Crown Court TV Series (1972-2007) main cast

Peter Wheeler was born on 8 December 1934 in Hartlepool, County Durham, England, UK. He was an actor, known for Crown Court (1972), The XYY Man (1976) and Coronation Street (1960). He was married to Pat. He died on 18 May 2010 in Manchester, Greater Manchester, England, UK.

Joseph Berry is known for Crown Court (1972), Persuasion (1971) and Second City Firsts (1973).

Richard Colson is known for Les Misérables (2012), First Among Equals (1986) and Crown Court (1972).

Derek Hockridge was born in 1934 in Cardiff, Wales, UK. He was an actor, known for Crown Court (1972), Coronation Street (1960) and The One Game (1988). He died on 8 August 2013 in Poole, Dorset, England, UK.

David Ashford was born on 16 October 1941 in Torquay, Devon, England, UK. He was an actor, known for Mystery!: Malice Aforethought (1979), Crown Court (1972) and Casualty (1986). He died on 17 December 2020.

The son of a colonial offcial he was brought up in Yorkshire where with no theatrical training he joined the Hull Repertory company where after a short time he was, for the only time in his career, given a juvenile lead and taken off after 2 nights as he had to kiss a girl and she complained. He was never really young. After his demob at the end of WWII in which he served as a military administrator to an African outpost as the oldest 2nd lt. in the army. Bald and dome headed from his early 30's he established himself in a succession of stage and television successes which led to his best known role as Inspector Rose, an upper crust detective, from 1963 to 1968. On BBC he overlapped in the series All Gas and Gaiters. Other series included a 3 year stint as the Judge in Crown Court plus the odd film including The Ruling Class and The Railway Children. He died 6 August 1976 leaving his wife Anne and 3 sons, Michael, Richard and Nicholas

John Barron was born on Christmas Eve, 1920. A kind godfather paid his training fees at RADA in 1938. During the war, he served in the Navy, then returned to acting after demob, mostly in rep. productions. He soon became a theatre director, and directed Leonard Rossiter in numerous productions throughout the 1950s. His first regular TV role was in Emergency-Ward 10 (1957), which was quickly followed by many sitcoms. Since recording the third series, John has lost two wives: Joan Peart (who played Mrs. E. Blythe-Erpingham in Series Three, Episode Five) died in 1989, after 40 years marriage. His second wife, actress Helen Christie, died in 1995. He now concentrates on theatre work and lives in a cottage in Sussex. His hobbies include fine wines.

Bernard Gallagher was born on 26 September 1929 in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England, UK. He was an actor, known for Casualty (1986), A Brother's Tale (1983) and Downton Abbey (2010). He was married to Sylvia Vickers. He died on 27 November 2016 in Brighton, East Sussex, England, UK.

Richard Wilson OBE (born Iain Carmichael Wilson) is a Scottish actor, theatre director and broadcaster. He played Victor Meldrew in the BBC sitcom One Foot in the Grave (1990). A later role was as Gaius, the court physician of Camelot, in the BBC drama Merlin (2008).

Wilson was born in Greenock, Scotland. He studied science in Greenock, and did National Service with the Royal Army Medical Corps, serving in Singapore. He worked in a laboratory at Stobhill Hospital in Glasgow as a research scientist before switching to acting when he was 27. He trained at RADA and then appeared in repertory theatres in Edinburgh (Traverse Theatre), Glasgow and Manchester (Stables Theatre).

He initially turned down the role of Victor Meldrew and it was almost offered to Les Dawson before Wilson changed his mind.

Wilson was awarded the OBE for services to drama as a director and actor in 1994. In April 1996, he was elected Rector of the University of Glasgow for a term of three years.

Wilson's biography, One Foot on the Stage: The Biography of Richard Wilson, was written by James Roose-Evans.

Wilson has worked for the gay rights campaign group Stonewall, and is one of the patrons of Scottish Youth Theatre. He is also a long-time supporter of the charity Sense, and in 2007 hosted their annual award ceremony. He is also one of the honorary patrons of the London children's charity Scene & Heard.

The narration of "The Man Who Called Himself Jesus", from Strawbs' eponymous first album, was performed by Wilson.

He is a major supporter of the Labour Party, and he recorded the party's manifesto for the 2010 General Election.

In March 2011, Wilson presented an edition of the Channel 4 current affairs programme Dispatches (1987) entitled Train Journeys from Hell (2011), with transport journalist Christian Wolmar highlighting the failings of the British rail network.

Wilson was a supporter of his local football club, Greenock Morton, but he has come to lend greater support to English club Manchester United. He is a patron of the Manchester United Supporters Trust. Wilson has been a campaigner for gay rights for many years, and he came out as gay in a Daily Mail interview in March 2013. He is good friends with his One Foot in the Grave (1990) co-star Angus Deayton, and is godfather to Deayton's son.

It was reported on 12 August 2016 that Wilson had suffered a heart attack. He had been due to reprise the role of Victor Meldrew in a one-man show at the 2016 Edinburgh Fringe Festival.

Dorothy Vernon was born in 1939 in Worksop, Nottinghamshire, England, UK. She was an actress, known for Crown Court (1972), The First Kangaroos (1988) and Coronation Street (1960). She was married to Vincent Carratu and Colin George. She died on 25 June 2014 in Banstead, Surrey, England, UK.

