Geoffrey Hutchings

Geoffrey Hutchings (8 June 1939 – 1 July 2010) was an English stage, film and television actor.

Early life and career Hutchings was born in Dorchester, Dorset, England. After attending Hardye's School, he studied French and Physical Education at the University of Birmingham before attending the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and later joining the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1968.

Career Stage With the RSC from 1968 until the 1980s Hutchings played many roles in Shakespeare, including Launce, Octavius Caesar and Pandar. He played Bosola in the 1971 RSC production of John Webster's The Duchess of Malfi. Hutchings made his name particularly in Shakespeare's comic roles, including Dromio of Syracuse, Bottom, Feste, Lavache, Autolycus and Doctor Caius. Hutchings' singing voice often featured in his comic roles, with his appearance in 1982 as Lady Dodo in the musical Poppy winning a Laurence Olivier Award for Best Comedy Performance.

In 1998, he played Carry On actor Sid James in the Royal National Theatre's production of Terry Johnson's stage play Cleo, Camping, Emmanuelle and Dick, a behind-the-scenes look at the love affair between Sid James and his co-star Barbara Windsor, which was subsequently made into an ITV drama, Cor, Blimey!, in 2000. In 2004, he played Nagg in Samuel Beckett's Endgame at the Albery Theatre alongside Michael Gambon, Lee Evans and Liz Smith. From October 2006 to April 2007, he played Herr Schultz in the West End production of Cabaret. His final stage role was in 2009 in the West End production of The Shawshank Redemption.

Film and TV In 1980, Hutchings starred as a character called Trunky Porter in the TV series Juliet Bravo.

In 1987, Hutchings played Harry Stobbs in series 3, episode 4 of The Bill.

A first collaboration with David Leland for the film Made in Britain (directed by Alan Clarke and starring Tim Roth) in 1981 has led to his notable role as Hubert Mansell, the father of Emily Lloyd in Wish You Were Here in 1987.

His other film successes included White Hunter, Black Heart (with Clint Eastwood), Henry V (with Kenneth Branagh), Topsy-Turvy (with Jim Broadbent), Clockwise (with John Cleese), The Thief Lord (as Conte) and The Affair of the Necklace (with Hilary Swank).

On television, his most notable role has probably been in Our Friends in the North (1996), in which he played corrupt building contractor John Edwards, a character closely based on the real-life figure of John Poulson. He also had a semi-regular role as Bobby Hollamby in the ITV prison drama Bad Girls from 2000 to 2003. Earlier, he had played second fiddle to Michael Gambon in 12 episodes of Maigret in 1992–1993. He also narrated several audiobooks based on Georges Simenon's Maigret stories. In 2005, he played Lionel Morris in ITV's Heartbeat. In 2007, Hutchings made a guest appearance in ITV drama Wild at Heart.

In December 2006, he made an appearance in the Sky One television adaptation of Terry Pratchett's Hogfather. From 2008 to 2009, he appeared in the ITV comedy series Benidorm as Mel Harvey and had a small role in the second Terry Pratchett adaptation Terry Pratchett's The Colour of Magic.

In February 2009, he appeared in EastEnders as Roger Clarke, Jane and Christian's father, and in the BBC film Nativity!.

In 2010, he appeared in the BBC medical drama Casualty and the sitcom Grandma's House, both of which were screened after his death.

He was a regular, as Mel Harvey, in the popular TV show Benidorm as the owner of five sunbed shops in the Greater Manchester area, appearing in Series 2 (2008), Series 3 (2009) and a 2009 special. His sudden death, just before the shooting of the 2010 Christmas special, meant that the script had to be heavily rewritten, with his character's death said to have occurred off-screen on a business trip abroad.

Death Hutchings died from meningitis in hospital on the morning of 1 July 2010. He was cremated at Kensal Green Cemetery, West London. Filmography Film Year Title Role Notes 1975 1982 Television film 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1999 2001 2003 2006 2009 Documentary 2010 Final film role to date Television Year Title Role Notes 1965 Television film Episode: "Entry Into Society" 1966 Episode: "A Little of What You Fancy" 1974 Television film 1975 Episode: "#2.2" 1976 2 episodes Episode: "The Snatch" 1977 Raffles Episode: "The Chest of Silver" 1980 Episode: "Retribution" / Episode: "The One Who Got Away" 1983 Episode: "#1.2" 1984 Episode: "A Muse of Fire" 2 episodes 1986 5 episodes Episode: "The Ends and the Means" Television film 1987–2004 / / 3 episodes 1989 Episode: "Weekend Off" Episode: "Infidels" / 2 episodes 1990 6 episodes 4 episodes Television film 1991 Television film 1991–1993 / 2 episodes 1992 Episode: "The Long Way Home" 1992–1993 12 episodes 1993 Episode: "Last Orders at the Winchester" Episode: "Room Service" Television film Episode: "One Day a Lemming Will Fly: Part 1" 1994 Episode: "Helen's Parents" 1994–2010 Casualty / / / 4 episodes 1995 3 episodes Episode: "Henry IV" 1996 4 episodes Television film 2 episodes 4 episodes 1998 Episode: "#1.2" 8 episodes Television film 1999 Episode: "Previous Convictions" Television film 1999–2009 / 2 episodes 2000 Television film Television film Episode: "Family Law" 2000–2003 4 episodes 2002 Episode: "Second Chances" Episode: "Count on Me" Television film Episode: "Eagle Day" 2003 / 2 episodes 2005 Episode: "Duty Bound" Episode: "Shadows from the Past" Television film Episode: "#1.4" 2006 Television filmas Geoffrey Hutchins 2007 Wild at Heart Episode: "#2.2" Television film Episode: "Environment" 2008 2 episodes Episode: "#1.2" 2009 Benidorm 15 episodes EastEnders 3 episodes 2010 Grandma's House 6 episodes