# Terence Beesley
**Terence Beesley** (7 September 1957 – 30 November 2017) was an English actor and writer whose career covered four decades of British television, film, and stage work, with screen credits including *EastEnders*, *Midsomer Murders*, *Victoria*, *War & Peace*, and the film *London Has Fallen*.
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born / died | 1957, London, England; 30 November 2017, Camerton, Somerset, England, aged 60[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0066591) |
| Training | St Marylebone Grammar School, then the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art, 1981 to 1984[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0066591) |
| Screen range | Television credits from the late 1980s to 2016, including *The Bill*, *Casualty*, *Agatha Christie's Poirot*, *Highlander: The Series*, *Silk*, and *What Remains*[2](https://www.screensearch.co.uk/person/1412369/terence-beesley) |
| Final year | In 2016 he played Buxton in ITV's *Victoria*, General Benningsen in BBC One's *War & Peace*, and appeared in the feature film *London Has Fallen*[3](https://news.sky.com/story/ashley-jensen-devastated-after-husband-terence-beesleys-sudden-death-11176111) |
| Marriage | Married actress Ashley Jensen on 27 January 2007 in Big Sur, California; one son, Francis Jonathan Beesley, born 2009[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0066591) |
| Death | Found unresponsive at the family home in Camerton, Somerset; an inquest recorded suicide, with blood carbon monoxide measured at 73 percent[4](https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/news/ashley-jensen-husband-terence-beesley-dead-suicide-inquest-extras-ugly-betty-actor-statement-a8209546.html) |
## Early life and training
The London-born son of Irish parents, Beesley went to St Marylebone Grammar School and then studied at the [London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art](https://www.edgepedia.org/london-academy-of-music-and-dramatic-art) between 1981 and 1984[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0066591). One biographical account adds that he attended the City Lit in London in 1980 before his LAMDA training[5](https://www.netflixmovies.com/s/actor/terence-beesley). During the 1980s he rose to prominence through numerous television roles as well as film and stage work[4](https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/news/ashley-jensen-husband-terence-beesley-dead-suicide-inquest-extras-ugly-betty-actor-statement-a8209546.html).
## Television and film career
Beesley worked steadily as a [character actor](https://www.edgepedia.org/character-actor) across British television. His credits include *The Bill* (as Rev. Ford, 1988), *Casualty* in three separate guest roles across 1996, 2000, and 2004, *Agatha Christie's Poirot* (as Stonor in the 1996 adaptation of *Murder on the Links*), *[Highlander: The Series](https://www.edgepedia.org/highlander-the-series)* (as Jackie Beaufort), *Heartbeat*, *[Cadfael](https://www.edgepedia.org/cadfael-tv-series)*, *Campion*, *Midsomer Murders* (as Jerry Curtis), *Silk* (as Inspector Wright), *What Remains* (as DCI Burrows), *New Tricks*, and *The Musketeers* (as General Lantier)[2](https://www.screensearch.co.uk/person/1412369/terence-beesley) • [6](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/40104/terence-beesley).
**Recurring and late-career roles.** In 1996 he played Derek Branning in *EastEnders*[5](https://www.netflixmovies.com/s/actor/terence-beesley). His film work included *The Phantom of the Opera* (1989, as Joseph Buquet), *[Human Traffic](https://www.edgepedia.org/human-traffic)* (1999, as Moff's Father), *The Listening* (2006), and *A Is for Acid* (2002)[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0066591) • [2](https://www.screensearch.co.uk/person/1412369/terence-beesley). In 2016, his last active year, he appeared as Buxton in ITV's *Victoria*, as General Benningsen in [BBC One](https://www.edgepedia.org/bbc-one)'s *War & Peace*, and in the feature film *London Has Fallen*[3](https://news.sky.com/story/ashley-jensen-devastated-after-husband-terence-beesleys-sudden-death-11176111).
## Stage work and writing
On stage, Beesley took the title role in Shakespeare's *Richard III* in 1995 and played Valmont in *Les Liaisons Dangereuses* in 1994, directed by Mark Clements[5](https://www.netflixmovies.com/s/actor/terence-beesley). With Colin Wakefield he adapted [Nikolai Gogol](https://www.edgepedia.org/nikolai-gogol)'s *Diary of a Madman* into a one-man play for the Royal Exchange Theatre in Manchester, and he helped found the Triptych Theatre Company with Jonathan Church and Jules Melvin[5](https://www.netflixmovies.com/s/actor/terence-beesley). He also acted in Chris Bond's play *The Mysterie of Maria Marten* at the Warehouse Theatre in London[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0066591).
