His best-known screen roles are those of Tony in Mike Leigh's Abigail's Party[2] and DI Roy Galloway in The Bill from 1984 to 1987.
He has also appeared in "Coronation Street" (1977) I Didn't Know You Cared, EastEnders, Miracles Take Longer and in films such as A Bridge Too Far (1977), The Spy Who Loved Me (1977), An American Werewolf in London (1981), Give My Regards to Broad Street (1984) and Prick Up Your Ears (1987).
He also appeared in the early series of the Sky One soap opera Dream Team as the club's academy coach, Frank Patcham.
For the penultimate episode, Salthouse made a cameo appearance offering a young Jason Porter a contract with Harchester United.
In 2020, he gave a rare in-depth interview about his time on The Bill and his career in general for the book 'Witness Statements'