Dennis Waterman has paid a tearful tribute to his former Minder co-star as friends and family gathered to say a final farewell to actor George Cole.
Cole, who died earlier this month aged 90, is best remembered for his portrayal of small-time wheeler dealer and crook Arthur Daley in the TV series, alongside his likeable bodyguard Terry McCann, played by Waterman. Today his coffin entered Reading Crematorium to the theme tune to the popular series, which ran from to and brought the criminal underworld of west London to millions of homes up and down the country.
Scroll down for video. Emotional: Minder actor Dennis Waterman is lead tributes to his former co-star at the funeral today. A moving tribute: George Cole's trilby is left on display at the service in Reading in honour of the Minder star. Delivering the eulogy, Waterman, who saw Cole the day before he died, described his co-star as the 'most liked man in the entire profession'.
And I thought 'that's my George. Go on my son'. It was non-stop. We laughed all day long, every day. The hearse carrying George Cole's body arrived at the crematorium in Reading earlier this morning. Cole's wicker casket is carried into the crematorium where family, friends and fellow actors are waiting for his service. The wreath strewn coffin was carried in for the funeral service to George Cole which began this morning at Personally I would rather be doing Hamlet with no rehearsals than this.
Waterman added that he was 'pleasantly surprised' when reading the final paragraph of Cole's IMDB profile which described his former co-star as 'one of Britain's most enduring actors, one of only a handful of actors who can claim to have had a year career' and who was 'an extremely likeable, charismatic man'. Cole passed away in hospital on August 5 with his wife and son at his bedside, following a short illness. She said: 'You can open your eyes and see all that he has left', before jokingly adding in the line, 'all those television repeats.
Mr Waterman and his wife Pam arrive at the star-studded funeral which is being held at Reading Crematorium. Waterman left who once described Cole as one of the 'nicest blokes in the world' and fellow Minder co-star co-star Patrick Malahide right at his funeral. Speaking after the service, Waterman added: 'He was just the most popular person in showbiz and the nicest and the best.
Derek Webster, long-term friend of Cole and agent to Waterman, said ahead of today's service the actor was a 'sweetheart'. Mr Webster said he expected the service to be a 'celebration of Cole's life' and compared Waterman to the former Minder star. He added: 'Everyone that worked with George absolutely fell in love with him.
There was absolutely nothing about him that you could dislike. His widow Penny Morrell centre with her son Toby right gather outside the crematorium. George Cole OBEs daughter parepares to say her final goodbye to her father who died earlier this mont.
Shortly after his death, Waterman had paid tribute to his friend, and said: 'It's a long time we've known each other.
He was just one of the nicest blokes in the world and we loved working together. Fellow stars of stage and screen also paid tribute to the actor, describing him as 'immaculate' and 'unforgettable'. A lovely actor. A gentleman'. Tony Hall, director general of the BBC, said: 'George Cole was a wonderful actor and he has a very special place in the public's affection.
He will be greatly missed. Cole became a household name for his portrayal of the dodgy second-hand car dealer in the hit show Minder which ran for 15 years, with over episode across 10 seasons. His catchphrases on the show, such as ''er indoors' and 'nice little earner', became part of popular British culture.
Mrs Morrell and Waterman both said goodbye to Cole who died aged 90 earlier this month. He played the leading character, Daley, throughout with audiences peaking at over 16 million.
His career has spanned more than 70 years and before his death he had urged a director to 'get a move on,' because he wanted to make one more film.
Spencer Hawken told how he had spoken to the veteran star last year to tell him the movie, Road Rage, had been delayed. Born in Cole, who was adopted as a baby and grew up in Morden, south London, began his career in musical theatre when he left school, before getting his break in films in the s. As a year-old he was taken in by comedy star Alastair Sim and his wife Naomi, who became a second mother to him, and Cole went on to star in a series of films and theatre shows with the Scottish star.
His family must be devastated, and I am absolutely certain that anybody who ever knew him, will feel the same. We worked together for many years and my boast is that we laughed all day every day. I had the privilege of spending Tuesday afternoon with him and Penny and although very frail his wit was as evident as ever. Farewell old friend. Minder, which ran from to , brought west London's criminal underworld into the living rooms of millions of homes up and down the country.
With "Arfur" Daley spending each episode munching on cigars as he hatched another scheme to get rich quick, his long-suffering bodyguard McCann watching over his every step to shield him from the police, and fans always wondering who 'Er Indoors really was, Minder was one of the most popular programmes of the s, garnering around Announcing Cole's death, agent Derek Webster, who represents Waterman, said: "It is with deep regret that I have to announce the sad death of one of our most loved and respected actors.
His wife Penny and his son Toby and daughter Tara were with him at his bedside. As the forever-scheming cockney "Arfur", always on the lookout for the next dodgy deal, Cole perfectly captured the ambitious, upwardly-mobile spirit of the s.
Minder eventually came to an end after 15 years and episodes because Cole wanted to spend more time with his own 'Er Indoors - his wife Penny. Gary Webster took over from Waterman in as Cole's sidekick for the final two series, playing Arthur's nephew Ray Daley. Webster remembered Cole as a "comic genius" and "a fantastic guy to work with, a real genuine gentleman".
The final Dennis Waterman series kicked off with the 90 minute Christmas special 'An Officer and A Car Salesman', with the show having been off the air for almost three years. It is been stated that each time a series of Minder was filmed, the cast and crew often thought it would be the last, with the series originally intended to finish with 'Waiting For Goddard' at the end of series six. A seventh series reintroduced Terry with him having served '18 moons in the shovel' a prison sentence as a result of some dodgy videos that Arthur had left in his flat.
This would be Dennis Waterman's final series. Throughout his time as Arthur's Minder, Terry got himself into all sorts of scrapes often being dumped on by Arthur at every opportunity. Where the earlier series featured far more grittier storylines than the later episodes, it is certainly true that on-screen violence in the later series was much less. This is one of the reasons why Dennis Waterman felt the character of Terry had run his course. He has stated publicly that the show no longer became about the Minder, rather about Arthur Daley.
The end sequence of the Terry McCann Years were always the same, featuring specially shot photographs never actually seen in any episode. They showed Terry and Arthur at various locations throughout London and again feature in our Locations section.
For detailed information of the 72 episodes in 'The Terry McCann Years', including facts, locations and bloopers - visit our episode guide here.
Filming of the first series took place between the end of April until October The series opening titles were filmed one week before the the filming of the very first episode to be filmed 1.
Although the filming of a Minder episode generally took place over two full working weeks i. A notable exception to this 10 day filming rule was the second episode to be filmed 1. If you are looking for the song on CD, find this in our shop! Both of the these actors have had very successful careers besides Minder. Patrick Malahide appeared in numerous TV and movie roles, including a notable appearance alongside Dennis Waterman in the action movie of the TV series 'Sweeney 2' from Sadly, Peter Childs passed away in , just months after series 7 was broadcast.
The character of Chisholm would appear in 24 episodes of first seven series and Rycott would appear in
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