Biography
Heathcote Williams was an English poet, actor, playwright and political activist. Born John Henley Heathcote-Williams on 15 November 1941 in Helsby, Cheshire, he died on 1 July 2017 in Oxford, Oxfordshire.
He appeared in a range of independent and mainstream films, including Derek Jarman’s The Tempest (1979) as Prospero, Sally Potter’s Orlando (1992) as Nick Greene/Publisher, and Basic Instinct 2 (2006). Other credits include Stormy Monday (1988), The Legend of 1900 (1998), City of Ember (2008) and a guest role in the Friends episode “The One With Ross’s Wedding” (1998).
Williams was best known for his book-length polemical poems on environmental and political themes, such as Whale Nation (1988) and Autogeddon (1991), and for plays including AC/DC (1970).
