Eric Richard

{{Short description|English actor (born 1940)}} {{BLP sources|date=May 2009}} {{Use dmy dates|date=March 2025}} {{Infobox person | image =  | image_size = 150px | name = Eric Richard | birth_date = {{Birth date and age|df=yes|1940|6|27}} | birth_place = Margate, Kent, England | spouse = Unknown (? – ?) (divorced) <br /> Tina Smith (? – present) | children = 3 }}

'''Eric Richard''' (born Eric Smith, 27 June 1940) is an English actor and presenter.

His theatre work includes plays at the Royal Court Theatre and the Theatre Royal, Stratford East, as well as seasons with the Royal Exchange, Manchester, Birmingham Repertory Theatre, Sheffield Crucible Theatre and Paines Plough. In 2001, he appeared as Ebeneezer Scrooge in a production of Charles Dickens' ''A Christmas Carol'' at the UCL Bloomsbury Theatre, London.

He is best known for his role as Sergeant Bob Cryer in the long-running ITV drama ''The Bill'', which he portrayed for twenty years from the show's inception in 1984; his television work has also included ''Shōgun'', ''Victoria Wood As Seen on TV'', ''Play for Today'', ''Juliet Bravo'', ''Made in Britain'', ''Open All Hours'', ''Games Without Frontiers'', ''P'tang, Yang, Kipperbang'', ''Shoestring'', ''Casualty'' and ''Holby City''. He made a brief appearance in 'Open All Hours' as a cash register salesman at Arkwright's shop in the final series in 1985. In 1991, he reviewed motorcycles for ''Top Gear''. He also played the Astronomer’s Technician in the 1978 horror movie , ''The Final Conflict''.

In 2010, it was announced that Richard was to appear in the stage version of ''Lark Rise to Candleford'' which was on a nationwide tour at the time.

His two-month-old grandson, Charlie Smith, was the youngest known British victim of the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami. He died in the arms of his father, Richard, after the wave hit them in Sri Lanka. They had sat down to eat when the water swept up into the restaurant.<ref>[https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/4145219.stm UK victims of Asian tsunami]</ref>

In 2016, he starred in the short film ''Stutterer''. The short film won the Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film at the 88th Academy Awards. It was written and directed by Benjamin Cleary and produced by Serena Armitage and Shan Christopher Ogilvie.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.newstatesman.com/culture/film/2016/03/having-stammer-everyday-demon-not-single-moment-feel-good-tv|title=Having a stammer is an everyday demon|date=3 March 2016|access-date=12 March 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.afr.com/lifestyle/arts-and-entertainment/film-and-tv/the-unseen-challenges-of-a-stutterer-20160306-gnc5y3|title=Smashing misconceptions about living with a stammer|access-date=12 March 2016|date=9 March 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/2016/film/reviews/2016-oscar-nominated-live-action-shorts-film-review-1201714930|title=Film Review: ‘2016 Oscar-Nominated Short Films: Live Action'|author=Peter Debruge|work=Variety|date=26 February 2016}}</ref> He also starred in Ben Rider's indie drama ''Forever Tomorrow''.<ref>{{IMDb title|4665976|Forever Tomorrow (2016)}}</ref>

He appears in the 2017 war film ''Dunkirk'', under the credit "Man at Railway Window".<ref>{{IMDb title|5013056|Dunkirk (2017) }}</ref>

In 2018, Richard appeared as Maurice in ''EastEnders''.<ref name="Maurice">{{Cite news|url=https://www.radiotimes.com/news/2018-11-26/who-is-maurice-the-cabbie-in-eastenders-all-you-need-to-know-about-the-bill-legend-eric-richard/|title=Who is Maurice the cabbie in EastEnders? All you need to know about The Bill legend Eric Richard|last=Hughes|first=Johnathon|date=26 November 2018|work=Radio Times|access-date=22 December 2018}}</ref>

In 2025, Richard made a brief appearance in ''Call the Midwife'' (series 14, episode 6).

==References== {{Reflist}}

==External links== *{{IMDb name|723793}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Richard, Eric}} Category:English male television actors Category:English male stage actors Category:1940 births Category:Living people Category:Male actors from Margate