#Leonard Rossiter

[silverfoxstole]

Paul as Dennis in Joe Orton's Loot at the Ambassador's Theatre in March 1984, with Neil Pearson, Gemma Craven and the late, great Leonard Rossiter.

There was a piece in Saturday’s Guardian marking 40 years since the death of Rossiter (the chap in the hat and raincoat in the last two photos), in which various people who worked with him over the years shared their memories, including Paul, though he doesn’t mention the story he told in an interview years ago about the ‘body’ falling into the audience one night and Rossiter snapping at him without missing a beat: “Well, go on, boy: ask for it back!”

I've pulled out Paul's comments:

Working with Leonard was the sternest acting lesson I was ever given. Being a young actor and a bit half-arsed, two things he appeared to loathe equally, I got the silent treatment from him during rehearsals and was expected to speak only when my character did. I felt both intimidated and awed.

....

To this day I’ve not seen another actor combine comedic deftness and menace the way Leonard could.

....

I remember having just one conversation with him, one night towards the end of the run when we found ourselves the last two people in the pub after a show. I’d been doing a ludicrous London accent for the play and remember his surprise when we spoke that I was actually Scouse.

After some awkward small talk we landed on the safe subject of football. He, naturally, had played a bit and mentioned a 1950s Liverpool business houses league and was amazed when I knew its name. I told him my Dad had played in it too. A minute later he asked, “Did your Dad have an older brother and they’d play centre-half and centre forward?”

Exactly right, I said.

He’d only played against him.

Leonard Rossiter died during a performance of Loot in October 1984, a few months after Paul had left the cast:

I heard about Leonard’s death as as were preparing to leave to go travelling with friends. I remember feeling shock but strangely little surprise, at least on hearing it was his heart. My dad had died a few weeks before — his heart too — and something in Leonard’s physical presence had reminded me of Dad’s.

[creepynostalgy]

On set of 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)

[dadsinsuits]

Leonard Rossiter

[of-fear-and-love]

Barry Lyndon (1975)

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Otley (1969) Dick Clement

September 1st 2024

[fuckyeahalfredmolina]

Alfred Molina and Leonard Rossiter in ‘The Losers’ 1978 tv series. FULL episodes on YouTube because baby Molina is cute HERE (some episodes are blocked in Belarus and Russia )

Full photos album: Twitter (better resolution) and Pinterest.

[pretty-little-fools]

[zippocreed501]

Rising Damp the Movie (1980)

[gatutor]

Brenda Vaccaro-Leonard Rossiter "Loca juerga tropical" (Water) 1985, de Dick Clement

[veryslowreader]

Tales of Mystery & Imagination by Edgar Allan Poe

Rising Damp: "Things That Go Bump in the Night"

[ulrichgebert]

Unser nach eingehender Prüfung für ideal befundener Geburtstagsfilm für Michael Caine. Er bietet tiefschürfende Einblicke in das Wesen des Kolonialismus und die Weltpolitik, Spannung, Abenteuer, einen legendären Gesangsauftritt vor den vereinten Nationen, Liebe und Drama, sowie Maureen Lipman als Margaret Thatcher (vergl. hier).

[recycledmoviecostumes]

In 1979, Peter Bowles rocked this distinctive robe as Archie in 𝑶𝒏𝒍𝒚 𝑾𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝑰 𝑳𝒂𝒖𝒈𝒉. Just one year later, Leonard Rossiter wore it as Rigsby in 𝑹𝒊𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑫𝒂𝒎𝒑!   Want more details? Bit.ly/PostEd176      

[countesspetofi]

The screening of 2001: A Space Odyssey was awesome. Even with my eyes not completely healed, I was still able to see detail I've never seen before. (I never even noticed Leonard Rossiter played one of the Russian scientists!) It was like a whole new movie. There were several shots that made me think of the recently deceased Bill Anders. And the sound was amazing. Even better, the audience was so well-behaved! (I think they were just as rapt as I was.)

I hate to add more items to the old bucket list, but now I really want to see all of Kubrick's films on the big screen. (Barry Lyndon, amirite?)

Also, NGL, it was just really nice to get out of the house for a change. Reminds me of the old days when I lived near the mall and went to a lunchtime matinee every other weekend whether it was a movie I particularly wanted to see or not.

[dadsinsuits]

Leonard Rossiter

[scotianostra]

The Scottish actor Bill Paterson, was born on June 3rd 1945 in Glasgow.

After a three year stint as a struggling apprentice quantity surveyor he escaped to do a teaching course at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama. His first professional appearance was with Glasgow's Citizens Theatre in their 1967 production of Brecht’s ‘Arturo Ui’ which also launched the career of Leonard Rossiter.

From 1970 – 72 he was with the Citizen’s Theatre for Youth as actor and assistant director and at the 1972 Edinburgh Festival he appeared in the now historic ‘Great Northern Welly Boot Show’ written by and featuring Billy Connolly. He then became a founding member of John McGrath’s 7:84 Theatre Company and toured extensively throughout Scotland, Ireland and Europe with such shows as ‘The Cheviot’, and ‘The Stag and the Black Oil’ He made his first appearance in London in 1976 with the company.

As well as his theatre work Bill has made a successful career on Television, from the 70's right through to nowadays, his most notable in my opinion were, Smiley's People, Auf Wiedersehen, Pet, The Singing Detective and Traffik, as well as big screen roles in The Killing Fields and Comfort and Joy.

Paterson has more recently been appeared in the sitcom, Fleabag, The Rebel, with Simon Callow, and the very successful Outlander as the recurring character Ned Gowan he also portrayed Douglas Henshall's faither in the excellent Shetland. Bill was also in the black comedy, Guilt, set in Edinburgh and also starring Mark Bonnar, if you haven't seen it look it up, it's very good.

A wee look on the IMDb tells me he is set to appear in an interesting TV film telling the story of Edinburgh Zoo's famous bear, Wojtek, who was a "soldier in the Polish Army during World War two. Another promising production is Arthur's Whisky for Sky, it is a coming-of-age story with a twist starring Diane Keaton, Patricia Hodge and Lulu, the media site say it is the story of three elderly ladies who drink a whisky which makes them younger, look out for it on Sky Cinema later in the year. Paterson is also to voice a character in Banking on Mr. Toad, a family drama about Scottish writer Kenneth Grahame, the birth of his iconic story "The Wind In The Willows" and life with wife Elsie and Alastair, their troubled young son.

Bill was awarded the Outstanding Contribution to Film & Television accolade at the 2015 BAFTA Scotland Awards.

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Britannia Hospital (1982) Lindsay Anderson

July 2nd 2023