Michael Leader
{{Use British English|date=September 2016}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2016}}
{{More citations needed|date=May 2019}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Michael Leader
| image = Michael Leader.jpg
| alt = grey-haired man in a padded coat
| caption = Michael Leader in EastEnders
| birth_name =
| birth_date = 12 September 1938
| birth_place = Hackney, London, England
| death_date = {{death date and age|2016|8|22|1938|9|12|df=y}}
| death_place = England
| nationality = English
| other_names =
| occupation = Actor
| years_active =
| known_for = {{plainlist|*Star Wars (1977) — the "clumsy stormtrooper" (disputed)
- EastEnders (1985–2016) — Michael the milkman }}
| notable_works =
}}
Michael Leader (12 September 1938 – 22 August 2016){{cite news |last=Keast-Marriott |first=Andy |date=25 August 2016 |title=Michael Leader 1938-2016 |url=http://www.doctorwhonews.net/2016/08/michael-leader-1938-2016.html |publisher=Doctor Who News |access-date=10 September 2016 }}{{cite news |last=McGrath |first=Rachel |date=24 August 2016 |title=Michael Leader Dead: 'EastEnders' Team Pay Tribute Pay Tribute As Actor Who Played Milkman Dies |url=http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/michael-leader-eastenders-star-wars_uk_57bd8454e4b042aee74e2904 |work=The Huffington Post UK |access-date=9 September 2016 }} was an English actor known for his roles in the British television programmes, notably the soap opera EastEnders, and for a minor part in the 1977 film Star Wars.
Life
Leader was born in Hackney, London, in 1938.{{cite book |last1=Lentz III |first1=Harris M. |title=Obituaries in the Performing Arts, 2016 |date=2017 |publisher=McFarland |isbn=9781476670317 |pages=235–6 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EZEwDwAAQBAJ&q=%22Michael%20Leader%22%20actor&pg=PT249 |accessdate=5 July 2018 |language=en}} He was the son of the jazz band leader Harry Leader.{{cite web |last1=Keast-Marriott |first1=Andy |title=Michael Leader 1938-2016 |url=http://www.doctorwhonews.net/2016/08/michael-leader-1938-2016.html |website=Doctor Who News |accessdate=5 July 2018 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20180705090106/http://www.doctorwhonews.net/2016/08/michael-leader-1938-2016.html|archivedate=5 July 2018|url-status=live}}
Michael was married to a Dutch woman and became father of one daughter in 1975.{{Citation needed|date=February 2019}}
In his spare time, he liked to be around in the Leyton Orient F.C. Stadium, as he was a fan of the team.{{Citation needed|date=February 2019}}
Career
Leader had a number of minor parts and appeared as an extra in a range of television programmes.
His debut film appearance was a minor role as an imperial stormtrooper in the original Star Wars film (1977). Although only on-screen for a matter of seconds, Leader's appearance has attracted particular interest in Star Wars fan culture as he has claimed to be the stormtrooper who bangs his helmeted head on a door frame in a scene on board the Death Star. This was a blooper which was overlooked during editing and has remained part of the film ever since.{{cite news |last1=Cooper |first1=Gael Fashingbauer |title=Stormtrooper who bonked head in original Star Wars movie has died |url=https://www.cnet.com/news/stormtrooper-who-bonked-head-in-original-star-wars-movie-has-died/ |accessdate=5 July 2018 |work=CNET |date=26 August 2016 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20180705083411/https://www.cnet.com/news/stormtrooper-who-bonked-head-in-original-star-wars-movie-has-died/ |archivedate=5 July 2018 |language=en|url-status=live}} A rival claim to the part of the "clumsy stormtrooper" has been made by fellow actor Laurie Goode, who has stated that it was he who bumped his head in the scene, not Leader.{{cite web |last1=Parker |first1=Ryan |title='Star Wars' Head-Banging Stormtrooper Explains the Classic Blunder |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/star-wars-40th-anniversary-head-banging-stormtrooper-explains-classic-blunder-1003769 |website=The Hollywood Reporter |accessdate=5 July 2018 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20180705091630/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/star-wars-40th-anniversary-head-banging-stormtrooper-explains-classic-blunder-1003769|archivedate=5 July 2018 |language=en|url-status=live}}
Leader's most substantial role was a recurring part as Michael the milkman in the BBC soap opera EastEnders, a part he played since its first episode in 1985. The role was not a speaking part until the 1991 Christmas Eve episode when Frank Butcher (Mike Reid) invites him into the B&B for a drink. Michael says "It's a bit early", and then has a small amount of dialogue with Frank.
Leader also had minor appearances in the television programmes Doctor Who, Red Dwarf, and Keeping Up Appearances.{{cite news |last=Lindsay |first=Duncan |date=24 August 2016 |title=Cast pay tribute as EastEnders and Star Wars actor Michael Leader dies |url=http://metro.co.uk/2016/08/24/cast-pay-tribute-as-eastenders-and-star-wars-actor-michael-leader-dies-6088064/ |publisher=Metro UK |access-date=10 September 2016 }}
Filmography
=As actor=
| class="wikitable sortable" |
| Year
! Title ! Role ! class="unsortable" | Notes |
|---|
| 1977
| Stormtrooper | Film, Uncredited |
| 1980
| Rebel / Technician | 2 episodes, Uncredited |
| 1980–1983
| Soldier / Mutant / Terileptil / Pangol Clone | "The Leisure Hive" (1980); "The Visitation" (1982); "The King's Demons" (1983); "Mawdryn Undead" (1983) |
| 1985–2016
| Milkman / Michael | Uncredited |
| 1991
| Man near reception | Episode: "Golfing with the Major" |
| 1992
| Hooded Horde | Episode: "Terrorform", Uncredited |
| 2008
| Slow Eastenders Extra | Television series |
References
{{reflist|30em}}
External links
- {{IMDb name|0494915}}
{{authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Leader, Michael}}
Category:English male film actors
Category:English male television actors
Category:Actors from the London Borough of Hackney