THE HAT SQUAD: TOM BELL

Veteran British actor Tom Bell has died at the age 73 after a short illness, his agent said.

Bell was best known as Helen Mirren’s old adversary Detective Sergeant Bill Otley, a sexist officer who clashed with Dame Helen's character Jane Tennison, in the hit ITV series 'Prime Suspect'. He appeared in the first three series of the mystery drama, and returns in the seventh being shown on ITV1 next month. [Note: the IMDb.com does not list Tom Bell among the actors in 'Prime Suspect 2', but they've been known to make mistakes in the past.]

Bell, who appeared in the seventies TV drama 'Out', shot 'Prime Suspect 7' just a few months ago and it was one of the last projects he worked on. In his return to the show after a 13-year gap, his character makes peace with DCI Tennison.

An ITV1 spokeswoman said: “We are greatly saddened by the news of Tom’s death and extend our deepest sympathies to his family.”

His long stage, film and TV career saw him on BBC1 just last week in "Ancient Rome: The Rise And Fall Of An Empire", in which he played the consul Nasica. Bell was twice nominated for a BAFTA - for the first series of 'Prime Suspect' in 1991 and for the 1978 miniseries 'Out', in which he played a robber.

He was part of a new wave of working-class British acting talent in the 1960s, and his TV credits include Adolf Eichmann in the Emmy award-winning TV mini-series 'Holocaust' in 1978.

Tom Bell is survived by a son and two daughters.

TV SERIES
Prime Suspect 7 (2006) (TV) .... Bill Otley
Prime Suspect 3 (1993) (TV) .... Sgt. Bill Otley
... aka Prime Suspect 3: The Keeper of Souls
"Hope It Rains" (1991) TV Series .... Harry Nash
Prime Suspect (1991) (TV) .... DS Bill Otley
... aka Prime Suspect 1: A Price to Pay
"Chancer" (1990) TV Series .... Mr Love, Derek's father
"King's Royal" (1982) TV Series .... Fergus King

TV MINI-SERIES
"No Bananas" (1996) (mini) TV Series .... Thomas Slater
"The Detective" (1985) (mini) TV Series .... Commander Kenneth Crocker
"Reilly: The Ace of Spies" (1983) (mini) TV Series .... Felix Dzerzhinsky
"Sons and Lovers" (1981) (mini) TV Series .... Walter Morel
"Out" (1978) (mini) TV Series .... Frank Ross
"Holocaust" (1978) (mini) TV Series .... Adolf Eichmann

TV MOVIES
Pollyanna (2003) (TV) .... Old Tom
My Kingdom (2001) (TV) .... Quick
Four Fathers (1999) (TV) .... Frank Yallop
Tube Tales (1999) (TV) .... City Gent (Segment Horny)
The Great Kandinsky (1995) (TV) .... The Professor
The Cinder Path (1994) (TV) .... Edward MacFell
Dark River (1990) (TV) .... Johnny Deacon
Red King, White Knight (1989) (TV) .... Tulayev
Words of Love (1989/I) (TV) .... Mr. Seaford-Warwick
The Rainbow (1988) (TV) .... Old Tom Brangwen
Sweet Nothings (1980) (TV) .... Tom Fearon

TV RECURRING ROLES
"Spender" .... Tommy Thornton
- Christmas Special - The French Collection (1993)
- Puck (1993)

TV GUEST APPEARANCES
"Waking the Dead"
- Breaking Glass (2003) TV Episode .... Prof Hugh Cullen
"Dr. Terrible's House of Horrible"
- Voodoo Feet of Death (2001) TV Episode .... CI Ellis
"Dalziel and Pascoe"
- Recalled to Life (1999) TV Episode .... Oliver Fisher
"The Grand"
- Episode #2.6 (1998) TV Episode .... Clive's Dad
"Dangerfield"
- Eden (1996) TV Episode .... John Rust
"The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles"
- Young Indiana Jones and the Phantom Train of Doom (1993) TV Episode .... Colonel Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck
"Van der Valk"
- Doctor Hoffmann's Children (1991) TV Episode .... Freddie Brugmans
"Unnatural Causes"
- Hidden Talents (1986) TV Episode .... Harold
"Play for Today"
- Desert of Lies (1984) TV Episode
- Stronger Than the Sun (1977) TV Episode .... Alan
- Angels Are So Few (1970) TV Episode .... Michael Biddle
"Une maison, une histoire"
- Wellington (1980) TV Episode .... Duke Of Wellington
"The Protectors"
- Shadbolt (1974) TV Episode .... Shadbolt
"Play of the Month"
- Hedda Gabler (1972) TV Episode .... Eilert Lovborg
"The Virginian"
- Johnny Moon (1967) TV Episode .... Cpl. Johnny Moon
"Armchair Theatre"
- A Night Out (1960) TV Episode .... Albert Stokes
- No Trams to Lime Street (1959) TV Episode
"Dial 999"
- Extradition (1959) TV Episode .... The Boxer

BCnU......
Tele-Toby