# Peter Armitage (actor) > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Peter_Armitage_(actor) > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Peter_Armitage_(actor).md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Armitage_(actor) > Source revision: 1341966242 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) English actor (1939–2018) Peter Armitage MBE Born Peter James Armitage (1939-10-23)23 October 1939 Skipton, West Riding of Yorkshire, England Died 30 November 2018(2018-11-30) (aged 79) Cononley, North Yorkshire, England Alma mater East 15 Acting School Occupation Actor Years active 1969–2018 Spouse Annabel Scase ​ ​ (m. 1970, divorced)​ Children 2 **Peter James Armitage** (23 October 1939 – 30 November 2018)[1][2] was an English [television](/source/Television) and [stage](/source/Theatre) actor best known for his role as [Bill Webster](/source/Bill_Webster) on long-running [soap opera](/source/Soap_opera) *[Coronation Street](/source/Coronation_Street)*.[3] He was a regular on British screens from the 1970s onwards. ## Early life Armitage was born [out of wedlock](/source/Legitimacy_(family_law)) in [Skipton](/source/Skipton), [West Riding of Yorkshire](/source/West_Riding_of_Yorkshire), where he was brought up primarily by his aunt until the age of 10, when his mother married.[4] He did not meet his father, who was German, until he was 28, and the two did not form a long-term relationship. Armitage attended [Glusburn](/source/Glusburn) secondary modern school, then was apprenticed to a firm building diesel engines for five years. He subsequently spent four years serving in the [Merchant Navy](/source/Merchant_Navy_(United_Kingdom)) before settling in [London](/source/London), where he worked as a [banksman](/source/Banksman) on the construction of the [Victoria line](/source/Victoria_line). He then enrolled at the [East 15 Acting School](/source/East_15_Acting_School) in [Loughton](/source/Loughton), [Essex](/source/Essex) to train as an actor.[1] ## Career Armitage had three spells as the character [Bill Webster](/source/Bill_Webster) on *[Coronation Street](/source/Coronation_Street)*, appearing in the role in 1984–1985 (for six months), then from 1995 to 1997 and again from 2006 to 2011. He had previously appeared as a different character playing a painter and decorator in two episodes in 1977. In 2014 Armitage stated in an interview that he had hoped to return to the series after successfully battling bowel cancer.[5][6] In the 1970s Armitage appeared in two British drama series, *[The Sweeney](/source/The_Sweeney)* and *[The Professionals](/source/The_Professionals_(TV_series))*. In *The Sweeney* Armitage appeared as Herbert *"Jacko"* Jackson in the episode *Big Spender.* His character was that of a crooked ticket attendant of a car park company who becomes involved with an organized crime family in and attempt to defraud his employers. Whilst in *The Professionals* Armitage appeared as [Special Branch](/source/Special_Branch) detective Ray Kerrigan, the episode entitled *Stake Out*. In 1988, a century after the [Whitechapel Murders](/source/Whitechapel_Murders), Armitage appeared in the television mini-series *[Jack the Ripper](/source/Jack_the_Ripper_(miniseries))* in which he played the part of Sergeant Kirby. His other TV credits include *Lovejoy*, *[The Befrienders](/source/The_Befrienders)*, *Couples* and *[Hearts and Minds](/source/Hearts_and_Minds_(1995_TV_series))*. He also appeared in *[Lucky Feller](/source/Lucky_Feller)*, a short-lived sitcom starring [David Jason](/source/David_Jason).[7] In 1998, played Danny Ormondroyd in a stage adaptation of the film *[Brassed Off](/source/Brassed_Off)* at the [Sheffield Crucible](/source/Sheffield_Crucible) and London’s [Olivier Theatre](/source/Olivier_Theatre).[1] ## Personal life Armitage married actress Annabel Scase in 1970; the couple had two children, Daniel and Sally, and later divorced.[1] Armitage lived in [Cross Hills](/source/Cross_Hills), [North Yorkshire](/source/North_Yorkshire)[8] and subsequently in [Cononley](/source/Cononley) near [Skipton](/source/Skipton).[9] He was appointed a [Member of the Order of the British Empire](/source/Order_of_the_British_Empire) (MBE) in the [2011 Birthday Honours](/source/2011_Birthday_Honours) for services to amateur theatre in [Yorkshire](/source/Yorkshire). Armitage died of a heart attack on 30 November 2018, aged 79. He was survived by his children.