John Thaw was a major household name in the 1970s thanks to his leading roles in the likes of The Sweeney and Inspector Morse, which are still regularly shown on ITV3 and ITV4.
The star became incredibly popular thanks to his roles, earning two BAFTA nominations for his role in Inspector Morse as the titular character. John remained active in acting up until his death in 2002 at the age of 60 following a diagnosis of oesophageal cancer.
During his life, the late actor was married twice, first to historian and stage manager Sally Alexander, and secondly to fellow actor Sheila Hancock. John is also a father to three children, including daughter Abigail Thaw, who followed her father into the acting world.
Scroll down for all you need to know about the star's famous marriages and daughter…
Marriage to Sally Alexander
In 1964, John married stage manager and historian Sally Alexander; however, the couple divorced four years later.
Sally doesn't hold anything against her ex-husband, and reflecting on him in a 2020 interview, she shared: "My husband John Thaw, an actor, hammered home to me what it meant to come from a secondary modern school without O-levels, where the jobs on offer were in the local factory or on the market, which was where he worked before RADA.
© Getty Images"John – who'd read plays in Manchester Library and worked in Liverpool Rep and Granada's The Younger Generation before we met – instilled in me the grammar of class. He understood my father. He was at home in the Ruskin bar. He took me home to meet his beloved extended family in Manchester, to a small terrace house which had nothing in the kitchen except a pot of HP sauce and a pot of ketchup on the table. Nothing else."
John blamed himself for the breakdown of their relationship, saying that he was his "selfishness, immaturity, and single-minded pursuit of a career" that caused them to split.
Marriage to Sheila Hancock
John and Sheila first met in 1969 during a production of So What About Love?. The pair soon became friends, but didn't become romantic due to Sheila's marriage to Alexander Ross, with the actress wanting to avoid an affair in order not to disrupt her daughter's life.
However, after Alexander died in 1971, the pair became an item, marrying two years later. The couple remained together until John's death in 2002, with Sheila temporarily retiring from acting work in order to look after her ill husband.
© Getty ImagesIn an article for Prospect magazine published in 2025, Sheila confessed that she would still speak to her late husband whenever she tuned into Channel 4 News. She joked: "But our imagined rant about politicians and human idiocy has grown fainter over the years."
The star also revealed that she felt "overwhelmed at the thought of a solitary day ahead", adding: "The easiest thing is to turn over and stay in bed, but an effort must be made when one least feels like it, to get up and be active, or one descends even deeper into the Slough of Despond."
Famous daughter
While married to Sally, John welcomed daughter Abigail, who followed in her famous father's footsteps by entering the world of acting. The star, who is married to actor Nigel Whitmey and has two children, is best known for playing Dorothea Frazil in Endeavour.
Speaking to What To Watch about the series, which served as a prequel to Inspector Morse, she thought her father would have approved. "I like to think that Dad would have given it the nod of approval," she told the publication.
© Getty Images"We made it our own, we weren’t trying to ape Inspector Morse, but I've always had him as a sort of benign presence on set just there on my shoulder, and I've loved that. I think he's up there smiling. Dad would have loved Shaun [Evans], and would have totally respected Shaun’s wishes to not emulate him but with the writing, you could still absolutely see Morse and the man he was about to become."
She has also appeared in the likes of The Bill, Casualty, Midsomer Murders, Black Mirror and Sister Boniface Mysteries. Her daughter, Molly, had a cameo appearance in an episode of Endeavour, appearing as a younger version of her real-life grandmother, Sally Alexander.
© Alamy Stock PhotoMolly won't be continuing the family legacy, with Abigail saying in 2020 ahead of the cameo: "It's a very small scene. But we thought it would be a great idea, and Molly really enjoyed it even though she doesn't want to be an actress."
