Keith Barron has died at the age of 83. His TV career lasted an amazing 55 years from 1961, when he appeared in the BBC comedy A Chance of Thunder, up until 2016, when he was cast as the elderly father of the main character in ITV’s DCI Banks. His final performance in the Christmas special Not Going Out will be screened posthumously this year on the BBC.
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Duty Free
According to BBC News, Keith Barron is best remembered for playing David Pearce in Duty Free, the Yorkshire Television sitcom. This series was watched by 18 million people every week in much higher figures than sitcoms of today can hope to attract. The sitcom ran from 1984 to 1986 and was recorded completely in Leeds, despite being set in Marbella.
Other TV appearances
Unlike many actors whose careers involve stage and film along with television, Keith Barron specialised in peak-time TV. He made appearances in many popular shows such as Doctor Who, Coronation Street, Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased) and Benidorm.
In addition to populist pieces such as Duty Free, he also excelled in serious plays.
He first came to prominence in two Denis Potter productions, Stand Up, Nigel Barton and the linked play Vote, Vote, Vote for Nigel Barton. In these plays, he portrayed the son of a miner who became estranged from his family when he went to university and later stood as a Labour candidate. Barron’s Yorkshire background helped him to identify with many of Barton’s lines.
Keith Barron appeared on both the BBC and ITV, but he enjoyed his biggest successes on ITV. Because the successes of ITV shows are based on their ratings, this demonstrates his enduring popularity with TV viewers. If you need TV aerial installation in Swansea or the surrounding areas, you could contact a company such as https://www.onevisionltd.co.uk/tv-aerial-installation-swansea to ensure that you do not miss your favourite programmes.
Most frequently cast as an adulterer or a police officer in his earlier years, Keith Barron could portray total innocence, pompous rectitude, reticence and shiftiness – whatever was needed in the role. Able to move easily from comedy to tragedy, he was a reliable actor who remained in demand for character roles such as dads and grandfathers until the end of his career.