Terrence Hardiman dead: Actor best known for The Demon Headmaster role dies aged 86 after starring in Crown & Doctor Who
ACTOR Terrence Hardiman has died at the age of 86, his agent has said.
The stage and screen star was best known for playing the title role in the CBBC series The Demon Headmaster.
He also appeared in TV programmes such as The Crown, Wallander, Doctor Who and Prime Suspect.
His theatre career saw him tour with the Royal Shakespeare Company in several principal roles, including as Starveling in a 1970 production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream.
And Hardiman narrated hundreds of audiobooks, including series by Colin Dexter, Anne Perry and Ruth Rendell.
But he became a household name for terrifying a generation of children in the 1990s as The Demon Headmaster, which was based on books by Gillian Cross.
The sinister school leader used powers of hypnosis to enact his evil schemes across three seasons broadcast between 1996 and 1998.
Hardiman’s imposing figure hid his piercing green eyes behind dark glasses – only removing them to control the minds of his victims.
He reprised the chilling role for a cameo when the series was rebooted in 2019.
Speaking at the time, Hardiman told Radio Times: “I thought, ‘What a horrible character. How lovely. A real villain of a piece. Why not?'”
One fan of the show said on Twitter today: “To this day I struggle to think of a more terrifying figure from my childhood.”
Another, paying tribute, wrote: “Another childhood legend gone.
“This was amazing, and terrifying back in the day.”
Hardiman’s death was announced “with great sadness” by his agency Scott Marshall Partners, which said he was a “beloved client and much-loved stage and screen actor”.
As well as his major roles, he also appeared in Colditz, Secret Army, Crown Court, Bergerac, Minder and The Bleak Old Shop of Stuff.
He is survived by his wife Rowena and his two children.