Known For
Acting
Born
Sep 03, 1921
Died
Apr 20, 2000
Place of Birth
Everton, Liverpool, England, UK
Credits
53 titles
Bill Dean
Biography
Bill Dean was a British actor who was born in Everton, Liverpool, Lancashire. He was born Patrick Anthony Connolly, but took his stage name in honour of Everton football legend William 'Dixie' Dean. After a atring of jobs, it was his work as a Lancashire club comedian that saw him spotted by Ken Loach who gave him his breakthrough role in his TV play The Golden Vision. Famous for his flat but penetrating Scouse tones, Dean went on to star as miserable pensioner Harry Cross in the long running Channel 4 soap Brookside from its inception in 1983 to 1990. He briefly returned to the series in 1999 for three episodes, when his character re-appeared in Brookside Close suffering from Alzheimer's disease and wrongly believing that he still lived there. The same character was the inspiration behind the 1980s group 'Jegsy Dodd and the sons of Harry Cross' who hailed from the Wirral and Dean himself appeared in the video of the Liverpudlian band The Farm's Groovy Train as Cross, who was a former train driver. He did of a heart attack aged 78 in 2000.
Known For
Filmography
Brookside: Friday the 13th
Harold Cross
Hillsborough
Additional Cast
Priest
Altar Boy
Skallagrigg
Old Man
Heartbeat
Harry Capshaw
Let Him Have It
Foreman of the Jury
The Word
Slayground
Compere
Agatha Christie's Partners in Crime
The Gathering Seed
Billy Eccles
Going Gently
Painter
A Turn for the Worse
(voice)
Nobody's Perfect
Mr Barrington
Rising Damp
Workman
The Mirror Crack'd
Man in Village Hall (uncredited)
Minder
Police Sgt.
Scum
Mr Duke
Night People
Ted
Freedom of the Dig
Sid
Pennies from Heaven
Alf
BBC2 Play of the Week
Ted
Beasts: What Big Eyes
Duggie Jeb
Beasts
Duggie Jebb
Bag of Yeast
Teddy
Break In
Dixie
In Sickness and in Health
Mr Jackson
Waiting at the Field Gate
Ted
The Wackers
Charlie
Flame
Club Owner (uncredited)
The Sweeney
Charlie Norton
Oh No, It's Selwyn Froggitt!
Jack
Match of the Day
Father
Playhouse
Painter
Night Watch
Inspector Walker
Speech Day
George
The Best Pair of Legs in the Business
Bert
New Scotland Yard
Bernard Hobbs
Bank Holiday
Father
Gumshoe
Tommy Wright
Family Life
Mr. Baildon
Justice
Charlie Keen
The Rank and File
Billy
Budgie
Dutchie Holland
Roll On Four O'Clock
Arthur Foster
Play for Today
Billy
Kes
Fish and Chip Shop Man
The Big Flame
Landlord
ITV Saturday Night Theatre
Uncle Sid
The Expert
Leslie Stevens
The Golden Vision
John Coyne