Richard Beckinsale was a British actor, perhaps most famous for his role as Lennie Godber in the popular BBC sitcom Porridge. Beckinsale enrolled at the age of 16 at a Nottingham adult drama class and won a place at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art as a result. He turned professional in repertory theatre in Crewe and then made his television debut in 1969 as a police officer in Coronation Street before acquiring his first starring role in 1970 as Geoffrey in the sitcom The Lovers, opposite fellow newcomer Paula Wilcox. There followed a purple patch when he was appearing in two of British TV's most successful sitcoms at the same time. On ITV, he was playing naive medical student Alan Moore in Rising Damp while also starring in Porridge. He appeared in feature films of The Lovers and Porridge. Shortly after his 30th birthday, Beckinsale was surprised by Eamonn Andrews with the famed 'big red book' for an appearance on This Is Your Life. In 1979, at the age of only 31, he died of a massive heart attack at his home. He was alone in the house at the time as his wife was in hospital and his young daughter was staying with relatives. Porridge co-star Ronnie Barker commented on Beckinsale's premature death saying: "He was so loved. He hadn't done much but he was so loved that there was a universal sort of grief that went on." Beckinsale was an in-demand actor on stage and screen throughout his adult life. He had just completed work on the Porridge feature film and was midway through shooting a series called Bloomers when he died. The five completed episodes of this series were aired posthumously later in the year. He was also filming a movie which then had to be re-cast. Three days after his death, the sitcom Going Straight, a spin-off from Porridge and starring both Beckinsale and Barker, won a BAFTA award. A clearly distressed Barker delivered a brief but emotional acceptance speech in tribute to his co-star. In 2001, a documentary was broadcast on ITV in tribute, called The Unforgettable Richard Beckinsale. It featured interviews with his widow - the actress and casting advisor Judy Loe - as well as his father, brother, closest schoolfriend and two daughters. Also contributing were his co-stars, Barker and Rising Damp's Don Warrington. Beckinsale twice married - firstly to Margaret Bradley, with whom he had a daughter Samantha Beckinsale (now an actress) in 1966. They divorced in 1971. He then married Loe in 1977, four years after the birth of their daughter, the actress Kate Beckinsale. Beckinsale's maternal grandfather was Burmese.