Christopher Malcolm, the much-loved stage and screen actor and producer, has died. The Scottish-born actor was 67.
We knew him best as 48-kill rebel ace Zev Senesca – AKA ‘Rogue 2’ – in The Empire Strikes Back, without whom Han and Luke would still be wandering Hoth. He also popped up in Bruce Beresford’s Aussie-com The Adventures Of Barry McKenzie, played vigilante Kirk Matunas in **Highlander **and was dad to Jennifer Connelly's Sarah in Labyrinth, but it was for his work on, and around, the stage that Malcolm was best known.
Born on August 19, 1946 in Aberdeen, his father was a farmer but it was his mother’s passion for amateur theatre that kindled a life-long interest in the art. The Malcolm family moved to Canada ten years later and it was in British Columbia that he sacrificed university for his first acting gigs.
Returning to the UK, he scored roles in the RSC and Royal Court Theatre and eventually fell in with Richard O'Brien and other luminaries of London’s fringe scene. His big break came as a 31 year-old when he was cast as The Rocky Horror Show’s hero Brad Major.
The show’s massive success fuelled his interest in the staging of productions. He co-produced Rocky Horror’s worldwide revival in 1990 and recently helped steer Joan Littlewood’s Oh, What A Lovely War! back onto the stage in Stratford.
Theatrical acting and producing work was interspersed with appearances on the big and small screens. Malcolm played Saffie’s dad in Absolutely Fabulous and publisher Nelson Doubleday in the BBC’s Daphne in 2007.
He's survived by his wife, actress Judy Lloyd, and their three children, as well as four siblings. His daughter Morgan Lloyd Malcolm announced his death via her Twitter feed.