Lee Whitlock dead – Grange Hill and Sweeney Todd star dies aged 54

2023-02-20

Grange Hill and Sweeney Todd actor Lee Whitlock has passed away at the age of 54, acting agency Urban Collective has confirmed.

His representatives took to Twitter on Monday to announce the news while commending the actor's "entertaining, funny & positive" work.

A tweet from the agency read: "Saddened by the death of our client Lee Whitlock.

"Lee was a great character & a great actor who has left a legacy of brave & groundbreaking work achieved at a particularly young age.

"Lee was hugely entertaining, funny & positive to work with, condolences to family & friends. RIP."

At the age of 12, Lee got his first acting job in the 1980s classic, The Gentle Touch before later appearing in Shine on Harvey Moon, The Merry Wives of Windsor, Dramarama and Starting Out.

His big break came in 1989 when he signed on to Young Charlie Chaplin by Bazz Taylor as Charlie's elder half-brother, Sydney Chaplin.

Following the show's success, Lee went on to play Bevis Loveday in season 16 of Grange Hill before starring in shows like EastEnders, A Touch of Frost, The Detectives, Silent Witness, McCallum, Casualty, London's Burning, and The Bill.

Lee later appeared in the 2007 flick Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street as a policeman opposite the film's leads, Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter.

Other film credits included Wish You Were Here, Jack the Giant Slayer, Cassandra's Dream and Wild Bill.

Fans have been paying tribute to the later actor, with one person penning: "Very sad news indeed. He certainly made an impression on me and his work on The Two Of Us was ground breaking and hugely important to the LGBTQ+ community. A legacy to be proud of. Condolences to his family and sending love to all."

"Awww so sad to hear we’ve lost Lee Whitlock at the age of 54, just adored him in Shine on Harvey Moon and Two of Us , and he did every tv show you can think of , for a generation he’s the loveable cheeky cockney scamp and we’ll never forget him," another wrote, with a third adding, "Sad to learn Lee Whitlock has passed away. He was a fine actor. The pinnacle was his lead role in a 17-minute music video for North London’s Flowered Up."

Another added: "Just wanted to say how gutted I was to hear that the brilliant actor Lee Whitlock died.

"He was a lovely person, modest, funny, and kind, wonderfully cheeky, forever boyish, and will be sorely missed by all that knew him."

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