Peter Byrne (actor)

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Peter Byrne
Born
Peter James Byrne

(1928-01-29)29 January 1928
West Ham, Essex, England
Died14 May 2018(2018-05-14) (aged 90)
Alma mater Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts
Occupation Actor/Director
Years active1944, 1953–2013
SpouseRenee Helen

Peter James Byrne (29 January 1928) was an English actor and director.

Contents

Early life

Born in West Ham, Essex; [1] Byrne was the son of James Byrne, a musician. He was educated at a grammar school and trained as an actor at the Italia Conti Stage School.

Career

Byrne made his name by playing George Dixon's son-in-law Andy Crawford in the long-running BBC Television serial Dixon of Dock Green for twenty years from 1955. [2] He was Director of Productions for the Bournemouth Theatre Company (1965–66).

Stage appearances included Boeing Boeing , There's a Girl in My Soup , Double Edge , and The Unexpected Guest. Films include Reach for the Sky and Carry On Cabby . TV appearances included Mutiny at Spithead, The New Canadians and more than 300 appearances in Dixon of Dock Green . He also made many appearances in pantomime, typically as the villain. [2]

In 2005, the Dixon series was revived for BBC Radio Four, but without Byrne, though he commented, "Various people have said the series was a bit cosy and the BBC seemed to be a little ashamed of it," adding that he believed it to be very underrated. [3]

Family

Byrne was married to Renée Helen. He died at the Denville Hall nursing home on 14 May 2018, aged 90. [4] [5]

Cinema appearances

Television appearances

Theatre appearances

References

  1. "Index entry". FreeBMD. ONS. Retrieved 19 September 2025.
  2. 1 2 "From Dock Green to Dick Whittington". The Telegraph and Argus. 8 January 2000. Retrieved 17 May 2018.
  3. Anthony Barnes (30 April 2005). "Evenin' all: BBC to put 'Dixon of Dock Green' back on the beat after 30 years" . The Independent. Archived from the original on 25 May 2022. Retrieved 17 May 2018.
  4. Hayward, Anthony (16 May 2018). "Peter Byrne obituary". The Guardian. Retrieved 16 May 2018.
  5. "Peter Byrne 1928–2018". It's Behind You Dot Com – Green Room. 15 May 2018. Retrieved 22 May 2018.

Bibliography