Eastenders & Blake’s 7 star Michael Keating left four-figure in will for family after death aged 79 earlier this year

EASTENDERS star Michael Keating has left just £6,800 in his will after he died aged 79 earlier this year. Michael, who passed away after bravely battling dementia, appeared as Reverend George Stevens in the BBC soap between 2005 and 2017. Beloved actor Michael Keating’s will has been revealed Credit: Shutterstock Editorial Michael with June Brown in EastEnders in which he played Rev Stevens for 12 years Credit: BBC Probate records have now revealed Michael left £141,903 in the UK reduced after liabilities to a net estate of £6,800. His will left £2,000 to each of his grandchildren, and his share of any property he owned to his second wife Sue Conner during her lifetime, and then to his daughter Lisa. Sign up for the TV newsletter Thank you! Michael also left his personal possessions including his theatre programmes, stamp collection and gold medal to his daughter. In his EastEnders role, his character ministered to Dot Cotton with her spiritual struggles, had a brief affair with her half-sister and conducted marriages and funerals for stars of the show. Michael as Vila Restal in Blake’s 7, 1978 – 1981 Credit: BBC Michael as recurring character Rev Stevens in EastEnders Credit: BBC Other roles included Yes Minister, Micro Men, Casualty and Midsomer Murders. And Michael was the only actor to appear in all 52 episodes of the beloved science fiction series Blake’s 7. He played the cowardly criminal Vila Restal, known for his ability to get through any security system. The show ran for four seasons from 1978 until 1981. Most read in TV Created by Terry Nation, it featured a group of dissidents and criminals who commandeered an alien spaceship to battle a totalitarian regime. The English actor was described as “one of the most recognisable and best-loved faces in modern fiction” by Doctor Who production company Big Finish. Michael had several roles in the Doctor Who franchise from early story “The Sun Makers” to audio adventure “The Twilight Kingdom”. The acting legend was born in Edmonton, North London and started acting at 19. His first role was on stage at the Nottingham Playhouse before he toured at theatres across the UK. He returned to the stage with long stints at famous venues including the National Theatre and the Old Vic. Peter Anghelides, a producer for Blake’s 7 at Big Finish, said at the time of his death: “What a joy it was to work with Michael. “Little did I realise when first encountering him at BBC Television Centre in 1981 that some three decades later I would be writing and producing Big Finish Blake’s 7 audio stories for him as Vila Restal. “His cheery presence on studio days was always most welcome. I would sit at the back of the Audio Sorcery control room hooting with laughter at his comic timing in our recordings.” He added: “Blake’s 7 fans loved him as Vila, the only character to appear in every Blake’s 7 TV episodes between 1978 and 1981 and in both BBC Radio plays. “At one point in planning the second series, Terry Nation thought that Vila was a ‘borderline case’ for being dropped as a Liberator regular, until the production team acknowledged the character’s popularity – in no small part thanks to Michael’s adroit performance as the career thief and reluctant rebel.“