Michael John Attwell (16 January 1943 – 18 March 2006) was an English film and television actor. He is possibly best known for his role as

Kenny Beale The following is a list of characters first appearing in the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'' in 1988, by order of first appearance. Sufia Karim Sufia Karim is played by Rani Singh. Sufia makes her first appearance in Walford in 1988, when she ...

in the television

soap opera A soap opera, or ''soap'' for short, is a typically long-running radio or television serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term "soap opera" originated from radio dramas originally being sponsored ...

EastEnders ''EastEnders'' is a Television in the United Kingdom, British soap opera created by Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the Ea ...

''. After training at

RADA The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA; ) is a drama school in London, England, that provides vocational conservatoire training for theatre, film, television, and radio. It is based in the Bloomsbury area of Central London, close to the Senat ...

(studying Stage Management), Attwell went into repertory theatre at

Newcastle Playhouse Northern Stage is a theatre and producing theatre company based in Newcastle upon Tyne. It is surrounded by Newcastle University's city centre campus on King's Walk, opposite the students' union building. It hosts various local, national and int ...

. Among his theatrical appearances include playing Pharaoh in ''

Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat ''Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat'' (often colloquially known as ''Joseph'') is a sung-through musical with lyrics by Tim Rice and music by Andrew Lloyd Webber, based on the character of Joseph from the Bible's Book of Genesis. Th ...

'' and Sky Masterson in ''

Guys and Dolls ''Guys and Dolls'' is a musical with music and lyrics by Frank Loesser and book by Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows. It is based on "The Idyll of Miss Sarah Brown" (1933) and "Blood Pressure", which are two short stories by Damon Runyon, and also bo ...

'' (both at

Haymarket Theatre The Theatre Royal Haymarket (also known as Haymarket Theatre or the Little Theatre) is a West End theatre on Haymarket in the City of Westminster which dates back to 1720, making it the third-oldest London playhouse still in use. Samuel Foote ...

). In 1979 and 1980, he played Razor Eddie a.k.a. Edward Winston Malone in two series of the comedy-drama ''

Turtle's Progress ''Turtle's Progress'' is a British television series, created by Edmund Ward and broadcast between 1979 and 1980. The offbeat humour of the show attracted a small but cult audience, and the show ran for two series. The theme music was written ...

''. The character had originally been created for the ITV drama serial '' The Hanged Man'', where he was played by

Gareth Hunt Alan Leonard Hunt (7 February 1942 – 14 March 2007), known as Gareth Hunt, was a British actor best remembered for playing footman Frederick Norton in '' Upstairs, Downstairs'' and Mike Gambit in '' The New Avengers''. Early life Alan Leona ...

. In 1978, he played

Bill Sikes William "Bill" Sikes is a fictional character and the main antagonist in the 1838 novel '' Oliver Twist'' by Charles Dickens. Sikes is a malicious criminal in Fagin's gang, and a vicious robber and murderer. Throughout much of the novel Sikes i ...

in the revival of

Lionel Bart Lionel Bart (1 August 1930 – 3 April 1999) was a British writer and composer of pop music and musicals. He wrote Tommy Steele's "Rock with the Caveman" and was the sole creator of the musical '' Oliver!'' (1960). With ''Oliver!'' and his work ...

's musical

Oliver! ''Oliver!'' is a coming-of-age stage musical, with book, music and lyrics by Lionel Bart. The musical is based upon the 1838 novel '' Oliver Twist'' by Charles Dickens. It premiered at the Wimbledon Theatre, southwest London in 1960 before op ...

at the

Albery Theatre Albery is a name. It may refer to: ;People by given name *Albery Allson Whitman (1851−1901), African American poet, minister and orator ;People by surname: * A. S. Albery, British politician *Bronson Albery (1881−1971), English theatre directo ...

and in 1985 he played

again in the BBC's Sunday afternoon classic serial ''

Oliver Twist ''Oliver Twist; or, The Parish Boy's Progress'', Charles Dickens's second novel, was published as a serial from 1837 to 1839, and as a three-volume book in 1838. Born in a workhouse, the orphan Oliver Twist is bound into apprenticeship with ...

