Captain Birdseye leaves £368k in his will

By Fiona James, sundaymirror.co.uk 20/07/2008

Captain Birdseye (Pic: SM)

John Hewer - the actor who played Captain Birdseye in the TV adverts for nearly 30 years - left £368,079 in his will.

His jolly naval character and his catchphrase, "Only the best for the captain's table", helped establish the humble fish finger as Britain's teatime favourite.

Hewer, who died aged 86 in March, got the role in 1967 - but the captain was temporarily killed off in 1971, prompting an obituary to be written about him in The Times.

He was brought back as the bearded captain in 1974 and became one of the most famous figures on TV until he retired.

He was replaced by a younger Captain Birdseye with designer stubble. But the makeover proved unpopular, and the older, cuddlier version was brought back, played by Thomas Pescod.

Father-of-two Hewer, of Epping, Essex, left his estate to his children Jonathan and Kathryn. His wife died 10 years ago.