In 1963, he wed Prunella Scales, star of Fawlty Towers, off-screen. Joseph West and Samuel West are the couple’s two sons. Samuel has become a successful actor and director, just like his parents.
From 1956 to 1961, West was also wed to actress Jacqueline Boyer, with whom he had a daughter named Juliet.
West and Scales have collaborated on a number of projects, such as the endearing Channel 4 series Great Canal Journeys.
In addition to showing the couple traveling through canal systems across the globe, the series quietly chronicles their experience coping with Scales’ dementia.
West’s artistic impact will go beyond his stage work since, throughout his time as president of the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA), he was a fervent supporter of the preservation of British theater history.
“We will all miss him terribly,” the family wrote, adding that West leaves behind “a sister, a daughter, two sons, seven grandchildren, and four great-grandchildren.”
