Alan Devereux (Sid Perks) has died

Alan Devereux, who played the role of Sid Perks in The Archers for nearly fifty years, has died. Sid arrived in Ambridge as a young tearaway from Birmingham on 30 September 1963 until his death in 2010.

Alan’s commitment to the character and to The Archers ran very deep. His real-life daughter Tracy Jane White also played Sid’s daughter Lucy for over a decade.

'Consummate and brilliant actor'

Sean O’Connor, The Archers’ Editor said, "Alan’s voice as Sid had a genuine sense of authenticity to it - instantly recognisable and full of rich character.

"He arrived in the village just as the sixties took off and when Archers writer Edward J. Mason observed that the programme should reflect the real world ‘that does include vulgarity, that does include sex, that does include strong language and that does include violence…a world in which values are constantly changing, in which the youth culture is dominating and in which cosiness plays no part.’ Sid – and his wife Polly- were very much part of this agenda for the programme to keep up with the rapid social changes of the times.

"As an actor Alan was adept at both intense drama as well as dead-pan comedy. He was a wonderful member of The Archers’ family in Birmingham and will be deeply missed."

Former Editor Vanessa Whitburn said, "Alan was a consummate and brilliant radio actor. Always a delight to work with, his versatility as publican Sid Perks meant that he created superb partnerships with the actresses who played all three of his wives. A modest man, I don't think he knew just how talented he was."

Borstal Boy to Pub Landlord

Borstal Boy Sid first appeared in The Archers as a guest at Grey Gables Country Club. A contrast to the typical clientele, its owner Jack Woolley saw the 19-year-old as a younger version of himself and took him under his wing. He took up his place behind the bar of The Bull in 1972 when he and his first wife Polly took over the running of the pub from Peggy Archer (now Woolley). On their first night in charge, as a sign of goodwill, Sid gave free drinks to everyone.

Trevor Harrison who plays Eddie Grundy said, "Alan was a lovely, sensitive man who I enjoyed working with immensely. I was privileged to know him both professionally and socially. He had a natural gift for acting and was very talented. He was a wonderful Sid Perks and will always be remembered as a part of Ambridge."

Aside from The Bull, Sid’s favourite place to be in Ambridge was the cricket ground. He channelled his highly competitive spirit into the village’s cricket team, becoming captain in 1990 and then later becoming manager when village vet Alistair Lloyd took on the captaincy. Tensions flared when Sid struggled to accept that Adam Macy was gay and in 2004 the two men came to blows in The Bull. Sid’s resignation as cricket team manager was prompted by Alistair telling him that they would prefer for Sid to stand down than to lose Adam to the Darrington team.

'Infamous shower scene'

Through the 1980s and 90s Sid’s relationship with his second wife, Kathy, proved turbulent with both of them having affairs. But the woman who was to finally break up the Perks’ marriage was country and western singer Jolene Rogers (now Archer) who in 2000 shared with Sid, possibly the most infamous shower scene since Psycho. The scene went on to make shocked headlines in the Sunday papers.

Archers director Julie Beckett, who directed the scene, remembered, "We took great care over that scene, from creating the right sort of shower sound, to making it intimate and fun by building a curtained space on the studio floor. None of us expected quite such a reaction though! Sid could hardly believe his luck when Jolene fell for him – and Alan greatly enjoyed playing it all."

The “steamy” scene caught the attention of The Archers audience with some accusing the programme of “going too far”.

Buffy Davis, who plays Jolene, said, “Alan was a one off, there was no one like him. He possessed a wicked sense of humour and was uniquely talented, I loved him. Standing next to him on the mic was a lesson in radio performance. He was completely dedicated to The Archers - and once that green light was on - he was Sid Perks.”