''. His other TV credits include: ''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series depicts the adventures of a Time Lord called the Doctor, an extraterrestrial being who appears to be human. The Doctor explores the u ...

'' (in the serials ''

The Ice Warriors ''The Ice Warriors'' is the partly missing third serial of the fifth season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in six weekly parts from 11 November to 16 December 1967. In this serial, the ...

'' and ''

Attack of the Cybermen ''Attack of the Cybermen'' is the first serial of the 22nd season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in two weekly parts on 5 and 12 January 1985. It was credited to the pseudonymous autho ...

''), ''

The First Churchills ''The First Churchills'' is a BBC serial from 1969 about the life of John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough, and his wife, Sarah Churchill, Duchess of Marlborough. It stars John Neville as the duke and Susan Hampshire as the duchess, was writt ...

'', ''

Only Fools and Horses ''Only Fools and Horses....'' is a British television sitcom created and written by John Sullivan. Seven series were originally broadcast on BBC One in the United Kingdom from 1981 to 1991, with sixteen sporadic Christmas specials aired until t ...

'', ''

Minder A minder is the person assigned to guide or escort a visitor, or to provide protection to somebody, or to otherwise assist or take care of something, i.e. a person who " minds". Government-appointed persons to accompany foreign visitors are of ...

'', '' Bergerac'', ''

C.A.T.S. Eyes ''C.A.T.S. Eyes'' is a British television series made by TVS for ITV between 1985 and 1987. The series was a spin-off from ''The Gentle Touch'', and saw Jill Gascoine reprise her role as Maggie Forbes, portrayed as having left the police forc ...

'', '' Wycliffe'', ''

Inspector Morse Detective Chief Inspector Endeavour Morse, GM, is the eponymous fictional character in the series of detective novels by British author Colin Dexter. On television, he appears in the 33-episode drama series ''Inspector Morse'' (1987–2000), ...

'', '' Bugs'', ''

Silent Witness ''Silent Witness'' is a British crime drama television series produced by the BBC, which focuses on a team of forensic pathology experts and their investigations into various crimes. First broadcast in 1996, the series was created by Nigel McC ...

'', ''

Pie in the Sky Pie in the sky, an idiom meaning an impossible or unlikely idea or plan as well as an empty wish or promise. Pie in the sky may refer to: * ''Pie in the Sky'' (TV series), a UK television series about a police officer turned restaurateur * ''Pie ...

'', ''

Casualty Casualty may refer to: *Casualty (person), a person who is killed or rendered unfit for service in a war or natural disaster **Civilian casualty, a non-combatant killed or injured in warfare * The emergency department of a hospital, also known as ...

'', ''

The Bill ''The Bill'' is a British police procedural television series, first broadcast on ITV from 16 August 1983 until 31 August 2010. The programme originated from a one-off drama, '' Woodentop'', broadcast in August 1983. The programme focused on ...

'', '' Hotel Babylon'', and ''

Are You Being Served? ''Are You Being Served?'' is a British sitcom created and written by executive producer David Croft (Croft also directed some episodes) and Jeremy Lloyd, with contributions from Michael Knowles and John Chapman, for the BBC. Set in London, t ...

''. He appeared in the 1988 film '' Buster'', based on the life of the Great Train Robber

Buster Edwards Ronald Christopher "Buster" Edwards (27 January 1931 – 28 November 1994) was a British criminal who was a member of the gang that committed the Great Train Robbery. He had also been a boxer, and owned a nightclub and a flower shop. Early and ...

. To supplement his theatre income, Attwell produced cartoon strips for IPC and

DC Thomson DC Thomson is a media company based in Dundee, Scotland. Founded by David Couper Thomson in 1905, it is best known for publishing ''The Dundee Courier'', ''The Evening Telegraph'' and ''The Sunday Post'' newspapers, and the comics ''Oor Wull ...

comics including ''

Bunty ''Bunty'' was a British comic for girls published by D. C. Thomson & Co. from 1958 to 2001.Gibson (2003)p. 91/ref> It consisted of a collection of many small strips, the stories typically being three to five pages long. In contrast to earlier ...