As a writer and director he worked on the short film *Sunshine* (2010) and the video *Perchance to Dream* (2008), directing and writing both; *Sunshine* was produced with [Ashley Jensen](https://www.edgepedia.org/ashley-jensen), who also appeared in it[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0066591) • [7](https://www.independenttalent.com/actors/ashley-jensen/).
## Marriage and family
Beesley met actress Ashley Jensen in 1999 while both were working on a stage production of Shakespeare's *King Lear*; Jensen played Regan in [Tom Courtenay](https://www.edgepedia.org/tom-courtenay)'s production[3](https://news.sky.com/story/ashley-jensen-devastated-after-husband-terence-beesleys-sudden-death-11176111) • [8](https://www.scotsman.com/arts-and-culture/interview-ashley-jensen-on-motherhood-and-new-films-1499598). Sources differ on the venue: IMDb places the meeting in Tom Courtenay's *King Lear* at the Royal Exchange theater in Manchester[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0066591), while [Sky News](https://www.edgepedia.org/sky-news) and The Independent describe a London theater production of *King Lear*[3](https://news.sky.com/story/ashley-jensen-devastated-after-husband-terence-beesleys-sudden-death-11176111) • [4](https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/news/ashley-jensen-husband-terence-beesley-dead-suicide-inquest-extras-ugly-betty-actor-statement-a8209546.html), and a 2015 Scotsman interview with Jensen places the 1999 [Royal Court Theatre](https://www.edgepedia.org/royal-court-theatre) production where she met him[8](https://www.scotsman.com/arts-and-culture/interview-ashley-jensen-on-motherhood-and-new-films-1499598).
The couple married on 27 January 2007 in a quiet wedding in [Big Sur](https://www.edgepedia.org/big-sur), California, attended only by the minister and the couple's dog Barney, who acted as ring-bearer[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0066591). They had one son, Francis Jonathan Beesley, born in 2009[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0066591). After Jensen successfully auditioned for *Ugly Betty* during a California road trip, the pair relocated to the United States, then moved back to the UK and settled in Bath following their son's birth[3](https://news.sky.com/story/ashley-jensen-devastated-after-husband-terence-beesleys-sudden-death-11176111).
## Death
On 30 November 2017, at the couple's home in Camerton, Somerset, where they lived with their eight-year-old son, Jensen discovered Beesley unresponsive inside a car in the garage; paramedics tried to resuscitate him, but he was declared dead there.[4](https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/news/ashley-jensen-husband-terence-beesley-dead-suicide-inquest-extras-ugly-betty-actor-statement-a8209546.html) At the Avon coroner's court, a post mortem showed carbon monoxide levels in his blood at 73 percent, with 50 percent associated with death, and Assistant Coroner Dr Peter Harrowing recorded the death as suicide[4](https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/news/ashley-jensen-husband-terence-beesley-dead-suicide-inquest-extras-ugly-betty-actor-statement-a8209546.html). Medical records from his GP showed him to be generally fairly fit and well, with a routine NHS health check in late September 2017 finding only marginally raised cholesterol and very good blood pressure[4](https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/news/ashley-jensen-husband-terence-beesley-dead-suicide-inquest-extras-ugly-betty-actor-statement-a8209546.html).
## References
1. [Terence Beesley, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0066591)
2. [Terence Beesley, ScreenSearch](https://www.screensearch.co.uk/person/1412369/terence-beesley)
3. [Ashley Jensen 'devastated' after husband Terence Beesley's sudden death, Sky News (18 December 2017)](https://news.sky.com/story/ashley-jensen-devastated-after-husband-terence-beesleys-sudden-death-11176111)
4. [Ashley Jensen: Ugly Betty star's husband Terence Beesley took his own life, inquest hears, The Independent (14 February 2018)](https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/news/ashley-jensen-husband-terence-beesley-dead-suicide-inquest-extras-ugly-betty-actor-statement-a8209546.html)
5. [Terence Beesley, NetflixMovies.com](https://www.netflixmovies.com/s/actor/terence-beesley)
6. [Terence Beesley, TVmaze](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/40104/terence-beesley)
7. [Ashley Jensen, Independent Talent](https://www.independenttalent.com/actors/ashley-jensen/)
8. [Interview: Ashley Jensen on motherhood and new films, The Scotsman (19 July 2015)](https://www.scotsman.com/arts-and-culture/interview-ashley-jensen-on-motherhood-and-new-films-1499598)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Screen people and creators › Screen actors of the Anglosphere and Europe › English actors: 1970s to 1990s › Surnames A to B*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 20, 2026; Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 20, 2026; Sep 30, 2026; Oct 12, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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