][29] | ACI Neville Harrison |
| 1963 | The Lads | |
| 1964 | I Can Walk Where I Like, Can't I? | |
| 1964 | The Other Man | |
| 1966 | The Making of Jericho | |
| 1974 | Regan | |
| 1978 | Dinner at the Sporting Club | |
| 1980 | Drake's Venture | Francis Drake |
| 1984 | Killer Waiting | Major Peter Hastings |
| 1984 | The Life and Death of King John | Hubert de Burgh |
| 1985 | We'll Support You Ever More | Geoff Hollins |
| 1986 | Stainheads | |
| 1987 | "The Sign of Four" (full-length episode of The Return of Sherlock Holmes | Jonathan Small |
| 1989 | Bomber Harris | Sir Arthur 'Bomber' Harris |
| 1993 | The Mystery of Morse | |
| 1994 | The Absence of War | |
| 1996 | Into the Blue | Harry Barnett |
| 1998 | Goodnight Mister Tom | Tom Oakley |
| 1999 | The Waiting Time | Joshua Mantle |
| 2000 | The Last Morse | |
| 2000 | Inspector Morse: Rest in Peace | Inspector Morse |
| 2001 | Hidden Treasure / Buried Treasure | Harry (final film role) |
Guest appearances
edit| Date | Show title | Episode title |
|---|---|---|
| 28 May 1962 | Probation Officer | |
| 15 August 1963 | ITV Television Playhouse | "The Lads" |
| 18 September 1963 | Z-Cars | "A La Carte" |
| 25 September 1963 | Z-Cars | "Light the Blue Paper" |
| 2 October 1963 | Z-Cars | "A Quiet Night" |
| 16 October 1963 | Z-Cars | "Hide – And Go Seek" |
| 14 March 1964 | The Avengers | "Esprit De Corps" |
| 12 October 1965 | A Poor Gentleman | |
| 19 October 1965 | A Poor Gentleman | |
| 31 October 1965 | The Edgar Wallace Mystery Theatre | "Dead Man's Chest" |
| 29 September 1967 | Inheritance | "Murder" |
| 1 December 1967 | Inheritance | "A Man of His Time" |
| 25 March 1969 | The Borderers | "Dispossessed" |
| 28 June 1969 | ITV Saturday Night Theatre | "The Haunting" |
| 30 August 1969 | ITV Saturday Night Theatre | "The Talking Head" |
| 11 October 1969 | ITV Saturday Night Theatre | In Another Country |
| 9 November 1969 | Strange Report | "Report 2475: Revenge – When a Man Hates" |
| 20 September 1970 | Play of the Month | "Macbeth" |
| 12 December 1970 | Happy Ever After | "Don't Walk Away" |
| 25 June 1971 | Budgie | "Sunset Mansions or Whatever Happened to Janey Baib?" |
| 5 October 1971 | Armchair Theatre | "Competition" |
| 14 December 1971 | Suspicion | "I'll Go Along With That" |
| 24 December 1971 | The Onedin Line | "Mutiny" |
| 9 April 1972 | Pretenders | "The Paymaster" |
| 21 July 1972 | The Frighteners | "Old Comrades" |
| 29 August 1972 | Armchair Theatre | "What Became of Me?" |
| 6 September 1972 | ITV Playhouse | "Refuge for a Hero" |
| 30 September 1972 | The Adventures of Black Beauty | "The Hostage" |
| 4 March 1973 | The Rivals of Sherlock Holmes | "The Sensible Action of Lieutenant Horst" |
| 26 April 1973 | Menace | "Tom" |
| 16 May 1973 | BBC Play of the Month | "Caucasian Chalk Circle" |
| 20 May 1973 | ITV Saturday Night Theatre | "Passengers" |
| 28 December 1973 | The Protectors | "Mauro Carpiano" |
| 25 December 1976 | The Morecambe & Wise Show | "1976 Christmas Show" |
| 5 January 1977 | This Is Your Life | "Sheila Hancock" |
| 26 November 1978 | The South Bank Show | |
| 18 March 1981 | This Is Your Life | "John Thaw" |
| 4 December 1982 | Saturday Night Thriller | "Where is Betty Buchus?" |
| 1987 | Sherlock Holmes | "The Sign of Four |
Theatrical films
edit| Year | Title | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| 1962 | Smashing Day | Stan |
