Gary Holton's Main TV Roles Show Character(s) Auf Wiedersehen, Pet (UK) Wayne Norris

Main Movie Roles

BIOGRAPHY:

Playing the part of Wayne Winston Norris in the smash hit comedy drama Auf Wiedersehen, Pet, Holton became a household name. People came to have great affection for all the characters in the show. Holton played a Cockney carpenter who liked his women, music and drink, which was actually very similar to his off-screen personalitity

The first series of Auf Wiedersehen, Pet ran between 1983 and 1984 with viewing figures steadily rising and topping the 14 million mark, Ian la Frenais and Dick Clement and their supporting writers had a huge hit on their hands. The true-to-life storylines were believable, capturing the reality of honest working men screwed by the system. The first series ended with the lads returning to Britain unemployed, which was a reflection of British society in the early 1980s
Gary became very close to his acting colleagues. The remaining members did not want to continue making the show, which was planned for a third series set in the Russian Embassy without him. The final episode of the second series, broadcast after Holton's death, was dedicated to his memory.


TRIVIA:

• Was the lead singer with The Heavy Metal Kids.
• He was considered a replacement as the lead singer of AC/DC after the death of Bon Scott in 1980, a role which he declined because he was reluctant to re-enter the musical world.
• Was the lead singer for The Damned during a tour of Scotland circa. December 1978.
• His role as Wayne Winston Norris in "Auf Wiedersehen, Pet" (1983) earned him critical acclaim, and as he had become amazingly close to his acting peers they decided it would be a crime to continue the show on a planned third outing without his presence. Upon the revival in 2002, Gary's character still remained part of the integral plot.