Actor Geoffrey Palmer Dead at Age 93

By Amanda Thomason November 6, 2020 at 11:14am

Actor Geoffrey Palmer, known for roles in a variety of television shows and movies, passed away at his home in England on Thursday at the age of 93.

Born in London on June 4, 1927, Palmer didn’t start out an actor. As a young man, he worked as an accountant, and it was his girlfriend who convinced him to step into the work of drama, according to his IMDb bio.

His first home was the stage, and he worked for some time as Croydon Grand Theatre’s assistant stage manager before finding a place on television in 1955’s “St. Ives.”

Palmer became a British staple known for his appearance in “Butterflies,” “As Time Goes By,” “Doctor Who” and “The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin.”

His last big movie involvement was in 2014’s “Paddington,” though he was also working on “An Unquiet Life” before his death.

The well-known actor had a renowned friendship with Dame Judi Dench, and they worked together on “As Time Goes By,” “Tomorrow Never Dies,” “Mrs Brown” and “The Madness of King George.”

Actor Geoffrey Palmer, who starred in British sitcoms Butterflies and As Time Goes By in TV career spanning seven decades, has died https://t.co/FaMzpTzBWB

— BBC Breaking News (@BBCBreaking) November 6, 2020

“She would say that she doesn’t enjoy being a national treasure, which would be an absolute bloody lie!” Palmer once said of Dench, according to IMDb. “She loves it!”

Dench was notorious for poking fun at Palmer, still taking jabs at him even when presenting him with the “Oldie of the Year” award in 2018.

“I wish wish wish that this was the awards for ‘most promising newcomer’ or maybe even ‘the naughtiest man I ever had the pleasure to work with’, but it’s not,” she said, according to Yahoo Celebrity UK. “It’s the Oldie awards.”

“I’m going to quote Bernard Shaw as he said about Ellen Terry ‘she never seemed old to me.’ Well, nor you to me.”

Since his passing, many actors, writers and production companies have shared their sentiments, remembering Palmer as a great actor with a great sense of humor.

RIP Geoffrey Palmer – such a wonderful actor, such a lovely guy. Brilliant at his craft & just the best company: wickedly funny … he did everything he did so well. Thanks for all the happy memories Geoffrey: we’ll cherish them as time goes by. pic.twitter.com/8nmvTVgphw

— Gyles Brandreth (@GylesB1) November 6, 2020

“RIP Geoffrey Palmer,” author Gyles Brandreth tweeted, “such a wonderful actor, such a lovely guy. Brilliant at his craft and just the best company: wickedly funny.”

“He did everything he did so well. Thanks for all the happy memories Geoffrey: we’ll cherish them as time goes by.”

Very sad to hear that Geoffrey Palmer has left us. I was very excited to meet him once and then had the honour to act with him in the film Lost Christmas. His work will stay with us and through that he can live on forever. Good work Sir. Rest in peace https://t.co/lBgKN5rttr

— Eddie Izzard (@eddieizzard) November 6, 2020

“Very sad to hear that Geoffrey Palmer has left us,” comedian Eddie Izzard wrote. “I was very excited to meet him once and then had the honour to act with him in the film Lost Christmas.”

“His work will stay with us and through that he can live on forever. Good work Sir. Rest in peace.”

Palmer is survived by his wife Sally Green, his daughter Harriet and son Charles.

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