[1][10] ## References 1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-obituary_1-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-obituary_1-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-obituary_1-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-obituary_1-3) [***e***](#cite_ref-obituary_1-4) Hayward, Anthony (6 December 2018). ["Peter Armitage obituary"](https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2018/dec/06/peter-armitage-obituary). *The Guardian*. Retrieved 6 December 2018.{{[cite news](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Template:Cite_news)}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service ([link](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:CS1_maint:_deprecated_archival_service)) 1. **[^](#cite_ref-2)** ["Coronation Street actor Peter Armitage dies age 78"](https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-46452831). *Bbc.co.uk*. 5 December 2018. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20181205152030/https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-46452831) from the original on 5 December 2018. Retrieved 5 December 2018. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** ["East 15 notable alumni"](https://web.archive.org/web/20150629231254/http://www.east15.ac.uk/alumni-notable.asp). *East15.ac.uk*. Archived from [the original](http://www.east15.ac.uk/alumni-notable.asp) on 29 June 2015. Retrieved 5 December 2018. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** Witherow, John, ed. (1 January 2019). "Peter Armitage:Obituary". *The Times*. No. 72732. p. 44. [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [0140-0460](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/0140-0460). 1. **[^](#cite_ref-5)** ["'Corrie' Star Wants Soap Return After Beating Cancer"](https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2014/02/27/coronation-street-actor-peter-armitage-bill-webster-cobbles_n_4865259.html). *HuffPost UK*. 27 February 2014. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20181205193422/https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2014/02/27/coronation-street-actor-peter-armitage-bill-webster-cobbles_n_4865259.html) from the original on 5 December 2018. Retrieved 5 December 2018. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-6)** Earp, Catherine (26 February 2014). ["Corrie star beats cancer, wants return"](http://www.digitalspy.com/soaps/coronation-street/a554115/corries-peter-armitage-beats-cancer-id-like-to-return-to-the-show/). *Digital Spy*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20181206192604/https://www.digitalspy.com/soaps/coronation-street/a554115/corries-peter-armitage-beats-cancer-id-like-to-return-to-the-show/) from the original on 6 December 2018. Retrieved 5 December 2018. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-7)** Hildred, Stafford; Ewbank, Tim (3 September 2012). [*Sir David Jason - A Life of Laughter*](https://books.google.com/books?id=IY88AAAAQBAJ&q=peter+armitage+coronation+street&pg=PT87). John Blake Publishing. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [9781782190721](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/9781782190721). Retrieved 5 December 2018 – via Google Books. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-8)** ["Cross Hills, North Yorkshire has plenty to trumpet about"](https://www.yorkshirelife.co.uk/out-about/places/cross-hills-north-yorkshire-has-plenty-to-trumpet-about-1-1635874). *Yorkshire Life*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20180919211435/https://www.yorkshirelife.co.uk/out-about/places/cross-hills-north-yorkshire-has-plenty-to-trumpet-about-1-1635874) from the original on 19 September 2018. Retrieved 5 December 2018. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-mirror_9-0)** Crawford, Sue (26 February 2014). ["Corrie Bill Webster has beaten cancer and wants to get on the cobbles"](https://www.mirror.co.uk/lifestyle/health/corrie-bill-webster-beaten-cancer-3186270). *Mirror.co.uk*. Retrieved 5 December 2018. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-10)** ["Peter Armitage dead: Coronation Street star who played Bill Webster dies aged 78"](https://www.mirror.co.uk/3am/celebrity-news/breaking-coronation-street-star-peter-13689007). *Mirror.co.uk*. 5 December 2018. Retrieved 5 December 2018. ## External links - [Peter Armitage](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0035513/) at [IMDb](/source/IMDb_(identifier)) - [Yellow Pages commercial](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RnJk6bkjgko) on [YouTube](/source/YouTube_video_(identifier)) Authority control databases: Artists MusicBrainz --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Peter Armitage (actor)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Armitage_(actor)) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Armitage_(actor)?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.