William Gaunt

Gaunt's father was a solicitor. Gaunt attended Giggleswick School and Baylor University, Texas, and then the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. He then spent three years working in repertory theatre at Worthing, Bath, Salisbury and Cheltenham after which he was in America for another year, later returning to the UK working on productions at Birmingham, Coventry and Cheltenham, interrupted by a spell in the army.^[3]

After minor roles in 1960s series such as Z-Cars and The Avengers, and the Edgar Wallace Mysteries films The Sinister Man (1961) and Solo for Sparrow (1962), he gained a role as the super-powered secret agent Richard Barrett in the 1968 British espionage/science fiction series The Champions. In 1966 he appeared in "Flight Plan," an episode of The Saint, where he played an Osprey pilot. He had also appeared in a recurring role of Constable Bob Marriott in Sergeant Cork following policemen in Victorian London.^[4] Between 1977 and 1978 he appeared in 22 of the 26-episode television series "The Foundation" in the role of Gareth Brown.

Between 1983 and 1987, Gaunt starred as harassed father Arthur Crabtree in the sitcom No Place Like Home. He subsequently made many guest appearances in other series such as Juliet Bravo and in the Doctor Who two-part serial Revelation of the Daleks (1985). From 1995 to 1997, Gaunt starred in the sitcom Next of Kin opposite Penelope Keith.^[5] In 2010, he appeared in the Globe Theatre production of Shakespeare's Henry IV, Part 1.^[6] He starred in the 2004 Doctor Who audio series Dalek Empire III.^[7] He also appeared in the Channel 4 series Cast Offs. In December 2002 he appeared in an episode of Heartbeat (Series 12 episode 11), we played Charles Robertson in an episode titled Sins Of The Fathers.

In December 2011, Gaunt was seen in Episode One of the ITV drama Without You. In February 2012, Gaunt appeared in Midsomer Murders as Ludo DeQuetteville in the episode "The Dark Rider", first aired on ITV1 on Wednesday 1 February 2012. This is his second appearance in this series, after playing Michael Bannerman in the 2004 episode "The Maid in Splendour". In May 2015, Gaunt played Judge St John Redmond in six episodes of EastEnders.

The TV channel Talking Pictures started showing Sergeant Cork in 2025, with Gaunt appearing before each episode to give a short chat about the episode's production.^[8]

Gaunt also has extensive stage experience, both as an actor and a theatre director, including a notable success in playing the Micheál Mac Liammóir character in Gates of Gold by Frank McGuinness at the Finborough Theatre, London, and in the West End.

Gaunt appeared in the Royal Shakespeare Company production of The Seagull, sharing the role of Sorin with Ian McKellen; and appeared in King Lear as Gloucester at the New London Theatre in Drury Lane, London, opposite McKellen in the title role following a United Kingdom tour.^[9] He revived his performance as Gloucester in the TV film of the same name released in late 2008.^[10] He appeared in the role of Dogsborough, a parody of Paul von Hindenburg in Bertold Brecht's The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui, and in The Crucible at the Old Vic. In 2017 he appeared in a tour of Alan Bennett's play The Lady in the Van. In 2021, he appeared as Duncan in The Tragedy of Macbeth at the Almeida Theatre.^[11]

In 2025, Gaunt appeared in The Truth About the Blayds at the Finborough Theatre as 90 year old family patriarch Blayds.^[12]

Gaunt married actress Carolyn Lyster on 7 September 1974. They have a daughter, Matilda, and a son, Albie.