Dalziel and Pascoe star Warren Clarke dies after a 'short illness' at the age of 67
Actor Warren Clarke, known for his role in TV drama Dalziel And Pascoe, died today at the age of 67.
Warren Clarke's gruff northern accent was familiar to millions who watched him play the taciturn Superintendent Andy Dalziel in the popular BBC drama.
The Oldham-born actor played the surly police officer for 61 episodes, providing the yin to the yang provided by Colin Buchanan's Peter Pascoe.
But his career spanned several decades on stage, television and film, ranging from Cold War dramas to comedy and even playing Winston Churchill in the West End.
The star, who also appeared in films such as Stanley Kubrick's A Clockwork Orange, is said to have died after a 'short illness'.
Actor Warren Clarke, known for his role in TV drama
Dalziel And Pascoe, died today at the age of 67.
Pictured right with co-star Colin Buchanan
Born into a poor Lancashire family, he worked hard to achieve fame, telling the Daily Mail in 2011 that he was a 'lucky b******', adding: 'Although I've worked nearly 50 years for this, through the tough times as well as the good times.'
Clarke was raised by his secretary mother and stained-glass window maker in a council house.
They died within a year of one another when Warren was in his 20s, leaving him and his sister Beryl, who is 11 years older, a ‘bunch of photographs and happy memories'.
He was conceived when his father returned from the War. He wanted to be a footballer until his passion for acting kicked in. ‘When I told my parents what I was going to do, they said, “Good luck, son.”
He told the paper that before one television series, 1989's Nice Work, he had to ask friends for money and his wife Michelle had to sell her engagement ring to buy food.
His first big-screen appearance could have led to stardom but was affected by factors out of his control.
A twenty-something Clarke appeared alongside Malcolm McDowell as Dim, a half-witted yet violently evil 'droog' in Stanley Kubrick's controversial 1971 dystopian masterpiece A Clockwork Orange, based on Anthony Burgess's novel.
After several court cases implicated the film's brutal violence, including the murder of a tramp in an underpass by a gang featuring McDowell and Clarke's characters, Kubrick withdrew the film from cinemas and it remained rarely shown until its re-release following his death in 1999.
With appearances in Coronation Street and the Avengers already under his belt Clarke went on to appear in numerous television series and films in a wide variety of roles.
Warren Clarke (left) as a thuggish droog in A Clockwork Orange with Malcolm McDowell (right)
Oldham-born Clarke was also known for his starring role in BBC series Down To Earth alongside Pauline Quirke, about a family who leave the rat race to relocate to rural Devon
They included a Russian dissident opposite Clint Eastwood in 1982 Cold War thriller Firefox, a violent football hooligan in 1995's British cult classic ID, and a nouveau-riche, pig-obsessed northern Regency industrialist opposite Rowan Atkinson and Miranda Richardson in Blackadder the Third in 1987.
This appearance spawned some of his best-loved lines, flattering his daughter (Richardson) by telling Blackadder: 'I'd no more place her in the hands of an unworthy man than I'd place my John Thomas in the hands of a lunatic with a pair of scissors' and 'I love her more than any pig, and that's saying summat'.
Other brief television appearances included Lovejoy, All Creatures Great and Small and The Onedin Line. He was was also known for his starring role in BBC series Down To Earth, about a family who leave the rat race to relocate to rural Devon.
Clarke with his wife, Michelle, the mother of his daughter Georgia who he met 30 years ago
But it was Dalziel and Pascoe which made him a household name. He starred as the ageing, gritty detective in the TV adaptation of Reginald Hill's stories about the chalk-and-cheese colleagues for 12 series from 1996 until its conclusion in 2007.
Other notable programmes have included the BBC adaptation of Bleak House nine years ago and Channel 4's Red Riding trilogy in 2009.
His death was announced by the agency which handled his career, Independent Talent Group.
A statement issued on behalf of his agent said: 'The actor Warren Clarke died peacefully in his sleep on November 12 2014, after a short illness.
'He will be greatly missed by his family and loved ones. At this time we ask that you respect their privacy in their time of grief.'
Warren Clarke with daughter Georgia Mabel on the Carribean Island of Barbados, and right, on the Alan Titchmarsh Show
Clarke’s marriage to his first wife and the mother of his son, Rowan, ended a few years after his parents died.
He said: ‘Not being there with Rowan (who was 10 at the time) was tough. Nobody has an easy time with divorce. You don’t like what’s happening but you have to get on with it. But I’ve got a happy marriage now.’
Warren met Michelle through friends 30 years ago. They tried for a baby for 20 years and had pretty much given up hope when Michele became pregnant with Georgia.
‘When I thought it would never happen, it did, then I thought, “Oh my God, I’m old enough to be a grandfather",' he said.
Many paid tribute to Clarke today.
Warren Clarke as Boythorn in the ground-breaking adaptation of Dickens' Bleak House for the BBC
Warren Clarke as Bob in football hooligan drama I.D. from 1995
Clarke as Winston Churchill in 'Three Days In May' at Trafalgar Studios, London
Actor David Morrisey tweeted: 'So sad to hear about the death of Warren Clarke. He was a very special man/a great actor. We had wonderful times together on Red Riding. RIP.'
Chasing Shadows actor Reece Shearsmith, who shared a screen with him in an ITV drama, calling him 'a very funny and lovely man'.
Emmerdale actor John Bowe, who has acted alongside him, said: 'Safe journey, Warren. And no arguments on the way.'
Writer and broadcaster Tony Parsons said: 'Warren Clarke was wonderful for 40 years - from Dalziel And Pascoe all the way back to Dim in Clockwork Orange.'
Clarke was a lifelong Manchester City fan and his death was mourned by the club. City's official Twitter feed included a message which read: 'Our thoughts are with the family and friends of Warren Clarke following sad news of the actor and MCFC fan's passing.'
Actor Will Mellor called him a 'good friend' and said in a message posted online: 'So sad to hear the news. I can't believe it. Great man.'
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