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| Version 4 | Version 5 |
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| Ex-EastEnders star Mike Reid dies | Ex-EastEnders star Mike Reid dies |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| Former EastEnders actor Mike Reid has died at the age of 67 after suffering a suspected heart attack, his agent said. | Former EastEnders actor Mike Reid has died at the age of 67 after suffering a suspected heart attack, his agent said. |
| The actor, who played Frank Butcher in the BBC soap, was living in Spain at the time of his death. | The actor, who played Frank Butcher in the BBC soap, was living in Spain at the time of his death. |
| Mr Reid started his career as a stand-up comedian before working as a stunt driver. He went on to work in TV shows including Doctor Who and Minder. | Mr Reid started his career as a stand-up comedian before working as a stunt driver. He went on to work in TV shows including Doctor Who and Minder. |
| His agent David Hahn told the BBC that Mr Reid had been feeling very well in the past few weeks. | His agent David Hahn told the BBC that Mr Reid had been feeling very well in the past few weeks. |
| He said: "Mike was in fine fettle form. In fact only a couple of weeks ago we were having dinner over here. | He said: "Mike was in fine fettle form. In fact only a couple of weeks ago we were having dinner over here. |
| Even now I'm sure he's laughing David HahnMike Reid's agent Mike Reid: Your tributes | Even now I'm sure he's laughing David HahnMike Reid's agent Mike Reid: Your tributes |
| "Mike that particular day went to see his consultant and had a full medical - and they gave him a clean bill of health." | "Mike that particular day went to see his consultant and had a full medical - and they gave him a clean bill of health." |
| And Mr Hahn paid tribute to Mr Reid, who he described as "a very, very, very, funny" man. | And Mr Hahn paid tribute to Mr Reid, who he described as "a very, very, very, funny" man. |
| He said: "He would see the funny side of any situation, no matter how black it was. Even now I'm sure he's laughing." | He said: "He would see the funny side of any situation, no matter how black it was. Even now I'm sure he's laughing." |
| Close friend of the actor and fellow comedian Frank Carson, who first met Mr Reid around 30 years ago, told BBC News 24 the news was "absolutely devastating". | |
| "We have just lost our friend Bernard Manning a fortnight ago. I just can't realise... this is devastating news," he said. | "We have just lost our friend Bernard Manning a fortnight ago. I just can't realise... this is devastating news," he said. |
| Popular character | Popular character |
| Actor and comedian Russ Abbot, who appeared on 1970s ITV show The Comedians alongside Mr Reid, told BBC News 24 his former co-star was a natural entertainer. | |
| "A very, very funny man and a great story-teller," he said. "There are certain comedians who do one-liners, you know, which bounce off each other. | |
| "But Mike was a story-teller and a great deliverer of great, great jokes." | |
| He was one of the lads. The blokes loved him, the women loved him Comedian Mike McCabe | |
| Another fellow comedian, Mike McCabe, said Mr Reid had been a "larger than life" character with a "great, great sense of humour". | |
| "He was a jack-the-lad, very funny with a great cockney way of putting things together," he told BBC News 24. | |
| "He was one of the lads. The blokes loved him, the women loved him. I admired the man." | |
| Former stuntman | |
| Before entering the comedy scene and winning a place in The Comedians in 1973, Mr Reid began his career as a stuntman. | |
| He worked on films including Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Those Magnificent Men In Their Flying Machines and Spartacus. | |
| He had also been a stunt double for Roger Moore in The Saint. | |
| "I know it's hard to believe - Mike was a lot taller than him, and often used to laugh about it," Mr Hahn said. | |
| In the late 1970s Mr Reid went on to host the ITV children's TV quiz show Runaround, remembered for its incomprehensible rules and the incongruity of him as presenter. | |
| He joined EastEnders in 1987, quickly turning Frank into one of the show's most popular characters. | He joined EastEnders in 1987, quickly turning Frank into one of the show's most popular characters. |
| Albert Square - and British Television - will be a far poorer place without him John Yorke Controller of BBC Drama Series | Albert Square - and British Television - will be a far poorer place without him John Yorke Controller of BBC Drama Series |
| After taking a couple of lengthy breaks from the show he made his last appearance as Frank in December 2005 when his long-standing relationship with ex-wife Pat Evans finally came to an end. | After taking a couple of lengthy breaks from the show he made his last appearance as Frank in December 2005 when his long-standing relationship with ex-wife Pat Evans finally came to an end. |
| John Yorke, controller of BBC drama series, said the skill with which Mr Reid played the EastEnders character made Frank Butcher one of the soap's most popular. | John Yorke, controller of BBC drama series, said the skill with which Mr Reid played the EastEnders character made Frank Butcher one of the soap's most popular. |
| "Mike's genius was to capture the heart of that flawed dreamer and make generations of viewers love him," he said. | "Mike's genius was to capture the heart of that flawed dreamer and make generations of viewers love him," he said. |
| "Albert Square - and British television - will be a far poorer place without him, as will the lives of those who loved and worked with him throughout his extraordinary career." | "Albert Square - and British television - will be a far poorer place without him, as will the lives of those who loved and worked with him throughout his extraordinary career." |
| One of Albert Square's most memorable moments was when Frank, in a bid to win Pat back, turned up on her doorstep wearing nothing but a flashing dickie bow. | One of Albert Square's most memorable moments was when Frank, in a bid to win Pat back, turned up on her doorstep wearing nothing but a flashing dickie bow. |
| Actress Pam St Clement, who played opposite Reid in the soap for many years, said: "It has come as a terrible shock - somebody larger than life as Mike was in person and character - he seemed indestructible." |