Phil McCall
- January 29, 2002
- 76 years
About Phil McCall
Phil McCall was a notable figure. McCall died in 2002 at the age of 76.
Explore other notable deaths in 2002 or deaths in January 2002.
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60 Seconds Life Story
Phil McCall was a prolific Glaswegian actor whose career spanned four decades across stage, television, and
Phil McCall
d. 2002
60 Seconds: Phil McCall's Life Story
A brief overview of the career and life of Glaswegian actor Phil McCall, who appeared in numerous films, plays, and television productions.
Transcript
Phil McCall was a prolific Glaswegian actor whose career spanned four decades across stage, television, and film. Born Philip McColl, he trained at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama before launching his career in repertory theatre. McCall gained major film roles in the 1969 classic Ring of Bright Water and Lars von Trier's Breaking the Waves. Television audiences remembered him for various roles in series like Coronation Street and his recurring character Scotch Harry in Minder. Beyond his acting, he served as the chairman of the Scottish committee for the actors' union Equity for seventeen years. He also became a household face in the 1980s as the star of the Knorr stock cube advertising campaign. He passed away in Glasgow at the age of seventy-six in January 2002.
Play the illustrated life story above, or read the full biography on this page.
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Full Biography
|Phil McCall (born Philip McColl; 26 November 1925 – 29 January 2002) was a Glaswegian actor who appeared in numerous plays, films and television productions over a 40-year period.
Early life and education
McCall's father was a labourer. He attended St Mungo's Academy in Glasgow and trained as an actor at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama. He then appeared in repertory theatre in Scotland and England.
Acting career
McCall had significant film roles in Ring of Bright Water (1969) and Lars von Trier's Breaking the Waves (1996). His television appearances included Dr. Finlay's Casebook, Bottle Boys, Monarch of the Glen, and Coronation Street. In addition to his role in films and television, McCall was the centrepoint in Knorr's stock cube advertising campaign in the 1980s, which included the famous catchphrase "Pea and ham soup from a chicken, now that's clever".
He appeared twice in episodes of the television series Minder, playing safe-breaker/sneak thief Scotch Harry.
He was the chairman of the Scottish committee of the actors' union Equity for 17 years.
Theatre
Death
McCall was married for 44 years to Katherine McCall, a television and theatre director. Their son also entered the entertainment industry, first as a child actor, then later became involved in the behind-the scenes theatre work.
His wife found him hanged at their home in Glasgow on 29 January 2002.
Content from Wikipedia — licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0
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Sources
- Wikipedia
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phil_McCall
- CC BY-SA 4.0
- Sep 26, 2026
- View article
- Sep 26, 2026
People who died on January 29
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