December 12, (THEWILL) — Stanley Baxter, the famous Scottish comic actor and impressionist, has died at the age of 99.
His friend and biographer, Brian Beacom, said Baxter passed away peacefully on December 11, 2025, at Denville Hall, a care home in north London.
Born in Glasgow on 24th May 1926, Baxter began his career as a child actor on BBC Scotland’s Children’s Hour. He later served in the British Army’s Combined Services Entertainment Unit, where he developed his performance skills.
Baxter became widely known through his British TV shows, especially The Stanley Baxter Show (1963–1971). His programmes highlighted his talent for impressions, character sketches, and comedy parodies.
He was known for bold impersonations of figures such as the Queen and the Pope and for routines like “Parliamo Glasgow”, which playfully exaggerated Glaswegian speech for comic effect.
Beyond television, Baxter performed regularly in Scottish pantomimes and took part in radio shows, films, and children’s programmes.
His career was marked by several major honours, such as multiple BAFTAs, a British Comedy Awards lifetime achievement award, BAFTA Scotland Outstanding Contribution to Film and Television award in 2020.
In 2020, Baxter released his biography, The Real Stanley Baxter, where he opened up about his life and revealed that he was gay. He was married to his wife, Moira, for 46 years until her death in 1997, and later had a long-term partner named Louis, who died in 2017.
Tributes have poured in from across the entertainment world, with Scotland’s First Minister describing him as “a giant of Scottish entertainment” whose work brought joy to generations.
Evi Ben Ezaga writes on entertainment, culture, and trending stories.
