Kenneth Cope, known for his acting roles as both detective and thief

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White House Correspondent

Kenneth Cope is best known for his character acting roles that saw him play figures from the villainous to more the complicated.

His main starring role was as the worried ghost detective Marty Hopkirk in the original dark cult comedy Randall And Hopkirk (Deceased), before also finding fame in various Carry On Films.

It was also his earlier break-out role as the dodgy Weatherfield resident Jed Stone in Coronation Street that pushed him into the limelight during the 1960s.

Playing the thief and charmer, he became the lodger and occasionally helpful friend of Minnie Caldwell (Margot Bryant), and Cope would go on to present a tribute programme to the Coronation Street actress in 1988.

Born in 1931 in Liverpool, Cope had been given minor roles in the 1950s war film Dunkirk, along with musical The Lady Is A Square, science fiction movie The Damned and The Unstoppable Man.

He was cast as one-off character Jed, a borstal friend of Dennis Tanner (Philip Lowrie) who moves to the cobbles, before being made a regular over a few years.

Cope would return between 2008 to 2009, as Jed tried get one over on antagonistic businessman Tony Gordon (Gray O’Brien).

This saw Jed become embittered and less comical following his decades-long absence, before Cope left the ITV soap again.

He also had appearances on satirical programme That Was The Week That Was and spy series The Avengers in the 1960s and during this period would release the song Hands Off, Stop Mucking About that seemed to riff on him playing Jed.

In 1971’s Carry On At Your Convenience, set in a factory amid a dispute, he played the lazy and annoying striking organiser Vic Spanner, and came back for another film in the long-running comedy franchise.

For Carry On Matron, he was cast as the son of Sid James’s character, Cyril Carter, who is pushed to disguise himself as a female nurse to commit crime.

Cyril is not enthusiastic about entering a life of thievery, and soon falls in love with a nurse, played by Barbara Windsor, and ends up with a happy ending in the 1972 movie.

As the films came out, Cope was already playing Hopkirk, opposite Mike Pratt as the more seedy and confident Jeff Randall, who often enlisted Marty’s help to solve crimes.

The series did not run for long from 1969, but became a cult hit and was named My Partner The Ghost in the US, and sold to more than 30 countries including Japan.

As it was later remade with comedians Vic Reeves and Bob Mortimer in 2000, and lasted two series, Cope said: “I used to think people liked it because they were happy times when we made it. The sun was always shining.”

Pratt died aged 45 in 1976.

Cope also had credits in The Bill, Truckers, Waking The Dead, Goodnight Sweetheart, Last Of The Summer Wine, Doctor Who, A Touch Of Frost, Casualty, and had a starring role in 1980s short-lived sitcom Bootle Saddles along with playing Ray Hilton in the Channel 4 classic soap Brookside.

Also a scriptwriter, he would contribute to children’s series Striker, and That Was The Week That Was.

After retiring, Cope returned to the public eye when he gave evidence to defend William Roache, known for playing Ken Barlow, during a 2014 court case.

The actor, who is survived by his wife, former Coronation Street actress Renny Lister and his children Nick, Mark and Martha, was passionate about his native Liverpool and was a supporter of Everton Football Club.