John Frederick Joseph Savident (21 January 1938 – 21 February 2024) was a British actor, known for his numerous television roles, including his portrayal of butcher Fred Elliott in the soap opera Coronation Street from 1994-2006. He was also known for his performance as Monsieur Firmin in the West End cast of The Phantom of the Opera. He was in the episode The Double Death of Charlie Crippen in the spy-fi series Department S (1968). His other credits include The Avengers (1968), A Clockwork Orange (1971), The Professionals (1978), Blake's 7 (1979), Yes Minister (1980), Gandhi (1982), The Remains of the Day (1993) and Middlemarch (1994).
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Early life
Savident was born 21 January 1938 in Saint Peter Port, Guernsey, and still lived there at the time of the German occupation of the island in 1940. He and his family escaped to Britain in a fishing boat and settled in Ashton-under-Lyne. His acting career started when he joined Ashton Repertory.
Savident was educated at the town's grammar school and in 1955 joined the Manchester City Police, serving as a police officer before turning to acting as his profession.
