Pat Roach(1937-2004)
- Actor
- Stunts
Proud and passionate Angle, Pat Roach, was born and raised in
Birmingham, England and grew to be a mountain of a man standing at six
feet, five inches tall, with doorway-wide shoulders and a barrel chest.
Pat wrestled competitively under the name of "Bomber" Roach, and at one
time held both the British and European Heavyweight Wrestling
Championships. While still in the wrestling game, Roach broke into
acting with a bit part in the
Stanley Kubrick film
Barry Lyndon (1975). He quickly
became popular as an enforcer or warrior figure and appeared on-screen
with some of Hollywood's biggest names. Many people would remember him
as the muscle-bound, bald German guard who hands out a beating to
Harrison Ford in
Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981),
before being cut down by a spinning plane propeller.
In other film roles, Roach nearly eliminates 007
Sean Connery in the Bond film
Never Say Never Again (1983),
in dual roles as a resurrected demon and as a fierce warrior, he fought
Arnold Schwarzenegger in the Conan
sequel
Conan the Destroyer (1984),
and was back as a ferocious Indian guard pummeling poor
Harrison Ford once again in
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984),
before falling into a rock crusher.
He also appeared in
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989),
Red Sonja (1985) and
Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (1991).
Apart from his film activity, Pat ran a gymnasium in Birmingham,
operated a used appliance business in the local markets and was known
as a warm-hearted and genial man who was happy to chat with admiring
fanatics, sign autographs and pose for photographs.
Roach was also very popular with English television audiences for his
portrayal of gentle giant "Brian 'Bomber' Busbridge" in the series
Auf Wiedersehen, Pet (1983)
and was scheduled to appear in the fifth series of the show, when he
died of cancer on July 17, 2004. He was 67 years old.
Birmingham, England and grew to be a mountain of a man standing at six
feet, five inches tall, with doorway-wide shoulders and a barrel chest.
Pat wrestled competitively under the name of "Bomber" Roach, and at one
time held both the British and European Heavyweight Wrestling
Championships. While still in the wrestling game, Roach broke into
acting with a bit part in the
Stanley Kubrick film
Barry Lyndon (1975). He quickly
became popular as an enforcer or warrior figure and appeared on-screen
with some of Hollywood's biggest names. Many people would remember him
as the muscle-bound, bald German guard who hands out a beating to
Harrison Ford in
Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981),
before being cut down by a spinning plane propeller.
In other film roles, Roach nearly eliminates 007
Sean Connery in the Bond film
Never Say Never Again (1983),
in dual roles as a resurrected demon and as a fierce warrior, he fought
Arnold Schwarzenegger in the Conan
sequel
Conan the Destroyer (1984),
and was back as a ferocious Indian guard pummeling poor
Harrison Ford once again in
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984),
before falling into a rock crusher.
He also appeared in
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989),
Red Sonja (1985) and
Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (1991).
Apart from his film activity, Pat ran a gymnasium in Birmingham,
operated a used appliance business in the local markets and was known
as a warm-hearted and genial man who was happy to chat with admiring
fanatics, sign autographs and pose for photographs.
Roach was also very popular with English television audiences for his
portrayal of gentle giant "Brian 'Bomber' Busbridge" in the series
Auf Wiedersehen, Pet (1983)
and was scheduled to appear in the fifth series of the show, when he
died of cancer on July 17, 2004. He was 67 years old.