[2] When his father was killed in the Second World War, he received an RAF benevolent grant which sent him to a minor public school.
[3] Whitehead's film appearances have included The Raging Moon (1971), Kidnapped (1971), the vengeful woodsman in And Now the Screaming Starts!
Titanic (1979) as shipbuilder Thomas Andrews (whom Whitehead strongly resembled), Inside the Third Reich (1982), Shooting Fish (1997) and Love/Loss (2010).
Whitehead's television appearances include Bulldog Breed (1962); Z-Cars (1964–1965 and 1972–1975), playing two different regular characters; Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em (1973); The Sweeney, Season 2 Episode 6 "Trap" (1975);Thriller (1 episode, 1974); Wodehouse Playhouse, ("Rodney Fails to Qualify"); The Doll, 1975; Robin's Nest (1977); Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson (1979–1980, as Sherlock Holmes); Peter the Great (1986); Chelmsford 123 (1988–1990); War and Remembrance (1988); Second Thoughts (1991–1994); The House of Eliott (1991); Executive Stress; Little Britain; and The Worst Week of My Life.
He has starred on BBC radio in many comic roles, including Bleak Expectations, featuring as five entire families between 2007 and 2012.