| Birth name | John Barker |
|---|---|
| Birth date | 27 March 1953 |
| Birth place | Burnley, Lancashire, England |
| Death date | 3 April 2025 (aged 72) |
| Occupation | Actor · equestrian |
| Years active | 1983–2025 |
| Spouse | Joyce Barker |
| Website | johnsaintryan.com |
John Barker (27 March 1953 – 3 April 2025), known professionally as John Saint Ryan, was an English actor, horse trainer and equestrian. He appeared in supporting roles in film and television. His more memorable characters include Fergus in the 1997 Fox television series Roar and Myles Standish in Disney's 1994 adventure drama film Squanto: A Warrior's Tale.
Early life
Born John Barker in Burnley, Lancashire,[1] on 27 March 1953,[2] he attended Rosehill Junior School and later became a bookseller and martial arts teacher in the town.[1] He ran and instructed a Muay Thai gym in Preston called "Fighting Fit" prior to getting a role as a stunt double for Sean Connery on the film set The Medicine Man.
Career
Ryan made his acting debut in 1983 in G.B.H. and soon landed a small role in the hit British soap opera Emmerdale (then known as Emmerdale Farm) as Jameson. Ryan appeared in theatre productions of Far from the Madding Crowd and A Streetcar Named Desire, and in supporting roles in films and television series including Coronation Street (as Charlie Whelan), Buffy the Vampire Slayer, General Hospital, Murder, She Wrote, Cybill, and the made-for-TV movie The Heidi Chronicles. Ryan also played the main antagonist Cyborg in American Cyborg: Steel Warrior.
Ryan moved to California in the early 1990s. He owned and operated the "Red Rose Ranch", a working horse and cattle ranch near Inyokern, California, where he raised, boarded, and sold horses. He trained horses and riders in both dressage and western riding; Ryan's specialty was the doma vaquera style of western riding, a Spanish form of competitive Western pleasure riding. He won multiple national and international titles in the sport, and wrote books and produced videos on the doma vaquera style.
Personal life and death
Saint Ryan married Joyce and had three sons. One of them, Samuel Barker (born 1980), is a lighting director and has won Emmy Awards for his work on The Voice.[3] Saint Ryan was a keen supporter of Burnley Football Club.[1]
Saint Ryan died of a heart attack on 3 April 2025, at the age of 72.[4]
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 | Target Eve Island | Colonel Mitri Petrovich | |
| 1983 | G.B.H. | Big Nick Rafferty | |
| 1986 | Gunpowder (film)|Gunpowder | Platoon Commander | |
| 1986 | Into the Darkness | Jeff Conti | Also writer |
| 1991 | Cover Up | Mini Barman | |
| 1991 | Delta Force 3: The Killing Game | Sergei | |
| 1992 | The Eye of Satan | Camille Muhamed | |
| 1992 | The Assassinator | Chris McCall | Also writer and producer |
| 1993 | American Cyborg: Steel Warrior | Cyborg | |
| 1993 | CIA II: Target Alexa | Ralph Straker | |
| 1994 | Squanto: A Warrior's Tale | Myles Standish | |
| 1996 | The Sweeper | Richman | |
| 2009 | The Butcher | Illegal Surgeon | |
| 2019 | Out of the Wild | Tom Essex |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | Scene | Policeman | Episode: "Too Nice by Half!" |
| 1986 | MacGyver | Eddie | Episode: "The Assassin" |
| 1986 | The Twilight Zone | William | Episode: "The Storyteller" |
| 1987 | Emmerdale | C.S.M. Jameson | 2 episodes |
| 1987 | A Small Problem | Policeman | Episode: "We'll Meet Again. Don't Know Where. Don't Know When" |
| 1987 | Floodtide | Capt. Gibson | 3 episodes |
| 1987 | Coronation Street | Barman | 1 episode |
| 1988 | Wipe Out | Jean-Marie Leletton | 3 episodes |
| 1989 | Screen Two | Nightclub Manager | Episode: "Angel Voices" |
| 1992 | The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles | Mister Max | Episode: "Austria, March 1917" |
| 1993 | SeaQuest DSV | Captain Finius Wideman | Episode: "Knight of Shadows" |
| 1993–1994 | Coronation Street | Charlie Whelan | Regular Role; 59 Episodes |
| 1995 | The Heidi Chronicles | Nick | Television film |
| 1995 | No Greater Love | Titanic Officer | |
| 1995 | Murder, She Wrote | Jack Conroy | 2 episodes |
| 1995 | Babylon 5 | Troublemaker | Episode: "A Day in the Strife" |
| 1995 | M.A.N.T.I.S. | Druid | Episode: "Ancestral Evil" |
| 1995, 1996 | Gargoyles | King Arthur | 2 episodes |
| 1996–1997 | EZ Streets | Bo | 6 episodes |
| 1997 | L.A. Heat | Yuri | Episode: "For Whom the Bullet Tolls" |
| 1997 | Dark Skies | Colonel Dimitri Mironov | Episode: "Strangers in the Night" |
| 1997 | Cybill | Ryan | Episode: "Show Me the Minnie" |
| 1997 | Roar | Fergus | 13 episodes |
| 1998 | Players | Martin Daggett | Episode: "Wrath of Con" |
| 1999 | Crusade | Technomage | Episode: "The Memory of War" |
| 2000 | Buffy the Vampire Slayer | Colonel George Haviland | Episode: "Superstar" |
| 2001 | The Agency | SAS Leader | Episode: "Pilot" |
| 2012 | Revolution | Bandit #2 |
References
- ^ "Hollywood actor flies flag for Burnley FC". Burnley Express. Johnston Press. 26 March 2010. Archived 3 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 23 September 2013.
- ^ "John Saint Ryan". WorldCat Entities. OCLC. Retrieved 7 April 2025.
- ^ Adams (23 September 2013). "East Lancashire man scoops Emmy for lighting up US TV show". Lancashire Telegraph. Retrieved 1 August 2021.
- ^ Winston, Fran & Blosse, Benjamin (7 April 2025). "Ex-Coronation Street star dies suddenly". Manchester Evening News. Retrieved 7 April 2025.