Who are Ian Lavender's children? All about Dad's Army actor's family as he dies at 77

EastEnders star Ian Lavender, 77, passed away on February 2, 2024. Lavender's agent Hilary Gagan revealed that he was suffering from an illness for a long time, which eventually led to his demise, as per ABC News. Further details on his cause of death are yet to be revealed.

Ian was married to Miki Hardy at the time of his death and had two sons named Sam and Daniel from his previous marriage to Suzanne Kerchiss from 1967 to 1976. While speaking to The Guardian in 2014, Ian addressed his experience raising his children, describing them as "special people." He further stated:

"There's an awful lot of theory now regarding bringing up children with DVDs, books and internet sites all offering advice. None of that existed when my parents were raising Paul and me. They just had to get on with it and do the best they could, and they did a great job."

Ian Lavender gained recognition for his performances in TV shows such as Dad's Army, Come Back Mrs. Noah, and The Glums. He also had various films under his credits including Carry On Behind and Adventures of a Taxi Driver.

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Ian Lavender was the father of two children from his first marriage: Family life explored in detail

Ian Lavender became famous for his iconic roles in films and television over the years. As mentioned earlier, he first tied the knot with actress Sue Kerchiss in 1967. The duo, who had two children named Sam and Daniel, separated in 1973. Ian's second marriage was to Miki Hardy in 1993, but they did not have any children.

The Sun stated that Sam graduated from the University of Oxford and then enrolled at Birbeck University in London post-graduation. He has been employed at Motion Pictures as an executive producer. Further details on his personal life are unknown.

On the other hand, Daniel finished his college studies at Bournemouth University and is currently a look development lead at a Canada-based company, Song Pictures Imageworks.

In an interview with The Guardian, Ian Lavender revealed that his father served as a policeman and sergeant and his mother pursued a career as a singer. He also disclosed the time when his family was struggling with their financial issues, and it took a lot of years for his father to get a television. He said that his father used to work three shifts and added:

"For a fortnight we'd see him at breakfast, the next two weeks at teatime and the other two as he got ready for night duty. It meant my brother and I had to be quiet if he was sleeping during the day; that's when I realized that I was living in a different kind of environment to my friends."

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Ian Lavender's career explained in brief

The Bolton News stated that Ian Lavender arrived at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School and underwent training as an actor. He was soon cast in the popular sitcom, Dad's Army. He recalled his time working on the show and said:

"The experience was good and bad when I moved on to other things. It was good because Dad's Army was just such a lovely job to do and I felt lucky being a part of it. But it was bad because it was such a shock to find not everyone was so nice when I did move on to other programmes."

Ian portrayed the role of Private Pike in Dad's Army for around 80 episodes. He reprised his role in a film adaptation released in 1971. He was next seen as Bertrand Hepplewhite in another sitcom, Parsley Sidings.

He continued appearing in more shows until he was cast as Derek Harkinson in the longest-running soap opera, EastEnders. He was also featured in films like Three for All and The Hooligan Factory.