Thomas George Bell was an English theatre, film and television actor August 2, 1933 to October 4, 2006. He was known for his “menacing or nasty characters,” including the stereotypical sexist Detective Bill Otley in Prime Suspect, who served as Helen Mirren’s DCI Jane Tennison’s main nemesis.
How did Tom Bell die, do you know? Read on to learn more about Tom Bell’s early life, his personal life, and the cause of his untimely death.
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How was Tom Bell’s childhood?
Bell’s date of birth is August 2, 1933 and he was born in Liverpool, Lancashire. Due to the size of his family, he rarely saw his father, a merchant mariner.
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While in Morecambe, Lancashire, with three separate families after being evacuated there as a youngster during World War II. It was 1948 and Bell was making his acting debut in school productions at the age of 15.
Keith, his younger sibling, followed in his footsteps and became an actress. After graduating from high school, he studied acting with Esme Church at the Bradford Civic Theatre, where he also met Billie Whitelaw and Robert Stephens. He later performed in the repertory companies of Liverpool and Dublin.
What was Tom Bell’s personal life like?
The couple, who met in 1960, were married until 1976. They raised an actor son named Aran. From 1976 until his death, he was married to costume designer Frances Tempest, with whom he had two children, Nellie (his stepdaughter) and Polly (his daughter).
What was the reason Tom Bell died?
A common acquaintance, show business accountant Jose Goumal, suggested to Bell to work with TV director Danny Hiller again, and Bell agreed to star in Hiller’s first feature Love Me Still.
Despite his obvious health issues, Bell finished filming just days before he died. After a short hospitalization, he died on October 4, 2006 at the age of 73.
A few days later, “the harrowingly timed broadcast of Prime Suspect – The Final Act” was broadcast, “in which a visibly weak Otley died on screen.”
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