Vale Mark Priestley
Extremely sad news this afternoon: All Saints star and talented theatre actor Mark Priestley has died. He was found later yesterday in Sydney’s CBD near the hotel he was staying in; ambulance officers initially thought he’d suffered a heart attack but later indicated they believed his death was a suicide. Priestley had apparently been struggling with depression; he was only 32 years old. Channel Seven has released the following statement:
Mark Priestley was a tremendous young person – loved and respected by his fellow All Saints cast members and crew.
After graduating from NIDA in 1999, Mark took on key roles in series such as Changi, The Secret Life Of Us and Blue Heelers before joining the cast of All Saints in 2004 as Nurse Dan Goldman. He also worked with the famed Bell Shakespeare Company and the Sydney Theatre Company.
Seven’s Director of Programming and Production Tim Worner said: ‘Mark was such a brilliant artist. His work on stage and screen was admired by everybody who knew him. His death is such a sad loss. We at Channel Seven will miss his energy and smile. Our thoughts and prayers are with Mark’s family and friends’.
Priestley’s co-star and on-screen love – they had just been married on Tuesday’s episode – Jolene Anderson is, understandably, apparently “in shock” after receiving the news of Priestley’s death not long after she herself was injured in a car accident.
Priestley was a terrific actor and if the constraints of All Saints didn’t always reveal his talent, his theatrical work did; his work with Bell Shakespeare in particular was great and in particular I have fond memories of his contributions to their wonderful production of A Servant Of Two Masters a few years back.
Defamer Australia sends its most heartfelt condolences to Mark Priestley’s family, friends and co-stars at what must be an awfully difficult time.
And please remember, if you or someone you know ever needs to talk to someone about feelings of depression or hopelessness, visit www.beyondblue.org.au, call Suicide Helpline Victoria on 1300 651 251 or Lifeline on 131 114 for help.
Comments
Mark was an extremely talented actor, loved him in Changi & All Saints and I was beyond shocked when I read the news this morning.
Dan was my favorite male character and I was always a bit miffed that he got the lighter side of the storylines. But during the last year they finally started portraying what a great actor he was, giving him juicy stuff i.e. the Hepatitis scare and he finally got a girlfriend, and ultimately a wife.
Sad that we won’t have many episodes left of good old Dan. I wonder how they will write him out, hopefully they give his character and ultimately him a big send off opposed to just disappearing into the sunset with no further mention.
RIP Mark.
Mark – was always a bright spark / funny character in all saints – he’s going to be missed so much.
a fan in Ireland.
I am one of hundreds of people suffering from depression. I seem to realise when I’m loosing the plot so talk to my GP. Some of the symptoms of depression are, you want to be alone, stay at home, don’t want to get out of bed in the morning, some people get paranoid. Please get help, you may think your life is not worth living but it’s your friends and family that are effected, so please get help!
I don’t agree that he took his own life. That was so wrong. If you truly believe in peace and love and know that no matter what happens you’ll be ok, then taking your own life isn’t an answer. He should’ve been helped. Gratitude is a great thing so use it to appreciate life and all the amazing things and people around us.