Buffy and Ted Lasso star Anthony Head dies aged 72

British actor Anthony Head, best known for his roles in TV shows including Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Ted Lasso, Little Britain and Merlin, has died at the age of 72.

The veteran star passed away peacefully from complications related to pneumonia, according to a statement released by his daughters, actresses Emily and Daisy Head.

“It is with heavy hearts that we announce the death of our extraordinary father, Anthony Head,” they said, per the BBC.

“He passed away peacefully of complications due to pneumonia, surrounded by his family.”

Head built a career spanning more than four decades across television, film, theatre and radio.

The actor first found fame in the UK through the hugely popular Gold Blend coffee advertisements in the late 1980s and early 1990s, though it was his role as Rupert Giles in Buffy the Vampire Slayer that catapulted him into stardom.

As Buffy’s mentor and Watcher, Head became one of the show’s most beloved characters during its seven-season run from 1997 to 2003.

In the years that followed, he remained a fixture on screens, appearing as King Uther Pendragon in Merlin, the Prime Minister in Little Britain and, more recently, as Rupert Mannion in the Emmy-winning comedy Ted Lasso.

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His credits also included The Iron Lady, Doctor Who, The Inbetweeners, Motherland, Silent Witness and Bridgerton.

Paying tribute to their father, Emily and Daisy Head reflected on his career.

“It has been, and forever will be, an honour and a privilege to be his daughters, and to have witnessed first-hand the impact both he and his work have had on so many.

“We know how dearly he will be missed by friends, colleagues and fans of the shows he was in – he loved his job very much and he always considered himself incredibly lucky to have been able to work alongside such exceptionally talented people, in such wonderful productions, across a career that spanned several decades.

“Our grief is far greater than the hole he has left behind but we know his legacy will live on in the shows he was a part of and in the audiences that love them.

“How lucky we are to know we are able to watch him doing what he loved, even when he is no longer with us.”

“We kindly ask that our privacy is respected at this difficult time,” it concluded.

Tributes have begun rolling in for the late actor.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer alum Sarah Michelle Gellar took to Instagram to write: “‘Tell Giles I figured it out and I’m ok.’”

“Well I don’t have it figured out and I’m not ok. But I know I’m the lucky one because I knew you.

“Thank you to Daisy and Emily who not only shared their dad with me, but with the world,” she concluded.

Buffy co-star David Boreanaz wrote on Instagram: “RIP. He was so kind and generous of a soul.”

James Marsters, who played Spike in the series, described Head as “an unflaggingly kind and steady presence on the set of Buffy, and the best actor in the cast”.

Little Britain creator Matt Lucas remembered Head as “unfailingly brilliant, and always so kind and warm”.

“When we were casting Little Britain, we were looking for a ‘Tony Head-type’, because we never imagined for a moment that the man himself would be interested, but he was. Lucky us.”

Ted Lasso star Brett Goldstein also paid tribute, writing: “Anthony Head was a brilliant actor who played the worst person in the world, which was an incredible skill because he was the best person.

“Infinitely charming and kind and fun and a joy. He will be sorely missed. Love to his family.”

Head was born in Camden, London, in 1954. His mother, Helen Shingler, was an actress, while his father, Seafield Head, worked as a documentary filmmaker. He later trained at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art before starting his career.

Head’s death comes just six months after the loss of his long-time partner, animal welfare campaigner Sarah Fisher, who died in December 2025 aged 61.

He is survived by his daughters, Emily and Daisy, both successful actresses and his brother Murray Head, the actor and singer best known for Sunday Bloody Sunday and Chess.