I suspect neither really minded too much. Clive Swift obituary Actor best known as the downtrodden husband of Hyacinth Bucket in Keeping Up Appearances Clive Swift and Patricia Routledge at a photocall for Keeping Up Appearances, 1991. The comic star became well-known for his role as Richard Bucket, the henpecked husband of Hyacinth Bucket in the BBC series mocking UK class obsessions. Clive Swift was best-known for his role as Richard Bucket, the henpecked husband of Hyacinth Bucket in the BBC series mocking UK class obsessions. But it was his role as embattled Richard in Keeping Up Appearances where he found his way into the hearts of the nation. MPs also spoke of their sadness at Clive's death. CLIVE Swift, who starred in classic British comedy Keeping Up Appearances, has died aged 82. TOUCHING tributes from TV stars, writers and producers have poured out online for Keeping Up Appearances actor Clive Swift, who sadly died today aged 82. Clive and his brother, David – who also became an actor – were sent to Clifton college in Bristol. Clive Swift died today at the age of 82 after a short ... Clive Swift and Patricia Routledge played the Buckets in Keeping Up ... and police say they are not treating his death as suspicious. He was married to Margaret Drabble. His television work initially paid the bills rather than making him famous, though it included plays by Shakespeare including All’s Well That Ends Well and A Midsummer Night’s Dream in 1968, and the miniseries of Dickens’s Dombey and Son the following year. Clive Walter Swift (9 February 1936 – 1 February 2019) was an English actor and songwriter. Stars Clive Swift and Patricia Rutledge in "Keeping Up Appearances" (Photo: BBC) Many of you have likely already heard the sad news that veteran British actor Clive Swift passed away this week at the age of 82. Clive Swift and Patricia Routledge in Keeping Up With Appearances. Clive was married to novelist Margaret Drabble between 1960 and 1975 and had a daughter Rebecca, who sadly died in April 2017. CLIVE SWIFT played Hyacinth Bucket’s (Patricia Routledge) henpecked husband Richard in Keeping Up Appearances (1990-95) By Tony Padman PUBLISHED: 00:01, Sat, Apr 5, 2014 He was best known for his role as Richard Bucket, the long-suffering husband of Hyacinth (played by Dame Patricia Routledge) in the British television series Keeping Up Appearances, but played many other film and television roles. Clive famously played Richard Bucket - the downtrodden and long-suffering husband of snob Hyacinth Bucket - in the beloved BBC show. Such a lovely man.". "He excelled at it, and it was a treat to watch him.". To be both funny and emotionally real in a three-camera audience sitcom is the rarest of skills. He worked alongside Dame Patricia Routledge, who played his class-obsessed wife, who famously pronounced Bucket as "Bouquet". Actor Clive Swift has died aged 82. "To be both funny and emotionally real in a three-camera audience sitcom is the rarest of skills. Later TV included Born and Bred (2003), in which he played the Reverend Brewer, The Old Guys (2009), a series in which he co-starred with Roger Lloyd Pack, and an appearance in the sitcom Cuckoo (2014). Keeping Up Appearances actor Clive Swift has passed away aged 82. The star … Email us at tips@the-sun.co.uk or call 0207 782 4368. Then he gravitated to the Prospect theatre company, and appeared in The Big Breaker, The Tempest and The Gamecock. You can WhatsApp us on 07810 791 502. For other inquiries, Contact Us. Clive Swift has died aged 82, it has been confirmed. Lovely to see them enjoying a bit of cricket.". (Image: Mirrorpix) Read More Related Articles. News Corp is a network of leading companies in the worlds of diversified media, news, education, and information services. Gwilym Mumford. Leading the Twitter tributes was Little Britain actor Matt Lucas, who wrote: "RIP Clive Swift, who gave one of the greatest, low-key onscreen performances I've ever seen, in Colin Welland's seminal Roll On Four O'Clock.". To see all content on The Sun, please use the Site Map. Fri 1 Feb 2019 12.10 EST. At Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge, where