Richard Morant

[CaptainWaggett]

Star of 1970s costume dramas and latterly a carpenter in South West London. Also cousin of Penelope Wilton and one-time son-in-law of Douglas Fairbanks Jr

Richmond actor Richard Morant dies, aged 66 (From Richmond and Twickenham Times)

Richmond actor Richard Morant dies, aged 66

11:00am Sunday 20th November 2011
By Paul Teed
A respected British actor will forever be remembered for his generous and loving nature, after his death at the age of 66.
Richard Morant, who lived in Richmond for 30 years, died unexpectedly on Wednesday, November 9, after suffering an aneurysm. He left behind a wife and four children.
Morant’s wife of 30 years, Valerie, said many people knew her husband for his kind spirit and described him as the kind of man who would go out of his way to help others.
She said: “Richard was an incredibly generous person with his friends.
“He was very kind and the sort of person that you could always talk to. He always wanted to help other people and he was a terribly generous man who could never see people wanting for anything, even if he had nothing himself.”
Morant, a familiar face in area, grew up in a thespian family, following his aunt and uncle Linden and Bill Travers into the world of stage and television performances.
The confident actor starred in a range of productions throughout his career, including a stint playing school bully Flashman in a TV adaptation of Tom Brown’s Schooldays in the 1970s, a role as Prince Charles in a series called Woodstock and taking on the character of Mr Lenoir in a Famous Five adaptation.
In the past two years Morant had also made guest appearances on television shows New Tricks and Midsummer Murders.
Mrs Morant said: “He was, in his early days, very gregarious but he was much more meditative as he got older.
“Richard was a very spiritual man and very interested in things like Buddhism and did a lot of meditation.
“We were married for 30-odd years and we lived in Richmond for all that time and had a lot of happy memories here.”
Richard Morant’s funeral will take place at St John’s Wood Church, London, on Tuesday, November 22.
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[dremble wedge]

I knew he was the nephew of Linden Travers but I didn't realise he played Captain Zep - Space Detective in the 80s. I see that he appeared in New Tricks last year so he kept his acting career up and wasn't entirely lost to the carpet trade.

[jimw1]

Whenever I hear the Name Flashman I immediately think of him in that BBC Adaptation......R.I.P.

[CaptainWaggett]

I knew he was the nephew of Linden Travers but I didn't realise he played Captain Zep - Space Detective in the 80s. I see that he appeared in New Tricks last year so he kept his acting career up and wasn't entirely lost to the carpet trade.

My post seems to have been edited As Dremble points out, he was a carpeteer rather than a carpenter. When he wasn't being a hearthrob.

[wadey]

I cannot picture him, will this be his company ?

Richard Morant - custom carpets and design

[billy farmer]

Very sad news indeed.

R.I.P. Richard Morant.

Richard Morant appeared in several programmes that i have always liked including Callan, Poldark, Midsomer Murders and New Tricks.

One of my favourite Richard Morant TV roles was Dr Acland in the 2 part TV Mini-Series Jack The Ripper (1988)

Richard Morant also had a small part in Battle of Britain (1969) which is one of my all time favourite War films, Richard Morant also appeared in the film Scandal (1989).

[Dame Starry]

Richmond actor Richard Morant dies, aged 66 (From This Is Local London)

[Windyridge]

Played Bunter to Edward Petherbridge's Wimsey. Not a casting I would have thought of, but it worked very well. RIP Richard. A sad loss.

[Elaine]

What a shock, Richard Morant. I keep forgetting the years pass so quickly. He played Dwight Ennis in Poldark which I watched again for the first time in years last week. R.I.P. Richard.

[jaycad]

Sorry to hear of Richard Morants untimely death-I enjoyed his portrayal of 'Bunter' in the 'Dorothy L.Sayers Mysteries' and 'Dr Acland' in 'Jack the Ripper' but will always remember him as 'Flashman' in 'Tom Browns Schooldays'. R.I.P.

[Arfur Teacake]

Whenever I hear the Name Flashman I immediately think of him in that BBC Adaptation......R.I.P.

Have not seen it since but never forgot his portrail of Flashman -brilliant

[didi-5]

How sad. Not a household name but a familiar face.

[wellendcanons]

He was excellent as Dr Acland in Jack The Ripper, though I felt he overplayed his final scenes. Also had good appearences in Bergerac, New Tricks and the film Scandel.

Richard Morant.

wec

[jaycad]

He was excellent as Dr Acland in Jack The Ripper, though I felt he overplayed his final scenes.

wec

Yes-I know exactly what scene you refer to but let's face it,who didn't over-act at least one scene in 'Jack the Ripper'?

[Tigon Man]

A good actor. I remember him as a fine Johnstone in a schools production of The Long The Short and The Tall opposite Mark McManus and Michael Kitchen. I watched him the other day, very young in The Rivals of Sherlock Holmes from 1972.
66, too young really.

RIP

[wellendcanons]

Yes-I know exactly what scene you refer to but let's face it,who didn't over-act at least one scene in 'Jack the Ripper'?

