Vincent Hadley who has died from cancer at the age of 67 was an outstanding actor for the Maddermarket Theatre Company in Norwich.

Vincent Hadley who has died from cancer at the age of 67 was an outstanding actor for the Maddermarket Theatre Company in Norwich.

A schoolmaster, whose main subject was English, his last post was at Sprowston High School, Norwich, from the late 1960s to 1991 when he took early retirement.

During three decades he played in nearly 100 Maddermarket productions, often in classical roles - he was Othello, Brutus and Prospero - but his versatility enabled him to be equally at home in musicals such as The Boy Friend and Salad Days.

An elegant 6ft 3ins tall with a sonorous voice, he added great talent to his natural assets. He devoted so much time to the Maddermarket that his acting almost became a second profession.

Mephistopholes in Faustus, Long John Silver in Treasure Island, Sir Thomas More in A Man For All Seasons and James Tyrone in Long Day's Journey Into Night were among other roles that came his way.

Born in Southport, Lancashire, “Vince” as he was always known, came to Norwich in 1950 when his father, Bill Hadley, also a teacher, took a job in the city.

During his time as a pupil at CNS school Vince was well known for his performance in Gilbert and Sullivan productions and had more stage experience while at St Mary's Teacher Training College, Richmond.

He married a fellow teacher, Claire. They were divorced and she married a second time but after the death of her second husband she cared for Vince in the last weeks of his life.

They had two sons, Mark and Matthew, and a daughter, Catherine. There are three grandchildren, James, Steven and Ripley.