he studied English, he took part in student dramatics and met Drabble. This service is provided on News Group Newspapers' Limited's Standard Terms and Conditions in accordance with our Privacy & Cookie Policy. He encountered comparatively little of it, however, working steadily on television as well as having a solid stage career, with the occasional film thrown in. The show comprised five series and 44 episodes, four of which are Christmas … "The Sun", "Sun", "Sun Online" are registered trademarks or trade names of News Group Newspapers Limited. He remained a member of the company until 1968, taking roles in Cymbeline, Measure for Measure, Henry V, The Merry Wives of Windsor, All’s Well That Ends Well, Macbeth and King Lear, as well as playing Inspector Voss in Friedrich Dürrenmatt’s The Physicists and the Sewerman in John Whiting’s The Devils. The British star acted alongside Patricia Routledge on the long-running series, as Hyncinth Bucket's husband Richard. Patricia Routledge and Clive Swift in the acclaimed snob-com What was Clive Swift's cause of death? Swift would often receive marital advice or encouragement from members of the public. Angela Rayner said: "I loved his character along with Hyacinth Bucket, one of my favourite comedies, he leaves some brilliant comedy moments behind. Swift’s interest in, and concern for, other actors led him to write two books on his vocation. Clive Swift, Actor: Excalibur. Interesting to note that Patricia Routledge was seven years older than Clive Swift, she is still going strong at the age of 89. John Challis, who played Boycie in Only Fools and Horses, tweeted a picture of the Clive at a cricket match with his son. When in 2004 the actor Simon Callow referred to it as “a minor public school”, Swift wrote a letter to the Guardian pointing out that, when he attended it, Clifton was “one of the elite schools allowed to play annually at Lord’s”. View our online Press Pack. Patricia Routledge is 90 later this month, glad she is still going strong, it will be a sad day when we lose the Bucket(Bouquet) women as she is a legend. His agent confirmed he died "peacefully at home" this morning surrounded by his family. Very sad to hear of the death of Clive Swift. To inquire about a licence to reproduce material, visit our Syndication site. The central character is an eccentric and snobbish lower middle class social climber, Hyacinth Bucket (Patricia Routledge), who insists that her surname is pronounced "Bouquet". 2 years ago. Dame Katherine Patricia Routledge, DBE (/ ˈ r aʊ t l ɪ dʒ /; born 17 February 1929) is an English actress, comedian, broadcaster and singer with one of the longest careers of an entertainer, spanning more than 70 years.For her role as Hyacinth Bucket in the BBC sitcom Keeping Up Appearances (1990–1995), she was nominated for the BAFTA TV Award for Best Light … Patricia Routledge and Clive Swift in Pebble Mill interview in 1993 He also played Sir Ector, the adoptive father of King Arthur in John Boorman's 1981 film Excalibur. Swift has died following a short illness. Patricia Routledge & Clive Swift as Hyacinth and Richard Bucket in Keeping Up Appearances. Photograph: Allstar/BBC. He worked alongside Dame Patricia Routledge, who played his class-obsessed wife, who famously pronounced Bucket as "Bouquet". It was on television as Richard Bucket, downtrodden husband of the petty snob Hyacinth Bucket (which she pronounced “Bouquet”) in the BBC series Keeping Up Appearances from 1990 to 1995 that he is likely to be most remembered. Comedy writer Simon Blackwell, who was behind The Tick Of It and Peep Show, said he was sad to hear Clive had passed. Patricia Routledge and Clive Swift in the acclaimed snob-com What Continue Reading ... Keeping Up Appearances actor Clive Swift dies aged 82. He was also the moving spirit in 1979 in establishing the Actors Centre in London, where actors can experiment with techniques and ideas. The tweet said: "So sorry to hear that Clive Swift has died. Working with Patricia Routledge, who played his social-climbing wife, was an experience he found stimulating. Last