| 1962 | The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner | Bosworth (uncredited) |
| 1963 | Five To One | Alan Roper |
| 1965 | Dead Man's Chest | |
| 1968 | The Bofors Gun | Featherstone |
| 1970 | Praise Marx and Pass the Ammunition | Dom |
| 1970 | The Last Grenade | Terry Mitchell |
| 1972 | Dr. Phibes Rises Again | Shavers |
| 1977 | Sweeney! | Detective Inspector Jack Regan |
| 1978 | Sweeney 2 | Detective Inspector Jack Regan |
| 1981 | Killing Heat | Dick Turner |
| 1987 | Cry Freedom | Jimmy Kruger |
| 1988 | Business As Usual | Kieran Flynn |
| 1992 | Chaplin | Fred Karno |
| 1996 | Masculine Mescaline | The Man |
| 1998 | Goodnight Mister Tom | Tom |
Stage
edit| Year | Title |
|---|---|
| 1958 | Cymbeline |
| 1958 | As You Like It |
| 1958 | The Cherry Orchard |
| 1958 | Pillars of Society |
| 1958 | The Taming of the Shrew |
| 1958 | A Winter's Tale |
| 1958 | The Lady's Not For Burning |
| 1958 | Twelfth Night |
| 1958 | Macbeth |
| 1959 | Hobson's Choice |
| 1959 | Paradise Lost |
| 1959 | Antigone |
| 1959 | Alcestis |
| 1959 | Faust |
| 1959 | The Knight of the Burning Pestle |
| 1960 | A Shred of Evidence |
| 1960 | The Wind and the Rain |
| 1960 | Staircase |
| 1961 | The Fires Raisers |
| 1961 | Chips With Everything |
| 1961 | Two into One |
| 1962 | Women Beware Women |
| 1962 | Semi-Detached |
| 1964 | The Father |
| 1967 | Around The World in 80 Days |
| 1967 | Little Malcolm and His Struggle Against the Eunuchs |
| 1969 | So What About Love? |
| 1970 | Random Happenings in the Hebrides |
| 1971 | The Lady from the Sea |
| 1972 | Chinamen |
| 1972 | The New Quixote |
| 1972 | Black And Silver |
| 1972 | The Two of Us |
| 1973 | Collaborators |
| 1976 | Absurd Person Singular |
| 1977 | The Two of Us |
| 1978 | Night and Day |
| 1982 | Serjeant Musgrave's Dance |
| 1983 | Twelfth Night |
| 1983 | The Time of Your Life |
| 1983 | Henry VIII |
| 1984 | Pygmalion |
| 1986 | Two into One |
| 1988 | All My Sons |
| 1993 | The Absence of War by David Hare |
| 2001 | Peter Pan (final stage role) |
Honours and awards
edit| Year | Award | Category | Work | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1977 | Evening Standard British Film Award | Best Actor | "Sweeney!" | Won |
| 1988 | BAFTA | Best Actor in a Supporting Role | "Cry Freedom" | Nominated |
| 1990 | BAFTA TV | Best Actor | "Inspector Morse" | Won |
| 1991 | Nominated | |||
| 1992 | Nominated | |||
| 1993 | Won | |||
| 1995 | Aftonbladet TV Prize, Sweden | Best Foreign TV Personality – Male (Bästa utländska man) | Won | |
| 1998 | National Television Award | Special Recognition Award | "Inspector Morse" | Won |
| Most Popular Actor | Won | |||
| 1999 | "Goodnight, Mister Tom" | Won | ||
| 2000 | "Monsignor Renard" | Nominated | ||
| 2001 | "Inspector Morse" and Academy Fellowship | Won | ||
| 2002 | "Buried Treasure" | Nominated |
In 1994, Thaw was awarded with CBE. A memorial bench is dedicated to Thaw within the grounds of St Paul's Covent Garden.[30]
References
edit- ^ "The Oxford Dictionary of National Biography". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. 2004. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/76933. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
- ^ ""Inspector remorse; Thaw's pain over lost childhood.." The Free Library. 1998 Scottish Daily Record & Sunday". The Free Library. Retrieved 27 November 2023.
