Ian Lavender dead aged 77: Dad’s Army’s Private Pike and EastEnders actor dies as tributes pour in
DAD’S Army and EastEnders star Ian Lavender has died aged 77.
He played Private Pike in the hit BBC sitcom and was the last surviving member of the cast.
Announcing his death on Monday, a Dad’s Army spokesperson said his passing “truly marks the end of an era.”
The statement added: “His wonderful performance as Private Frank Pike will live on for decades to come.
“He leaves behind a legacy of laughter enjoyed by millions. We will dedicate this year’s tour to his memory.
“Our thoughts and love are with Ian’s wonderful wife Miki, their family and close friends.”
It is understood Lavender, who was born in Birmingham, died on Friday.
He was just 22 when cast as Private Pike, a junior bank clerk frequently referred to by Captain Mainwaring as “stupid boy”.
Pike was famous for being made to wear a scarf by his mother “to protect him from the croup”.
In the Dad’s Army episode The Deadly Attachment, Lavender’s character was a key part of one of the most famous moments in British TV comedy, after Captain Mainwaring urges his young charge not to give his name to a German officer with the unforgettable line: “Don’t tell him, Pike!”
Although once described by The Times as a “masterpiece”, Dad’s Army took four years to take off. The first reviews dismissed it and the series was almost ended three or four times.
But it won the hearts of 12 million viewers and the BBC called it one of their biggest comedy successes. It became so popular it was turned into a West End stage show and film.
His downtrodden character was the baby of the series but his hair started to go prematurely grey, a family trait, and he had to plaster it with cream to give it a dark oily look suitable for a teenager in wartime Britain.
Lavender, a policeman’s son, was not even around during the Second World War – he was born a year after the war ended in 1946.
He handed in his Home Guard uniform after the last series in 1978 – and went on to play soppy Ron in The Glums, a 1979 ITV series. And he was the youthful idiot in Mr Big, a BBC comedy about a small-time crook called Ginger.
“I just like making people laugh,” said Lavender, who trained at Bristol Old Vic and did his share of Shakespeare, including The Merchant of Venice, starring Dustin Hoffman.
Ian Lavender: Actor plucked from obscurity to star in Dad's Army
Lavender was the youngest member of Dad’s Army – the much-loved BBC series (even the late Queen used to tune in) which ran for 10 years.
He used to drive Captain Mainwaring mad with his whining and relied on his Uncle Arthur, played by John Le Mesurier, to keep an eye on him.
With a scarf wrapped permanently around his neck – his over-protective mum worried about his weak chest – Private Pike was the last man in Britain to strike terror into the hearts of invading Germans.
Birmingham-born Lavender once said it was the luckiest day of his life when he was plucked from obscurity to play 17-year-old Frank Pike.
He was earning £9 a week during a six-month stint at Canterbury Rep when someone came up to him and said he looked stupid enough to do Pike.
“I was a complete beginner and I suddenly joined what was probably Britain’s most experienced team of character actors,” he said.
“I was in a state of shock finding myself suddenly among so many great actors. When the moment came for me to speak, that funny voice of Pike just came out in a moment of panic.
“Since then at the start of every new series it has been one hell of a job trying to conjure it up again.
“But Private Pike took me from obscurity into the TV big time. I could never have achieved that if I hadn’t learned to say: ‘Ooh Captain Mainwaring, my mum said even if the Germans come I mustn’t catch cold.'”
The actor also played Derek Harkinson, a gay friend of Pauline Fowler (Wendy Richard) from 2001 to 2005 in BBC One soap EastEnders.
He returned to Walford from 2016 to 2017 but left after he became ill with sepsis.
Lavender played the role for ten years on the much-loved comedy classic.
In 2001, he joined EastEnders as Derek Harkinson, a gay friend of Pauline Fowler.
He was a fixture on Albert Square for four years.
Dad’s Army – which followed the exploits of the home guard during WWII – ran for nine series between 1968 and 1977.
It became one of the most popular sitcoms in Britain, regularly attracting audiences of 18 million.
Royal Mail marked the 50th anniversary of the TV comedy classic Dad’s Army with a collection of stamps in 2018, featuring the main characters.
That same year, Lavender cleared up a long-standing mystery from the show during an interview with the Radio Times.
When asking creator David Croft if Uncle Arthur was Pike’s father, Lavender said: “He looked at me and said, ‘Of course he is!'”