modified on Thu 26 Mar 2020 12.29 GMT. Clive Swift with Patricia Routledge in Keeping Up Appearances: his air of exasperated resignation was a perfect counterpoint to his screen wife’s airs and graces Credit: Television Stills When Drabble published her second novel, The Garrick Year, in 1964, about a woman married to an actor, Swift accepted that the character was a composite figure rather than based on him, but said he lived with the feeling that “you didn’t know what was going to happen next”. Clive Swift was born on February 9, 1936 in Liverpool, England as Clive Walter Swift. Clive Swift has died aged 82. The classically-trained actor starred in more than 40 episodes of the show as social climber Hyacinth's hen-pecked husband. The Job of Acting (1976) was a steady seller that he revised for a new edition eight years later, and he followed it up with The Performing World of the Actor (1981). Dame Patricia Routledge starred alongside Swift (Ian West/PA) Keeping Up Appearances began in 1990 and Swift achieved widespread fame, starring in … Clive Swift, left, as Roy and Roger Lloyd Pack as Tom in The Old Guys, 2010. Clive Swift, who has died aged 82, believed that unemployment was as natural, and possibly even as necessary, a part of an actor’s life as employment, enabling him to experience, feel and think afresh. Keeping Up Appearances star Clive Swift, who famously played Hyacinth Bucket's long-suffering husband Richard, has sadly died aged 82. He complained that lorry drivers beside him at traffic lights would shout out: “Why don’t you leave the old cow?”. According to The Sun , Swift died "peacefully in his home" surrounded by family. For further details of our complaints policy and to make a complaint please click this link: thesun.co.uk/editorial-complaints/, Comments are subject to our community guidelines, which can be viewed, Matt Lucas praised classically trained Clive for his fantastic acting, John Challis, who played Boycie in Only Fools and Horses, tweeted his heartfelt condolences to Clive's son Joe, The Thick Of IT and Peep Show writer and producer Simon Blackwell, Emmerdale and I'm A Celeb star Vicki Michelle tweeted a tribute to Clive, who she had worked with in the past, Actor James Dreyfus described Clive as 'extremely talented', Writer and broadcaster Matthew Sweet said Clive was 'one of the world's great cardigan actors', The Thick of It writer Simon Blackwell also praised Clive for his 'rare' acting abilities, MP Angela Rayner expressed her sadness at Clive's death, saying he left behind 'brilliant comedy moments', Late Clive Swift in classic scene from Keeping up Appearances, Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO). Patricia Routledge and Clive Swift starred in ‘Keeping Up Appearances.’ (BBC) The neighborhood sitcom Keeping Up Appearances was a hit in both the U.K. and the U.S., airing on BBC and regularly re-airing on PBS. 679215 Registered office: 1 London Bridge Street, London, SE1 9GF. His first professional appearance, in 1959, was as Dr Bushtact in the British premiere of Take the Fool Away, a JB Priestley play in which a Victorian clown is transported into the future world of bombs and moon rockets. In 1960 Swift joined the Royal Shakespeare Company. His films included Alfred Hitchcock’s Frenzy (1972), John Boorman’s Excalibur (1981) and David Lean’s A Passage to India (1984). In real life Swift had married the writer Margaret Drabble in 1960. He appeared in more than 40 episodes of the TV sitcom. He was an actor, known for Excalibur (1981), Frenzy (1972) and Keeping Up Appearances (1990). Clive Swift and Patricia Routledge both starred in Keeping Up Appearances (Image: Mirrorpix) "Because he’d be just a bit of fluff for Hyacinth. Keeping Up Appearances actor Clive Swift dies aged 82. Swift’s daughter died in 2017. Swift died peacefully at home following an illness, his family confirmed. Clive Swift death: Keeping Up ... (Patricia Routledge) for which he was best known. At Lamda in 1970 he directed The Wild Goose Chase and his own adaptation of The Lower Depths. From 1970 he taught and directed at the Rada and Lamda acting