Tony Haygarth

Tony Haygarth was a notable British actor who appeared in dozens of films and television shows over the course of his 50-plus year acting career. Born and raised in Liverpool, England, Haygarth never intended on becoming an actor. After briefly attending Liverpool College, he dropped out and took on a number of various odd jobs, including becoming a lifeguard, a psychiatrist nurse, even trying his hand at being a Houdini-like professional escape artist. He failed at everything, however, and it wasn't until he tried acting that Haygarth realized he had found his true calling. Haygarth began his career on the London stage, appearing in numerous plays produced by the Royal Shakespeare Company and National Theatre. In the late 60s and early 70s he gravitated towards screen acting work, landing his first film role in the 1971 British comedy "Percy." Over the course of the 70s Haygarth racked up numerous TV credits with one-off roles on shows like "Last of the Summer Wine" (BBC, 1973-2010) and "Churchill's People" (BBC, 1974-75). One of his very first breakout film roles came in 1979 when he nabbed a supporting role in the horror film "Dracula," which exposed Haygarth to a whole new slate of avid filmgoers. He followed that up with a recurring role on the short-lived sci-fi comedy "Kinvig" (ITV, 1981), while continuing to act steadily in both films and TV shows throughout the 80s and 90s. In 2000 Haygarth voiced the role of Mr. Tweedy in the hit animated comedy "Chicken Run," and went on to land supporting roles in films like "Horatio Hornblower 3" (2003), "Fakers" (2004), and "Gracie!" (2010) throughout the remainder of the decade. Haygarth's last credited acting role was in a 2013 episode of the long-running medical soap opera "Doctors" (BBC, 2000- ). After a long and memorable screen acting career, spanning over half a century, Tony Haygarth died of Alzheimer's disease on March 10, 2017. He was 72.