Charles 'Bud' Tingwell dies in Melbourne, aged 86
Not a rugby story, but a sad loss for All Australians.
Staff writers
May 16, 2009 12:00am
A DOG-eared script lay on Bud Tingwell's bedside table as Australia's most loved actor took his final bow.
Such was his commitment to his craft.
At 86, and ravaged by prostate cancer, the grand old gentleman of the screen was still looking forward to his next role.
Hours after he died in hospital on Friday, the applause for a remarkable life began.
Stars, film lovers, theatre-goers and politicians were unanimous in acclaiming him an "Australian legend".
A state funeral will be held at St Paul's Cathedral next week.
Bert Newton described Tingwell as "the full deal".
"It is refreshing to be able to talk about someone and know that there is no dark side, no negatives," he said. "If you gave his CV to anyone, they'd think you were talking about three or four people."
Tingwell was a friend to everybody in the acting world, from international actors including Sam Neill and Rachel Griffiths to Neighbours stalwart Alan Fletcher.
"He was an absolute gentleman. The last of his era," Steve Bisley said.
"He had incredible stamina and vitality, which shone through his sparkling eyes."
Fletcher said Tingwell was "warm, kind and generous".
Julia Blake, who played opposite Tingwell in several plays, a film and a TV series, said work "kept him alive".
While working on the second series of the ABC's Bed Of Roses they found themselves filming in Foster with the temperature in the mid-40s.
"It was so hot and I said: 'Do you think it's a bit hot to be working?' and Bud said 'No, we don't want to stop. We're professional actors and it's such a pleasure to be employed'."
Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said Tingwell was a legend.
"He is so much a part of the Australian character as it's been shaped and as it will evolve in the future," he said.
Premier John Brumby said Tingwell was a gentleman and a brilliant actor who "helped put the Australian television and film industry on the map".
In an industry renowned for back-biting, it's impossible to hear a bad word about Charles "Bud" Tingwell.
He was the teenage radio presenter and war-hero pilot who became the matinee idol, theatre performer and TV leading man, both here and in Britain. He even ventured to Hollywood, where he co-starred with Richard Burton in The Desert Rats.
He was an actor first but also a producer and a director, once describing his career as "a beautiful, delicious stew".
He was one of the rare breed who seemed truly grateful for everything life had given him and who embraced every new challenge that came along, including the most demanding roles . . . and even technology.
At 83, Bud started a website and learned how to blog, revealing how he got his nickname before he was even born.
"When my mother was pregnant, she had been teased by some friends at the Coogee Surf Club, asking 'What's budding in there?'
"It became 'How's the bud?' and finally 'Bud'. I rather liked Charles. But I also love the ordinariness of Bud."
His life was anything but ordinary. He became a radio actor while still at school and joined the RAAF at 18, flying 75 missions across southern Europe and northern Africa in Spitfires and Mosquitoes as a photo reconnaissance pilot.
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