That's a fair and good point. However, despite whatever over-acting that took place it was a magnificant adaption.

wec

[billy farmer]

That's a fair and good point. However, despite whatever over-acting that took place it was a magnificant adaption.

wec

I agree, i have always thought that the 2 part TV Mini-Series Jack The Ripper (1988) was a magnificent production, very atmospheric and the period detail was wonderful.

[ayrshireman]

How sad. Not a household name but a familiar face.

Agree. I am genuinely shocked at this death.

I agree, i have always thought that the 2 part TV Mini-Series Jack The Ripper (1988) was a magnificent production, very atmospheric and the period detail was wonderful.

Hmmm. I enjoyed it, and I am a fan of both Caine and Collins, but then and now I think it was an overblown TV film of the week. And of course based on a nonsense theory.

[julian_craster]

Richard Morant: Actor best known as Flashman, and as Dr Enys in 'Poldark'




by Jonathan Hope

Richard Morant: Actor best known as Flashman, and as Dr Enys in 'Poldark' - Obituaries - News - The Independent

Friday 25 November 2011


The actor Richard Morant was a darkly handsome presence on British television and stage. His portrayal of the archetypal bully Flashman in the 1971 BBC adaptation of Tom Brown's Schooldays terrified a generation of British children and remains the benchmark performance of the role to this day.

He also captured many a viewer's heart in the costume drama Poldark (adapted from Winston Graham's novel) as the irresistible and kind Dr Dwight Enys. From 1975 onwards, alongside his career as an actor, he ran his own Notting Hill gallery where he sold central Asian carpets and textiles.

Richard Morant was one of fivechildren born to the Shakespearean actor Philip Morant and his wife Pearl Travers in the village of Tredington, Warwickshire. Richard had an exceptional treble voice and sang solos in the church choir. Along with two of hissisters, and his first cousin, Penelope Wilton, he was naturally drawn toacting and went to study at the Central School of Speech and Drama inLondon, where he shared a housein Camden with fellow studentsDavid Dundas, Bruce Robinson and Michael Feast.

The ménage is recalled by his sister Angie as being permanently on the edge of chaos, but with its own shambolic style and frequent riotous parties with surprisingly good food. When Robinson went on to write the script of Withnail and I a decade or so later, he drew on these days for material.

Morant joined the Prospect theatre soon after graduating and toured in company with Ian McKellen, appearing in Shakespeare's Richard II, Edward II and Twelfth Night. More stage work followed, as well as the roles inTom Brown's Schooldays, and Poldark (1975-76). In 1974, having seen hisFlashman, Ken Russell had cast Morant as acomposite character called Max, scornful and mischievous, representing Alma Mahler's lovers in the fantastical biopic Mahler.

During the next decade Morant played characters as varied as Robespierre, opposite Anthony Andrews's Scarlet Pimpernel (1982), Brian Epstein in a TV drama called John and Yoko (1985) and the bridegroom in Neil Jordan's The Company of Wolves (1985). His career slowed down during the late 1980s but his mellifluous voice was in demand for voice-overs and radio, and three months ago he recorded the audio book of Julian Barnes' Booker prize-winner The Sense of an Ending.

Alongside his acting Morant had a parallel career as a dealer in carpets and textiles. He set up the Richard Morant Gallery in 1975, taking over the premises from his business partner David Black, a major figure in the world of central Asian textiles. The gallery was well stocked with 19th and early 20th century material, but Morant took most pride in the contemporary pieces, often of his own design, hand-loomed to order in rural Turkey using organic dyes, with either traditional patterns or adaptations of textiles from elsewhere.

There were William Morris-style knotted carpets and kilims based on early Peruvian weavings. The traditional communities who made these textiles inspired Richard with their values and respect for nature and the sacred. He would return home from visiting his weavers invigorated and optimistic. On the Dalai Lama's most recent tour of this country, he addressed an audience seated on a rug designed by Richard.

After a long spiritual journey Richard found what he had been searching for and gained an acceptance of life's impermanence. Buddhist thought and philosophy enriched his very existence and visitors to the gallery sometimes spotted a discreet shrine in a corner near his desk. He was able to communicate some of his inner calm to those close to him when they were in need and had a gentle gift for friendship, managing to be gregarious without being formally social. Classical music was something of a passion, as was literature, and, surprisingly, he devoured modern thrillers.

Although profound and ascetic, he had an earthy side with a delightful laugh that came easily. Recently, I told him how bad I had found the last episodes of Downton Abbey. Richard replied, laughing heartily, that yes, it was awful, and what was more awful was that he wasn't in it. He will be greatly missed.

Richard Morant, actor and gallerist: born Shipston on Stour, Warwickshire 30 October 1945; married 1969 Melissa Fairbanks (one son, one daughter; marriage dissolved 1979), 1982 Valerie Buchanan (one son, one daughter); died Richmond, Surrey 9 November 2011.

[Moor Larkin]

Every time I read my George MacDonald Fraser books, it shall be He who rides and romps.......

It seems the man might be appalled at the idea.... The perils of the acting profession...

I am quite shocked......