'', '' Buster'', ''

Whizzer and Chips ''Whizzer and Chips'' was a British comics magazine that ran from 18 October 1969 to 27 October 1990, when it merged with the comic '' Buster''. As with most comics of the time, ''Whizzer and Chips'' was dated one week ahead of the day it actua ...

'' and ''

The Hotspur ''The Hotspur'' was a British boys' paper published by D. C. Thomson & Co. From 1933 to 1959, it was a boys' story paper; it was relaunched as a comic in October 1959, initially called the ''New Hotspur'', and ceased publication in January 19 ...

''.Michael Attwell (Zoke) - University of Kent
/ref> As well as acting, between 1981 and 1993 Attwell also had a considerable career as a political cartoonist for several British national newspapers including '' The Sun'', ''

The Sunday People The ''Sunday People'' is a British tabloid Sunday newspaper. It was founded as ''The People'' on 16 October 1881. At one point owned by Odhams Press Odhams Press was a British publishing company, operating from 1920 to 1968. Originally a ...

'' and the ''

News of the World The ''News of the World'' was a weekly national Tabloid journalism#Red tops, red top Tabloid (newspaper format), tabloid newspaper published every Sunday in the United Kingdom from 1843 to 2011. It was at one time the world's highest-selling En ...

''. A self-taught artist, Attwell signed himself as ''Zoke'', an amalgam of the names of his children Zoe and Jake. Attwell died in London on the 18 March 2006 aged 63 from complications following heart surgery. His life and work was honoured at the

British Academy Television Awards The BAFTA TV Awards, or British Academy Television Awards are presented in an annual award show hosted by the BAFTA. They have been awarded annually since 1955. Background The first-ever Awards, given in 1955, consisted of six categories. Until ...

in 2006.

Partial filmography

* ''

Labyrinth In Greek mythology, the Labyrinth (, ) was an elaborate, confusing structure designed and built by the legendary artificer Daedalus for King Minos of Crete at Knossos. Its function was to hold the Minotaur, the monster eventually killed by the ...

'' (1986) - Goblin (voice, uncredited) * ''Gentry'' (1987) - Slatter * '' Buster'' (1988) - Harry * ''

Tom & Viv ''Tom & Viv'' is a 1994 historical drama film directed by Brian Gilbert, based on the 1984 play of the same name by British playwright Michael Hastings about the early love life of American poet T. S. Eliot. The film stars Willem Dafoe, Miranda ...

'' (1994) - W.I. Janes * ''

Joseph Joseph is a common male given name, derived from the Hebrew Yosef (יוֹסֵף). "Joseph" is used, along with "Josef", mostly in English, French and partially German languages. This spelling is also found as a variant in the languages of the mo ...

'' (1995) - Judah * ''

Circus A circus is a company of performers who put on diverse entertainment shows that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, dancers, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, magicians, ventriloquists, and unicyclist ...

'' (2000) - Magnus * ''

New Year's Day New Year's Day is a festival observed in most of the world on 1 January, the first day of the year in the modern Gregorian calendar. 1 January is also New Year's Day on the Julian calendar, but this is not the same day as the Gregorian one. Wh ...

'' (2001) - Sgt. Bristow * ''

High Heels and Low Lifes ''High Heels and Low Lifes'' is a 2001 action comedy-drama film starring Minnie Driver, Mary McCormack, Kevin McNally, Mark Williams, Danny Dyer and Michael Gambon. It was directed by Mel Smith and written by Kim Fuller and Georgia Pritchett. ...

'' (2001) - Duty Sergeant * ''Bodywork'' (2001) - David Leer * ''

Agatha Christie's Marple ''Agatha Christie's Marple'' (or simply ''Marple'') is a British ITV (TV network), ITV television programme loosely based on the books and short stories by British crime novelist Agatha Christie. The title character was played by Geraldine McEw ...

'' (The Sittaford Mystery) (2006) - Archie Stone

References

External links

*
Michael Attwell
at Theatricalia 1943 births 2006 deaths English male soap opera actors People from Watford Male actors from Hertfordshire Alumni of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art {{England-tv-actor-stub