Having performed from an early age, Richard O’Sullivan established himself as a household name during the 1970s by playing the cheeky, charming Robin Tripp in hit television sitcoms Man About The House and Robin’s Nest. The actor had a vastly successful career spanning decades, which started when he was eight years old and saw him work with the likes of Sir Peter Hall and Sir Cliff Richard. While he was best known for his comedic role in the boundary-pushing sitcoms, O’Sullivan also delved into more serious roles and starred as the title character in period adventure Dick Turpin.
Born in 1944 in Chiswick, O’Sullivan started his career with an appearance in 1953 drama film The Yellow Balloon, which led to many roles across film, TV and theatre in the 1950s. In his youth he starred alongside Oscar-nominated actor Trevor Howard in Italian thriller film The Stranger’s Hand and made an appearance in the 1954 TV series Sherlock Holmes. O’Sullivan also featured in Sir Peter’s production of Love’s Labour’s Lost at what is now known as the Royal Shakespeare Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon in 1956.
Among his acting credits are films such as It’s Great To Be Young, No Time For Tears and Dangerous Exile, which saw him work alongside stars including John Mills, Keith Michell and Belinda Lee, and he also had TV roles in The Adventures Of Robin Hood and Sword Of Freedom. O’Sullivan continued to act into adulthood, and appeared in two films with Sir Cliff in the 1960s – The Young Ones in 1961 and Wonderful Life in 1964. In 1963 he appeared alongside Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton in Cleopatra, in the role of Pharaoh Ptolemy XIII, and also spent the decade with roles in shows such as Emergency Ward 10, Redcap and Danger Man, among others.
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O’Sullivan established himself as a regular in TV sitcoms in the 1970s when he landed a regular role on comedy series Doctor At Large, which he reprised in its Doctor In Charge spin-off. However, the role which cemented him as a household name was in Man About The House, which followed the trials and tribulations of a man sharing a London flat with two single women. The show ran for six series from 1973, and starred O’Sullivan as trainee chef Robin Tripp opposite Paula Wilcox as Chrissy and Sally Thomsett as Jo.
Written by Johnnie Mortimer and Brian Cooke, the sitcom was considered daring at the time as it broke boundaries and pushed social taboos with its unmarried, co-ed setup. Its spin-off Robin’s Nest ran for six series from 1977 and followed Robin as a qualified chef as he sets up a home with his girlfriend and a business with her father. O’Sullivan wrote two recipe books to accompany the show, which was a ratings success, and also wrote the theme song for Robin’s Nest.
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