Peter Baldwin is a British actor best known for his role of Derek Wilton

Derek Wilton

Derek Bernard Wilton was a fictional character on the British television soap opera Coronation Street. He was portrayed by Peter Baldwin. He appeared between 1976 and 1997.-Development:...

in the UK soap opera

Soap opera

A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...

 Coronation Street

Coronation Street

Coronation Street is a British soap opera set in Weatherfield, a fictional town in Greater Manchester based on Salford. Created by Tony Warren, Coronation Street was first broadcast on 9 December 1960...

.

Career

After training to be an actor, Baldwin joined the West of England Theatre Company, where he worked with future-partner on Coronation Street Thelma Barlow

Thelma Barlow

Thelma Barlow is an English television actress and writer, most famous for her roles as Mavis Wilton in the long-running ITV soap opera Coronation Street and as Dolly Bellfield in the sitcom Dinnerladies....

. He later toured with the Old Vic

Old Vic

The Old Vic is a theatre located just south-east of Waterloo Station in London on the corner of The Cut and Waterloo Road. Established in 1818 as the Royal Coburg Theatre, it was taken over by Emma Cons in 1880 when it was known formally as the Royal Victoria Hall. In 1898, a niece of Cons, Lilian...

 and joined the Bristol Old Vic

Bristol Old Vic

The Bristol Old Vic is a theatre company based at the Theatre Royal, King Street, in Bristol, England. The theatre complex includes the 1766 Theatre Royal, which claims to be the oldest continually-operating theatre in England, along with a 1970s studio theatre , offices and backstage facilities...

. Baldwin made several appearances in films (in bit parts and extras) until he landed a main role in the television comedy Girls About Town which ran from 1969 to 1971. He also made guest appearances on other television series such as Menace, The New Dick Van Dyke Show, and Spy Trap, and had several roles in West End Theatre

West End theatre

West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...

.

In 1976 he joined the cast of Coronation Street, playing the character of Derek Wilton. Derek wooed but let down Mavis Riley for many years but eventually the two got married. It was reported that Derek Wilton was one of the favourite characters among the viewers of the show, but in 1997 the character was killed off.

For the year after this, Baldwin made many appearances on talk shows and quiz shows in the UK such as GMTV

GMTV

GMTV was the national Channel 3 breakfast television contractor, broadcasting in the United Kingdom from 1 January 1993 to 3 September 2010. It became a wholly owned subsidiary of ITV plc. in November 2009. Shortly after, ITV plc announced the programme would end...

, This Morning

This Morning (TV series)

This Morning is a British daytime television programme broadcast on ITV. As of September 2011, its main presenters are Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby, and Ruth Langsford and Eamonn Holmes, with various other presenters standing in for illness or contributing to sections of the programme.The...

and Crosswits

Crosswits

Crosswits is a British TV quiz show, originally hosted by Barry Cryer, then comedian Tom O'Connor took over until the show ended in 1998....

and also returned to the stage for the first time in a decade in A Month of Sundays, as well as touring in the musical Summer Holiday. He then joined the cast of the TV show Out Of Sight as 'Uncle Gus' until 1999.

Since then he has continued to appear on TV series including The Court Room and Doctors

Doctors (BBC Soap Opera)

Doctors is a British daytime television soap opera, set in the fictional Midland town of Letherbridge, defined as being close to the City of Birmingham. It was created by Chris Murray; Mal Young drove its development, and Carson Black was the original producer. The first episode was broadcast on...

. In 2005 he was a panelist for the Channel 4

Channel 4

Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...

 quiz show Countdown

Countdown (game show)

Countdown is a British game show involving word and number puzzles. It is produced by ITV Studios and broadcast on Channel 4. It is presented by Jeff Stelling, assisted by Rachel Riley, with regular lexicographer Susie Dent. It was the first programme to be aired on Channel 4, and over sixty-five...

.

He was married to the former Play School presenter and actress Sarah Long

Sarah Long

Sarah Long was a British actor and television presenter.Born in London, she is best known for her long run as a presenter on the preschool children's television series Play School from the 1960s until the 1980s...

 until her death in 1987.

In 2008 Baldwin took over the ownership of Pollock's toy shop in London's Covent Garden

Covent Garden

Covent Garden is a district in London on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St. Martin's Lane and Drury Lane. It is associated with the former fruit and vegetable market in the central square, now a popular shopping and tourist site, and the Royal Opera House, which is also known as...

, where he had previously worked between acting jobs.