Richard Chamberlain, who has died today at the age of 90, shot to fame as TV heartthrob Dr Kildare in the 1960s. His dashing good looks won him legions of female fans, and guaranteed him work in a plethora of rather forgettable television movies. But, in middle age, his career spiked again. He became king of the 1980’s TV mini-series: playing a western prisoner in Shogun and a catholic priest tempted by love in The Thorn Birds. He denied being gay when confronted by a French magazine in 1989, and did not speak publicly about his homosexuality until he turned 70. In interviews promoting his 2003 memoir, he advised other handsome leading actors to keep their sexuality to themselves. There’s still a tremendous amount of homophobia in our culture, he said. Please, don’t pretend that we’re suddenly all wonderfully, blissfully accepted.
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