Jonathan Elsom was born on 22 September 1938 in Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand. He is an actor, known for Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales (2017), The Avengers (1961) and Lady Killers (1980).

John Alkin was born on 17 January 1947 in Rugby, England, UK. He is an actor, known for Sweeney 2 (1978), Sweeney! (1977) and Albert and Victoria (1970).

John Flanagan was born on 30 April 1947 in Ripley, Derbyshire, England, UK. He is an actor and writer, known for Brazil (1985), Sweeney 2 (1978) and Robin Hood (1984).

John Jardine was born in 1934 in Hendon, Middlesex, England, UK. He is an actor, known for Coronation Street (1960), A Bit of a Do (1989) and Crown Court (1972).

Charles Keating was born on 22 October 1941 in London, England, UK. He was an actor, known for Another World (1964), The Thomas Crown Affair (1999) and The Bodyguard (1992). He was married to Mary Ellen Cudbody. He died on 8 August 2014 in Weston, Connecticut, USA.

Edward Jewesbury was born on 6 August 1917 in Marylebone, London, England, UK. He was an actor, known for Richard III (1995), Much Ado About Nothing (1993) and Henry V (1989). He was married to Christine Roberts. He died on 31 March 2001 in Esher, Surrey, England, UK.

A police officer's son, Terrence E. Hardiman was born in Forest Gate, Essex (the area was later absorbed into London). He went to school in Essex, graduated in 1956 and then proceeded to study English at Cambridge University's Fitzwilliam College. He began his career on the Shakespearean stage as an amateur thespian with the Cambridge University Players and The Marlowe Society in the late 1950s. After an impressive early performance as Mephistopheles in Doctor Faustus, Hardiman joined the Royal Shakespeare Company in Stratford-Upon-Avon. A member of the ensemble from 1966 to 1970, he made regular appearances in classic plays like King Lear, Hamlet and (as Starveling the tailor) in Peter Brook's notably minimalist production of A Midsummer Night's Dream.

Acting on screen from 1965, Hardiman excelled in the portrayal of autocratic, imperious or sinister characters. He reached the peak of his popularity as the piercingly green-eyed, mind control-using antagonist of The Demon Headmaster (1996), a children's sci-fi series which made the actor a much recognized figure in and around London. In real life, Hardiman was known as a "good-natured gentleman" of amiable temperament.

Prior to his role as the demonic principal, Hardiman had enjoyed recurring roles in Softly Softly: Task Force (1969) (Inspector Armstrong), Secret Army (1977) (Luftwaffe chief Major Hans Dietrich Reinhardt) and Granada's Crown Court (1972) (barrister Stephen Harvesty). His impressively diverse gallery of personae in guest-starring appearances on television and in occasional forays to the big screen has included abbots and cardinals, Nazi officers, doctors, judges, police superintendents, university professors, a grand wizard (The Worst Witch (1998)) and even a Prime Minister (Ramsay McDonald in Gandhi (1982)).

In addition to his work on stage and screen, Hardiman provided narration and voice-overs for numerous audio books by authors ranging from Roald Dahl and Ken Follett to Inspector Morse creator Colin Dexter and Wilkie Collins. He was married for almost six decades to the actress Rowena Cooper. Hardiman died on April 18 2023 at the age of 86.

William Simons was born on 17 November 1940 in Mumbles, South Wales, UK. He was an actor, known for Cribb (1980), Heartbeat (1992) and Ivory Hunter (1951). He was married to Jackie Simons and Janie Lowther. He died on 21 June 2019 in England, UK.

John made his acting debut at the Theatre Royal, Bournemouth. After spending a year in various reps. including Hastings, Watford and Eastbourne, he was conscripted into the Devon Yeomanry during the war and served in Italy and Sicily, but contracted hepatitis. He then became a member of the Army Bureau For Current Affairs - Play Unit, touring England, France and Germany. He then spent many years in theatre, before branching out into films and starring alongside David Niven and John Mills. He has also appeared in many TV roles.

Bernard Brown was born on 10 February 1933 in Deal, Kent, England, UK. He is an actor, known for Barnaby Rudge (1960), North and South (1966) and The Avengers (1961). He was previously married to Joan How.

Stanley Page was born on 15 January 1932 in Geelong, Victoria, Australia. He was an actor, known for Crown Court (1972), Coronation Street (1960) and Armchair Thriller (1978). He died on 4 March 2016 in Kingston-upon-Thames, Surrey, England, UK.

Richard Warner was born on 24 May 1911 in Congerstone, Leicester, Leicestershire, England, UK. He was an actor, known for Mary, Queen of Scots (1971), Maurice (1987) and Great Expectations (1959). He was married to Phyllida de Joncourt Ball. He died on 14 January 1989 in Kent, England, UK.

Tom Harrison is known for Crown Court (1972), The Secret Garden (1975) and Coronation Street (1960).

Alick Hayes was born on 14 March 1908 in Manchester, England, UK. He was an actor and writer, known for My Sister and I (1956), Coronation Street (1960) and Just William (1946). He died on 5 February 1983 in Great Budworth, Cheshire, England, UK.

Eirwyn Davies is known for Crown Court (1972), Coronation Street (1960) and Red Letter Day (1976).