Michael James Latimer was a British television, stage, and film actor, writer, director, and producer who was born on September 6, 1941, in Calcutta, India. His father had a business in the city, and Latimer was educated at the Leys School in Cambridge from 1955 to 1959. During his time at school, he was a middle-distance runner and played rugby for the English Schoolboys Team.
After leaving school, Latimer trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) for two years and began his acting career in cabaret revues. He stood in for Peter Cook in the hit show Beyond the Fringe when the original cast took the production to New York.
Latimer's early television appearances included roles in The Avengers, Sexton Blake, Man at the Top, Van der Valk, Special Branch, Marked Personal, Village Hall, Crown Court, The Sweeney, Quiller, The New Avengers, Spectre, Z-Cars, The Professionals, Maggie and Her, Hammer House of Horror, and Rumpole of the Bailey.
In addition to his television work, Latimer appeared in a number of films, including A Man for All Seasons, Prehistoric Women, Mosquito Squadron, Man of Violence, Got It Made, and Sweeney!.
As a stage director, Latimer worked on the first Johnny Nash and Bob Marley tours of the United Kingdom in 1972. He also set up his own production company, Bedrock Productions, which had three top twenty hits in the German music charts for Hansa and Ariola Records.
Latimer's writing credits include the BBC play The Interview and four episodes of the television series Sons and Daughters. He taught at RADA, the London Academy of Performing Arts (LAPA),and a drama school in Australia. As a director, he worked on television commercials in Australia and directed over 37 theatre productions in the United Kingdom, including Daniel Magee's play Paddywack, which starred James Nesbitt at the Cockpit Theatre in Marylebone.
Latimer passed away on June 25, 2011, at Trinity Hospice in Clapham, London, at the age of 69.
