This website is dedicated to the career of the actor
John Thaw (1942 – 2002).
It is written by fans, for the enjoyment of fans, and is a non-commercial endeavour. It has been created purely as an information source and tribute. It is not for profit.
John Thaw is best remembered for his roles in the television series The Sweeney, Inspector Morse, and Kavanagh Q.C. His career over the years spanned a breadth of varied roles in television, film and theatre, including work with which some fans may not be familiar.
It is intended that this website will become an archive by which to remember John’s varied career.
This site is an evolving work in progress. Please have a look around. The Biography and Life & Career pages are complete. The Television & Film and Theatre sections currently contain concise lists of John’s credits. More detailed information will be added to these sections during upcoming months.
Books and Resources:
The Two of Us: My Life with John Thaw by Sheila Hancock.
By far the best resource for any fan wanting to learn more about John Thaw’s life and career is this biography written by John’s wife, Sheila Hancock. It is highly recommended. It is a fascinating, frank account of their life together and of their separate lives before their marriage. Sheila writes with honesty and wonderful personal reflection. This book has provided much of the information contained in the Biography and Life Chronology sections of this website.
The links here take you to Amazon UK, however the book is available at most bookstores. Please consider supporting your local independent bookseller if you are able to do so. Alternatively, you may find a copy available to borrow from your local library. It is also available as an Audiobook.
Hancock, S. 2004. The Two of Us: My Life with John Thaw. London: Bloomsbury Publishing.
John Thaw: The Biography by Stafford Hildred and Tim Ewbank is an interesting and useful resource. Much of the content appears to have been drawn from various magazine interviews held by the authors with John. It has been of particular use in confirming information and dates of events. The most up-to-date version is available on Kindle.
Hildred, S. and Ewbank, T. 2012. John Thaw: The Biography. [Kindle]. London: Andre Deutsch.
The Internet Movie Database and Wikipedia provided a starting point for research into John’s work. Without these resources, the task of compiling television and film credits would have been much greater!
Research into John’s theatre career has been drawn from printed theatre programmes, and from some online archives. Resources will be referenced individually on the appropriate page.
The British Newspaper Archive has been of particular use in the task of confirming dates of events.
Other resources used have been referenced on the appropriate pages.
Acknowledgements
Cheers!
A big thank you to Stuart and Lynn for proofreading the Biography, and to friends on ‘X’/Twitter for proofreading sections of the Life Chronology: Colander, Erica, Kim, and The Sweeney Archive.
Thank you to Theresa H for double-checking the list of John’s theatre credits.
Thanks also to everyone who follows the John Thaw Archive on Twitter or Instagram. Your ‘likes’ and comments provide support and motivation. Thanks to Roy Slater for posting wonderful photos from his vast collection.
Special thanks to …
Rodney Marshall for his interest and support, and for entrusting us with some treasured items belonging to his dad, screenwriter Roger Marshall.
Photographer Lou Boileau for giving us permission to use his wonderful photographs of John on this site. These were taken during a photoshoot at John’s home in 1986. Prints are available to buy from his website: LouBoileau.com
Photographer John Haynes for the permission to use his photographs of John. These include the photos appearing on the page from Spotlight (Life Chronology: 1970s), pages from theatre programmes for the play Absurd Person Singular, and a wonderful photograph of John during the play The Absence of War (Theatre pages coming soon!) https://www.johnhaynesphotography.net/
Fiona Norris for the permission to use her lovely photograph of John taken during filming of Inspector Morse (Life Chronology: 1980s).
Several theatres who have graciously allowed us to display scans from their printed programmes from John’s performances. This is very much appreciated, and each will be individually credited on the appropriate pages.
John Thaw Archive 