A portly and popular comic character actor, Roy Kinn­ear proved to be a reliable guest star on many television programs and a dependable lead in his own right. He was born in Wigan, Lancashire, and educated in Edinburgh. When he was 17, he enrolled in the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts, but his studies there were interrupted when National Service conscription took him to war. He later returned to the theatrical world and appeared on stage in repertory theater in the 1950s. In 1959 he joined Joan Littlewood's famous Theatre Workshop in the East End of London and appeared in some of their biggest successes.

     Television made Roy Kinnear a household name; his big break was the controversial and highly popular satire series That Was the Week That Was. The team consisted of a group of irreverent, bright young things hell-bent on attacking the hypocrisies of the establish­ment. One criticism often made of the show was that the protagonists came across as smug, but Kinnear was spared from that accusation because his role in the group was that of the common man. In sketches he would usually be cast as a normal, working-class chap baffled by the complexities and machinations of the government and the media. Viewers could identify with the character and were endeared to him. Indeed, Kinnear's very ordinariness and likeability assured him a long career in the medium.

       He was a regular guest star on long-running series such as The Avengers, often co starred in TV plays and was a semi-regular on Minder as (Whaley), and George and Mildred (as Jerry). He was not averse to appearing as a straight man (albeit a very funny one) to comedian Dick Emery in various Dick Emery shows,and his familiar face was put to use in various TV commercials. Kinnear starred in his own sitcoms, shaped around his persona: as daydreamer Stanley Blake in A World of His Own (BBC, 1965); as compulsive worrier George Webley in Inside George Webley (Yorkshire Television, 1968 and 1970); as greengrocer and ladies' hairdresser Alf Butler in No Appointment Necessary (BBC, 1977); as building-firm manager Joe Jones in Cowboys (Thames Television, 1980--81); as Sidney Pratt, manager of struggling escapologist Ernest Tanner (Brian Murphy) in The Incredible Mr. Tanner (London Weekend Television, 1981); as Arnold Bris­ tow, used-car dealer and psychic in The Clairvoyant (BBC, 1986); and in his last sitcom, as the tipsy head­ master, R.G. Wickham, in the short-lived Hardwicke House (Central, I987), which was pulled off air halfway through its run following accusations of bad taste.

Kinnear worked regularly for more than 25 years on television. Much of his success was due to the warmth that the public felt toward him and the esteem in which he was held by his fellow professionals. Throughout this period, Kinnear still made appearances in the­ theater and acted in supporting roles in more than 50 movies. While on location for The Return of the Musketeers (1989), he suffered a fatal fall from his horse.