Gifted and great actor: Tributes as Tutti Frutti star Roëves dies at 83
VETERAN actor Maurice Roëves has died at the age of 83, his agent has said.
The star, who played Vince Diver in Tutti Frutti, the mercenary Stotz in the classic series of Doctor Who and Colonel Munro in Michael Mann’s big screen version of The Last Of The Mohicans, was most recently seen in the BBC drama The Nest.
A statement from his agent Lovett Logan said: “It is with great sadness that we can confirm the passing of our wonderful client #Mauriceroëves.
“Maurice had a hugely successful career in both theatre and screen which spanned several decades, starting in his home country of Scotland and moving to London and the United States.
“He was loved by his legions of fans for many of his performances.
Maurice loved nothing more than being on set with his fellow actors and worked right up until the end, recently being seen in the BBC series The Nest at the start of this year.
“As well as being a truly dedicated and gifted actor, he was also a real gentleman and a delight to have as a client. We will miss him greatly.”
Roëves also appeared in Eastenders in 2003 and the 1995 movie version of Judge Dredd, the TV adaptation of Vanity Fair and TV staples such as Casualty and Holby City.
In a career spanning six decades, he acted in hundreds of TV shows and films including The Sweeney and The Eagle Has Landed.
His wife, Vanessa, said Roëves was a “softie” in real life and that no part was too small for her husband, adding that he had been keen to be involved in his last project, The Nest, despite the small appearance.
She also said the family would often joke, “Does your character make it to the end of this one?” because his characters would always be killed off.
Born in Sunderland, the actor was raised in Glasgow and launched his career at the city’s Citizen’s Theatre. The Roëves family moved to Glasgow when he was seven years old, as his father owned a cotton mill in Partick.
After leaving full-time education, hetook an office job to earn money. But he then secured a place at the then Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama, now the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. While there, he won a gold medal for his acting.
After graduating, he secured a job at the Citizens Theatre as an assistant stage manager but found also himself playing small roles. His first major part was as Lorenzo in the Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice and, following this, Disney sent a scout to Glasgow to see Roëves perform.
He was then screen-tested and offered his first film role in a career that would stretch more than 60 years of television and film. Roëves’ film debut was in The Fighting Prince of Donegal in 1966.
His next major role was in Macbeth at the Royal Court in London where he played Macduff, next to Sir Alec
Maurice loved nothing more than being on set with his fellow actors
Guinness’s Macbeth. One memorable Hollywood role for Roëves was in Last of the Mohicans beside Daniel Day-lewis and Wes Studi. Studi played Magua, a native American villain who ripped the heart out of Col Edmund Munro, played by Roëves. Their friendship lasted for more than 25 years and they met often near Wes’s home in Santa Fe.
Studi said on social media that they shared haggis together.