Anthony Head. The name alone conjures a certain kind of Britishness. Not the stiff-upper-lip variety, but something warmer. A man who played a coffee-sipping, jumper-clad golden god in the 90s and then, decades later, a grieving writer in an Apple TV+ comedy. The journey from those Nescafe adverts to the fictional town of Richmond is a masterclass in how to build a career on your own terms. No scandals. No fallouts. Just consistent, quietly excellent work. And now, a new exhibition of photographs charts that journey in a way that makes you realise: we don't celebrate him enough.
The exhibition, which opened last week at a private gallery in Mayfair, is called 'A Life in Character'. It's a series of portraits, some candid, some staged, that trace Head's career from stage to screen. The earliest image is from 1981: a young man in a leather jacket, hair long, eyes full of hunger. He was in a band then, singing with a group called The Actors. It didn't work out. But the ambition is there in the picture, a quiet fire that would later find its voice in a coffee cup.
The Nescafe ads. Let's talk about them. Because they were a phenomenon. For a generation, Anthony Head was the man you wanted to wake up to. The one who'd make you coffee, smile, and solve all your problems. The ads were gentle, aspirational, and utterly British. They ran for six years, and they made him a household name. But here's the thing: they could have trapped him. He could have become the 'coffee guy' forever. Instead, he used it as a springboard. He took the role of Giles in 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer', a part that required him to be both a stuffy librarian and a badass demon fighter. It was a risk. It paid off.
The pictures from the Buffy years show a man fully engaged. On set with Sarah Michelle Gellar, a script in hand, laughing. In costume, tweed jacket and glasses, looking like the world's most dangerous librarian. The series made him an icon to a whole new audience. But he never coasted. He moved between stage and screen with a fluidity that most actors envy. He did musicals. He did Shakespeare. He played King Arthur in 'Spamalot' on Broadway. And then, a decade later, he walked into the role of Ted Lasso's boss.
Here's where the exhibition really finds its stride. The images from 'Ted Lasso' are different. The lighting is warmer. The lines on his face are deeper. He's older, wiser, and playing a man who is both broken and hopeful. The character of Rupert Mannion is a billionaire ex-husband, a bit of a villain. But Head plays him with a vulnerability that makes you understand him, even when you hate him. The photographs capture that duality: a man in a suit, standing alone, looking out a window. It's a quiet moment. But it says everything.
What makes this exhibition special is its honesty. There are no airbrushed celebrity shots. These are real moments. Head backstage, in costume, between takes. Head with his family. Head reading a script, a cup of coffee in his hand. The continuity is clear: from the Nescafe years to the present, he has remained the same man. Dedicated. Understated. Brilliant.
The exhibition runs until the end of the month. It's worth the trip. Because Anthony Head represents something rare in the entertainment industry: longevity without cynicism. He didn't chase fame. He chased work. And the work, as these pictures prove, has been extraordinary.