schools in London. Click here to upload yours. Clive Swift and Patricia Routledge at a photocall for Keeping Up Appearances, 1991. He tweeted: "I had the pleasure of writing for him a few years ago. He was born in Liverpool and later studied English at Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge, where he met his wife. The Manchester Guardian regarded the play as “a depressing experience” but praised the cast. He … Patricia Routledge is "very, very sad" about the death of Geoffrey Hughes last week.. RIP Clive.". Picture: Supplied Source:Supplied KEEPING Up Appearances actor Clive Swift has died aged 82. The 83-year-old actress played stuffy Hyacinth Bucket in TV series … How Liverpool FC staff gave autistic fan with "no friends" the best birthday ever He also took roles in Winston Churchill: the Wilderness Years (1981), Tales of the Unexpected (1982), The Barchester Chronicles (1982), The Pickwick Papers (1985) and First Among Equals (1986), before being cast in Keeping Up Appearances. The series originally aired for five seasons from 1990 through 1995, following the antics of social climber Hyacinth Bucket (pronounced Bouquet, according to her). In 1988 he played a money-grubbing pharmacist in the series A Very Peculiar Practice. 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He played the role opposite Dame Patricia Routledge from 1990 to 1995, and appeared in 42 episodes of the show. Clive joined the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1960 and had roles in Henry V, The Merry Wives of Windsor, All’s Well That Ends Well, Macbeth and King Lear. He graced our screens from 1990 to 1995 alongside Patricia Routledge and also had a role in a Doctor Who Christmas special as Mr Copper. He also toured America with the RSC. In 1970 his face became more familiar in the Inspector Waugh crime series, though he was still in demand for TV Shakespeare, playing Friar Lawrence in the 1976 production of Romeo and Juliet and also appearing in Pericles (1984) and Othello (1990). “After a short illness Clive died peacefully at home this morning surrounded by his family,” a representative for the star said. It is a phenomenon that will be instantly recognised by the actress who played his screen wife, Dame Patricia Routledge, who also enjoyed an award-laden, high-end theatrical career only to be forever locked in the public imagination as suburban super-snob Hyacinth. Swift also appeared in the 2007 Doctor Who Christmas special. They were together for 15 years, and had two sons, Adam and Joe, and a daughter, Rebecca. Clive has been described as am 'extremely talented' actor and a 'lovely man'. He was able to suggest a man apparently so cowed that the idea of escape was simply unthinkable. He is survived by his sons, and by four grandchildren, Danny, Lillie, Stanley and Connie. ... Clive starred alongside Patricia Routledge in Keeping Up Appearances (Image: Mirrorpix) "Because he’d be just a bit of fluff for Hyacinth. He was born in Liverpool, one of four children of Abram Swift, a prosperous furniture retailer, and his wife, Lily (nee Greenman). "My condolences and to his son Joe. • Clive Walter Swift, actor, born 9 February 1936; died 1 February 2019, Actor best known as the downtrodden husband of Hyacinth Bucket in Keeping Up Appearances. Do you have a story for The Sun Online news team? We pay for your stories! Keeping Up Appearances is a British sitcom created and written by Roy Clarke.It originally aired on BBC1 from 1990 to 1995. She tweeted: "had the pleasure of working with him on the Weakest Link. Keeping Up Appearances icons, Patricia Routledge and Clive Swift recently (ok, it was almost 20 years ago) sat down with BBC Radio broadcaster, Judi Spiers, for a really fun behind the scenes conversation about the iconic British comedy, Keeping Up Appearances, where they allude to their upcoming (at the time) journey aboard the QE2 as part of the Christmas … Clive and his own adaptation of the death of Geoffrey Hughes last..! Richard in Keeping Up Appearances, has died aged 82 he died `` peacefully home... 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