Nicholas Ball dead: EastEnders and Hazell actor dies aged 78 after "short illness"

Actor Nicholas Ball has died at the age of 78, his agent has announced. Known for his role as gang lord Terry Bates in the BBC soap EastEnders, where he famously attacked Peggy Mitchell (played by Barbara Windsor) and wrecked the Queen Victoria pub, Ball also starred as Garry Ryan, the ex-rock star and club chairman, in the drama Footballers’ Wives.

In a statement, Ball’s agent confirmed he “passed away following a short illness” and said that his “successful acting career on stage and screen spanned an impressive six decades.”

Ball’s prominent role was as James “Jim” Hazell in the private detective series Hazell. The character, a cockney former policeman, was created by Gordon Williams and footballer Terry Venables, who wrote under the pseudonym PB Yuill.

Throughout his career, Ball made guest appearances in various crime dramas such as Jonathan Creek, Hustle, Heartbeat, and Bergerac. He also featured in comedies like Red Dwarf and The Young Ones, as well as the drama The Crezz.

His filmography includes roles in the war drama Overlord, the thriller Rogue Male, the crime drama The Krays: Dead Man Walking, and the Jilly Cooper adaptation The Man Who Made Husbands Jealous. Recently, Ball completed filming for the 2024 rural drama The Kingdom By The Sea alongside Coronation Street actress Rula Lenska.

Ball is survived by his widow, Ayda. He was previously married to Pamela Stephenson, a comedy actress turned therapist, who is the second wife of comedian Sir Billy Connolly. They met on the set of Not The Nine O’Clock News.