John Thaw: John Thaw. Actor: Inspector Morse. He was the working class boy from Manchester whose intensity and natural honesty made him British television's most bankable actor. He studied at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. His first starring role on TV was as Sgt John Mann in Redcap (1964). His first great success, though, was as Detective Inspector Regan in The Sweeney (1975). Violent and uncompromising, the series changed the portrayal...