The actor Christian Rodska, who has died of cancer aged 78, landed his breakthrough role in a fondly remembered children’s television series of the 1970s, Follyfoot, inspired by Monica Dickens’s 1963 novel Cobbler’s Dream. Set on a farm providing sanctuary for veteran and rescue horses, it starred Steve Hodson as his namesake Steve and Gillian Blake as Dora, with Rodska playing Ron Stryker, the carefree, rebellious fellow worker often seen sitting astride his handsome Triumph Tiger motorcycle – the bad apple who shatters the calm of the countryside in more ways than one.
Shortly before being cast in the role, the actor had bought the bike for £5 off a scrapheap and lovingly restored it – he was particularly proud of its gold horn, which he found in an antiques shop – and it was written into the script.
