Heartbeat actor William Simons has died aged 79, it has been announced.
The actor played PC Alf Ventress in the long-running ratings smash from 1992 to 2010 and appeared in all 18 series.
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William’s agent told The Sun, “He’ll be just terribly missed by anyone who ever met him.”
“He was a much loved human, the word gentleman really applied to him. He was a gentle man.”
“He worked every single year until about three years ago.”
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Based on the Constable books by Nicholas Rhea, Heartbeat became a ratings hit in the 1990s on ITV.
Set in Yorkshire in the 1960s, the series featured members of the local police as they patrolled the town of Ashfordly and the nearby village of Aidensfield.
Nick Berry, already a star thanks to EastEnders, took the lead role and viewers lapped up its collection of loveable rogues and periods hits from yesteryear.
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William’s role in Heartbeat was the culmination of a career that had spanned six decades.
He also appeared with Bill Owen in binmen comedy Not So Dusty, and with Dinah Sheridan in the exotic adventure Where No Vultures Fly, and its sequel, West of Zanzibar.
He is survived by his second wife, Jackie.
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