David John Ashford
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| David John Ashford | |
|---|---|
| Born | 16 October 1941 Torquay, Devon |
| 💀Died | 17 December 2020 (aged 79) London, England17 December 2020 (aged 79) |
| 💼 Occupation | Actor; Presenter; Artist; Writer; Historian; Teacher |
| 👩 Spouse(s) | Monika-Mathilde (nee Faasch) |
| 👶 Children | Luke Ashford |
| Twitter= | |
David John Ashford (16 October 1941 - 17 December 2020) was an English actor, writer, teacher, artist and comic book historian.
Biography[edit]
Early life[edit]
David Ashford was born in Torquay, Devon, the eldest of four children to John James Stanton Ashford and Charlotte Elsie (nee Stigings); his father then serving in the Royal Artillery. Ashford was educated at Torquay Grammar School then studied Fine Art at Reading University where he received an Honours Degree.[1]
Career[edit]
Upon appearing in a play, Ashford was seen by Robert Morley, who encouraged him to take up acting,[2] putting him in touch with his agent. This lead to Ashford joining the Royal Shakespeare Company, appearing alongside Ian Holm in Henry V as well as performing at schools and youth centres,[3] in turn leading to further theatre work.
Entering the industry of TV in 1964 followed by film in 1965,[4] Ashford made appearances in such productions as No Hiding Place, Pathfinders, The Edwardians, Quatermass, Keeping Up Appearances and Doctor Who.
In addition Ashford narrated stories on the BBC Home Service and later Radio 4 for such programmes as Morning Story and Woman’s Hour. He also narrated his own work, Turpin Hero (1989), in which he investigated the life and legend of the 18th century highwayman, Dick Turpin.
One of Ashford’s longest running screen roles was alongside his contemporary Bernard Gallagher in Granada Television’s daytime legal drama series Crown Court, in which he played Barrister Charles Lotterby for 126 episodes from 1972 - 1978.
Aside from acting Ashford was a regular contributor to art magazines and became a recognised authority on the history of comic booklets writing many articles in publications such as Golden Fun, Illustrated Comics Journal and Antiquarian Book Monthly.
During the late 1970s and early 1980s Ashford jointly scripted several adaptations of classic novels for the children’s weekly magazine Look and Learn.
Personal life[edit]
David Ashford married Monika-Mathide Faasch in 1966; the marriage produced one child. The family made their home in Harrow, Middlesex, where Ashford taught English and Drama at Park High School.[1]
Ashford’s wife pre-deceased him in 2017. In 2020 Ashford was diagnosed with terminal cancer, being cared for by his sister until he was admitted to hospital on December 6, and died of pneumonia on December 17. Ashford was survived by his son, Luke.[5]
References[edit]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Bear Alley: David Ashford (1941-2020)". December 21, 2020.
- ↑ "First kiss for David", Birmingham Evening Mail, 23 August 1977 (pg.2)
- ↑ "A tree loving actor", Harrow Observer, 8 October 1976 (pg.1)
- ↑ Screen International Film and TV Year Book - Page 7
- ↑ Freeman, John (December 20, 2020). "In Memoriam: David Ashford, British Comics Historian". downthetubes.net.
External links[edit]
- David Ashford on IMDb
- David Ashford at Theatricalia
- David Ashford at British Film Institute
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