Michael Keating obituary (opens in new tab)

Actor who provided a light touch as the thief Vila in Blake’s 7 and spent 13 years as a vicar on EastEndersThe actor Michael Keating, who has died aged 79, appeared as the wily yet hapless thief Vila in the popular BBC science-fiction television series Blake’s 7 (1978-81), which at its peak pulled in audiences of more than 10 million viewers.The writer Terry Nation, who had created the Daleks for Doctor Who, conceived Blake’s 7 as “the Dirty Dozen in space”, it was an adventure series with mo...