Harry Porter And Chernobyl Actor, Paul Ritter, Dies At 54

Paul Ritter, who had become a comedy favourite thanks to his performance as Martin Goodman in Friday Night Dinner, has died. He was 54.

Ritter, born Simon Paul Adams in Kent in 1966, studied acting in grammar school before attending St. John’s College, Cambridge. Following graduation, he went to the German National Theatre in Hamburg. He enjoyed a successful stage career and jumped to screen work with The Bill in 1992. He’d go on to split his time between TV and film, appearing movies such as Harry Potter And The Half-Blood Prince, Nowhere Boy, Quantum Of Solace and Son Of Rambow. On the small screen, he worked on Waking The Dead, Vera, Cold Feet and Chernobyl.

Stephen Mangan, who studied with Ritter, expressed his feelings on Twitter.

“It is with great sadness we can confirm that Paul Ritter passed away last night,” announced his agent. “He died peacefully at home with his wife Polly and sons Frank and Noah by his side. He was 54 and had been suffering from a brain tumor. Paul was an exceptionally talented actor playing an enormous variety of roles on stage and screen with extraordinary skill. He was fiercely intelligent, kind and very funny. We will miss him greatly.”