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A skilled character actor, he took part in the Royal Shakespeare Company's inaugural London season in 1961 and became a well-known figure in numerous television sitcoms and serials, most notably as a key cast member in The Duchess of Duke Street in 1976.
In The Duchess, he portrayed the mysterious hall porter Mr Starr, always accompanied by his squeaky boots and his small dog, Fred—a role that led to comedic collaborations with Frankie Howerd, Roy Kinnear, and Dick Emery. He played a Cockney father in Central's The Other 'Arf (1980), opposite Lorraine Chase’s Twiggy-like model, and also appeared in the BBC’s Sitting Pretty (1992), featuring Diane Bull as “the Jackie Onassis of Bethnal Green.”
A perfectionist proud of his craft, Cater believed that if one couldn’t cross a stage carrying a cup of tea, execute a half-trip, a double-take on an imaginary pothole, and finish the cup without spilling, they should consider another profession. His timing was flawless.
Born in Hendon, North London, into a family of florists, his mother was a violinist in the Piorinos, a musical dance band trio. At four, John began training at the Jean Boggan school of dance. During World War II, he was evacuated with his entire Hendon prep school to Devon. He completed his education at Shebbear College near Bideford before enrolling at RADA in 1948.
His studies were interrupted by national service in the Royal Army Educational Corps, but upon graduation, he was employed at the Dundee Rep by Herbert Wise, a lifelong friend with whom he later appeared in three episodes of the BBC’s I, Claudius as Narcissus (1976).
He performed in repertory and summer seasons at Nottingham, Guildford, Aberdeen, Edinburgh, and Cork before joining Peter Hall’s first London RSC at the Aldwych, appearing in The Duchess of Malfi, Ondine with Leslie Caron, and John Whiting’s The Devils.
These were exhilarating times, made even more memorable by falling in love with fellow RSC actor Wendy Gifford, whom he married in 1963. He launched a modest film career with supporting roles in Alfie (1966), Loot (1970), and two Vincent Price horror films, The Abominable Dr. Phibes (1971) and Dr. Phibes Rises Again (1972).
His first television role was in a 1949 live broadcast from Alexandra Palace, a play about the French resistance. His TV credits expanded to include the landmark Jean-Paul Sartre adaptation Road to Freedom (1970), and roles in series such as The Bill, Crossroads, Minder, Casualty, and Midsomer Murders. His final BBC series was last year’s ill-fated archaeology drama Bonekickers; his last film was Alien Autopsy (2006), starring Ant and Dec.
Cater returned to the stage with John Wells’s sharp satire Anyone For Denis? at the Whitehall in 1981, playing Denis Thatcher’s bankrupt friend Maurice Picarda. He rejoined the RSC in 1984 to appear in Judi Dench’s Mother Courage, Corbaccio in Volpone, and Kit Carson in William Saroyan’s The Time of Your Life.
More recently, he performed at the Almeida in two Jonathan Kent productions: David Hare’s adaptation of Pirandello’s Rules of the Game in 1992 as a doctor anxious about duel attire, and Gangster Number One in 1995, starring Peter Bowles, as a petty thief. That same year, he also portrayed a notably suspended Justice Shallow in Terry Hands’s elegantly autumnal Merry Wives of Windsor at the National Theatre.
A lover of all kinds of music, especially Ravel, Debussy, and Mahler, he was an avid jazz enthusiast and a talented musician, skilled in jazz piano, trombone, harp, and guitar.
He suffered from haemochromatosis, a rare blood disorder, but his life was not significantly impacted until arthritis developed. He died of liver cancer and was survived by his wife Wendy and daughters Harriet and Emma.
