Bill Stalker

Bill Stalker
Stalker (right) as Peter Fanelli in Skyways
Born	3 August 1948 Hawke's Bay, New Zealand
Died	28 November 1981(1981-11-28) (aged 33) Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

William Robert "Bill" Stalker (3 August 1948 – 28 November 1981) was a New Zealand actor, most famous for his roles in television, both in his native country and Australia

Stalker was born in Masterton, New Zealand and grew up in Hawke's Bay, New Zealand, the second of seven children to Robert and Zena Stalker. A keen motorcyclist and adventurer from an early age, he later attended the University of Canterbury, where he began his career in theatre.

One of his early acting roles was as a biker in the New Zealand television series Pukemanu, which also starred Ginette MacDonald. In 1971, he joined Bruno Lawrence's musical and theatrical co-operative Blerta, where he performed with many popular New Zealand entertainers. He left the group after one tour in 1972, but returned in 1975 until the group disbanded in 1976. Stalker was an original regular cast member of soap opera Close to Home.

Stalker moved to Australia in 1979 and was a member of the original main cast of airport drama serial Skyways, playing Peter Fanelli, head of airport security. Fanelli soon proved to be one of the show's most popular characters, and when Skyways was cancelled in 1981 the character was quickly moved to the police serial Cop Shop, with Fanelli now heading Riverside CIB as a Detective Sergeant.

After nine months with Cop Shop, Stalker was tired of both working in serials and of playing Fanelli.He quit the show to explore various film offers. However, on 28 November 1981, during a weekend break between taping his final scenes for Cop Shop, he was killed when his motorcycle slid and collided with a car in wet weather in Toorak, Victoria. His pillion passenger, then-girlfriend English actress Catherine Wilkin, suffered a fractured hip and leg injuries in the accident.