🔗 Share this article Remembering Actor Patrick Murray: The Man Who Portrayed Mickey Pearce Patrick Noel Murray, who died aged 68, became well-known for his portrayal as Mickey Pearce in Only Fools and Horses, the spiv with a trilby hat who teams up briefly with his old schoolfriend Rodney Trotter in the beloved TV sitcom Only Fools and Horses. First Episode He was introduced in the third series in the 1983 installment named Healthy Competition, where Rodney's goal to move beyond his role as a lookout for his brother was immediately foiled when Mickey ripped him off. The Trotter brothers were reunited, and Mickey continued as a fixture throughout the programme's final Christmas special in 2003. Character Background This figure had been mentioned repeatedly following the program's launch in 1981, such as in plots where he took Rodney's girlfriend, but did not initially appear. As the writer sought to enlarge the ensemble of characters, the show's producer recalled Murray's performance in a TV commercial, where he unsuccessfully chatted up two women, and suggested him for the part. The actor tried out on a Friday and started filming just three days later. Mickey was conceived as a lighter version of Del Boy, not as clever but, like Del, often seeing his business ventures fail. He's willing to attempt anything, but he's unreliable,” the actor stated. He's forever tricking Rodney, and Del often threatens to hit him for it.” This character frequently teases Rodney about his romantic failures while fabricating his own romantic “conquests” and changing occupations often. Behind the Scenes An episode from 1989 had to be rapidly revamped due to a mishap in which Murray fell over his dog at home and smashed into a window, severing a tendon in his right arm and losing five pints of blood. With the actor’s arm in a plaster cast, the writer modified the upcoming installment to incorporate Mickey facing violence by local gangsters. Post-Fame Journey The sitcom’s final episode was screened in 1991, but Murray was among the performers who participated in festive specials for an additional 12 years – and stayed in favor at gatherings for enthusiasts. Patrick Murray entered the world in Greenwich in London, his mother Juana, a dancer, and Patrick Sr., a London Transport inspector. He studied at St Thomas the Apostle college in Nunhead. At 15 years old, he saw an advertisement for a theatrical agency in the Daily Mirror and shortly after landed a role in a stage play. He soon began TV parts, beginning in 1973, aged 16, in Places Where They Sing, a BBC play inspired by a novel about student unrest. Shortly after, he starred in the youthful adventure show The Terracotta Horse, shot in Spain and Morocco. He also had roles a brief play Hanging Around (1978), focusing on troubled teens, and the feature The Class of Miss MacMichael (1978), starring Glenda Jackson as a dedicated educator, before his big break arrived. For Scum, a story centered on the harsh youth detention system, he portrayed Dougan, a good-natured inmate whose mathematical ability got him entrusted to manage funds discreetly brought in by visitors, which he retrieved on his rounds with a trolley. He successfully to reduce the “daddy’s” percentage when the character Carlin became the leader. This play, produced for a TV series in 1977, the BBC banned it for its brutal content, although it was eventually broadcast in 1991. In the meantime, Alan Clarke turned it into a movie in 1979, with Murray part of a group from the initial cast returning to their parts. He later took minor roles in features like Quadrophenia (1979) and Breaking Glass (1980), and took the role of a bellboy in Curse of the Pink Panther (1983). His popularity from the sitcom earned him numerous TV roles in the 1980s and 90s in programs such as Dempsey and Makepeace, Lovejoy, The Return of Shelley and The Upper Hand. He played two roles in The Bill. However, his life took a downturn after he managed a pub in Kent in 1998, overindulging in alcohol and finally seeking assistance from Alcoholics Anonymous. He later moved to Thailand, where he wed Anong in 2016. Soon after, he moved back to Britain and drove a taxi. He came back shortly to acting in 2019 as a cockney gangster Frank Bridges in the TV series Conditions, still to be screened. Medical Challenges He was diagnosed with the lung disease COPD in 2018 and, in 2021, lung cancer and a tumour on his liver. Although he was given the all-clear in 2022 post-treatment, it recurred soon after. Personal Life In 1981, he got married to Shelley Wilkinson; they later divorced. He is survived by Anong, their daughter, Josie, and three sons of his first marriage, Lee, Ricky and Robert, as well as siblings and two brothers.