- ^ "John Thaw - Obituary". The Scotsman. 25 February 2002. Retrieved 27 November 2023.
- ^ Dibben, Kay (10 March 2002), "Mother's rejection that haunted my brother John Thaw – Brisbane man tells of family heartache", The Sunday Mail
- ^ "John Thaw: Forever Morse". BBC News. 21 February 2002. Retrieved 7 May 2021.
- ^ "No one else should play Inspector Morse, says his creator Colin Dexter". The Guardian. 25 March 2014. Retrieved 7 May 2021.
- ^ McCann, Jaymi (22 October 2017). "Inspector Morse's legacy: John Thaw's daughter makes Endeavour appearance". Express.co.uk. Retrieved 11 July 2022.
- ^ "Great Britain population mid-year estimate – Office for National Statistics". www.ons.gov.uk. Retrieved 11 July 2022.
- ^ Goodnight Mister Tom synopsis Archived 24 November 2010 at the Wayback Machine. ITV. Retrieved 20 February 2010.
- ^ Shut It!
- ^ a b McGowan, Bob; Avery, Catherine (22 September 2002). "Mystery of John Thaw fortune". Express on Sunday.
- ^ a b c d Driscoll, Margarette (19 December 2004). "The Morse Saga – Interview". The Sunday Times.
- ^ Lee, David (22 February 2002). "Friends' tribute to Morse star Thaw". The Scotsman.
- ^ Guinness, Daphne (11 November 2004). "Morse: More Sad, More Angry Than You Ever Knew". The Sydney Morning Herald.
- ^ a b c "John Thaw – Obituary". The Times. 23 February 2002.
- ^ "It's a family affair: John Thaw's daughter Abigail stars in Endeavour's new series 7 with daughter Molly playing her mother Sally..." Ox In A Box. 4 February 2020.
- ^ "John Thaw: Forever Morse". BBC News. 21 February 2002.
- ^ Sengupta, Kim (5 September 2002). "Prince and Cherie Booth at Thaw memorial". The Independent. London. Archived from the original on 13 June 2022.
- ^ "No Mystery Here". The Buffalo News. 19 March 1993.
- ^ "Who dares WINS, Rodders! – David Greatest TV Star for 50 Years". News of the World. 10 September 2006.
- ^ "John Thaw Has Throat Cancer". London Evening Standard. 19 June 2001.
- ^ "John Thaw Pledges Comeback as He Reveals Cancer Battle". The Guardian. 20 June 2001.
- ^ "Thaw's Cancer Setback". Herald Sun. 6 January 2002.
- ^ "Thaw signed new contract". Wales on Sunday. 7 April 2002. Archived from the original on 24 June 2022. Retrieved 12 June 2022 – via The Free Library.
- ^ "Sold Down the River". Western Daily Press. 19 April 2006.
- ^ Cowling, James (27 February 2002). "Actor Thaw Remembered for 'Generosity and Kindness'". Gloucestershire and Wiltshire Counties Publications.
- ^ "Charles joins Thaw memorial". BBC News. 4 September 2002.
- ^ "Nil Carborundum". British Universities Film and Video Council: Learning On Screen. Retrieved 12 May 2024.
- ^ "Nil Carborundum". BBC Programme Index. Retrieved 12 May 2024.
- ^ "London's Famous Bench Dedications". Londonist.com. 21 October 2016. Archived from the original on 6 March 2018. Retrieved 12 October 2018.
Bibliography
edit- Hancock, Sheila (2004). The Two of Us: My Life with John Thaw. London: Bloomsbury. ISBN 978-0-7475-7020-2
- John Thaw: The Biography. Stafford Hildred and Tim Ewbank. London: Andre Deutsch. ISBN 0-233-99475-0