Vivian Mac Kerrell

Vivian Mac Kerrell

Vivian Alan James MacKerrell (23 May 1944 - 2 March 1995) was a British actor of the 1960s and 1970s. As a student at the Central School of Speech and Drama in London, he shared a house in Camden with film director Bruce Robinson, writer and director of Withnail & I. He was the major basis for Withnail, a memorable character of British cinema. MacKerrell's only notable acting parts came in 1971's Edna, the Inebriate Woman, and 1974's "Ghost Story", a Hammer Horror-style film which also starred Marrianne Faithful. Tragically, his career was curtailed by heavy drinking, and suffered a premature death from throat cancer. Robinson once attributed this to his imbibing of lighter fluid . This is portrayed in a notorious scene from Withnail & I; MacKerrell was reputedly unable to see for days after the incident.

Fellow housemate and actor Micheal Feast described MacKerrell as a "Splenetic wasteral of a fop", whilst Robinson has said he was a "Jack of all but a master of none", declaring himself a great actor, but doing nothing to prove this. The Withnail creator has also claimed that MacKerrell was the funniest person he has ever met.

A biography of Mackerrell, Vivian and I, by Penzance-based author Colin Bacon appeared in 2010. The book has received poor reviews for its lack of detail and content about MacKerrell's life.