Buffy the Vampire Slayer actor Anthony Head dies at 72

He most recently played Rupert Mannion, the villainous ex-husband of Hannah Waddingham’s character Rebecca, in Ted Lasso.

“Our grief is far greater than the hole he has left behind, but we know his legacy will live on, in the shows he was a part of, and in the audiences that love them,” his daughters said. “How lucky we are to know we are able to watch him doing what he loved, even when he is no longer with us.”

Anthony Head was born in London on February 20, 1954 to Seafield Head, a documentary filmmaker, and Helen Shingler, an actor. His older brother, Murray, is also an actor.

Other notable roles included playing Geoffrey Howe, the deputy to Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, played by Meryl Streep, in the Oscar-winning The Iron Lady.

Head portrayed a prime minister himself in the sketch comedy show Little Britain, as well as King Uther Pendragon, the father of Prince Arthur, in the Merlin TV series. He also appeared in Motherland, Manchild, and Silent Witness, along with acting in many plays, musicals, and recording music as a singer.

He was predeceased by his longtime partner, animal welfare activist Sarah Fisher, 61, in 2025.