Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Donald Tandy


 * The following discussion is an archived debate of the proposed deletion of the article below. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page (such as the article's talk page or in a deletion review).  No further edits should be made to this page.

The result was   keep. -- Cirt (talk) 17:03, 14 January 2011 (UTC)

Donald Tandy

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I can't find any sources to suggest that this actor is notable, and I cannot verify an appearance in Eastenders or the existence of the character he supposedly played.

The article was recently edited by an IP connected to a prolific hoaxer, see Administrators'_noticeboard/IncidentArchive658. I don't know if that makes this more suspect, but it's what drew my attention to the article anyhow. Fences &amp;  Windows  01:26, 21 December 2010 (UTC)  Please add new comments below this notice. Thanks, Spartaz Humbug! 03:44, 29 December 2010 (UTC)
 * Note: This debate has been included in the list of United Kingdom-related deletion discussions.  --  Fences  &amp;  Windows  01:29, 21 December 2010 (UTC)
 * Note: This debate has been included in the list of Actors and filmmakers-related deletion discussions.  --  Fences  &amp;  Windows  01:30, 21 December 2010 (UTC)
 * Delete I'm not fully convinced this is a hoax. If so it stretches to IMDB and eBay, which is either awfully ambitious for a hoaxer or someone mistakenly added that based on bad info here.  That said though, it seems a case where even the basic info is tough to verify, much less compose a full biography supported by reliable sources (neither IMDB or eBay are, obviously).  Even with the hoax issue set aside, we have a fellow with an acting career supposedly spanning five decades but who apparently never had a susbstantial part, and played almost exclusively unnamed roles (doorman, gateman, man in car, various unnamed cops).  If that's true I bet he's had some great times and likely a lot of interesting stories about his brushes with show biz, but I'd also say he's solidly out of scope for a general interest encyclopedia. Andrew Lenahan -  St ar bli nd  03:10, 21 December 2010 (UTC)
 * I'm just happy to see that he existed, thanks! That EBay photo is enough for me to know he was real. Notable - no way. Fences  &amp;  Windows  03:29, 21 December 2010 (UTC)
 * Keep He played a regular character in EastEnders for two years, so yes he did have a substantial role in at least one programme in the 1980s, and at a time when the show was getting around 25 million viewers an episode, which is huge for the UK. He may not be known by people today and he may not have been written about in the press since the advent of the Internet, but that does not mean he is not notable as an actor.  GunGagdin Moan 04:07, 21 December 2010 (UTC)
 * Note: This debate has been included in the list of People-related deletion discussions.  -- -- Cirt (talk) 18:27, 21 December 2010 (UTC)
 * Can you verify his role in Eastenders using reliable sources, please? Even if he was in that role, it was not substantial as it left no trace behind among fans or the media. No blogs, books, news articles or web pages talk about him or the character. Web searches are very good at picking up even slight traces of TV actors, and there's nothing of Tandy out there outside us, eBay and IMDB, Wikipedia mirrors and directory sites. Fences  &amp;  Windows  00:54, 22 December 2010 (UTC)
 * I can only provide off-line sources in books. But just because he has not been written about now, does not mean he was not notable during the 80s while he was in EE. Sadly sources from that era will not be easily available, but it doesnt mean there arent any. I have no passion for keeping the article to be honest, but just wanted to add that the character is known among older fans and, given the high ratings of the show during his stint and the red-top obsession with EastEnders at that time as well as his two year duration, I think it's highly unlikely that the actor was not referenced in the press during his two years. I'm not going to spend a huge amount of time arguing to keep the article because as I said above, I am not too bothered if it stays or not as it says nothing that IMDB hasnt already said, but just felt that a different perspective may be useful.  GunGagdin Moan 01:34, 22 December 2010 (UTC)
 * Offline sources to books is perfectly fine with Wikipedia. Specially for someone whose career predates the internet by several decades. Can you add them to the article?  Schmidt,  MICHAEL Q. 07:18, 22 December 2010 (UTC)
 * Keep I don't think this is a hoax, since he is listed at http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0849208/ and surely in the credits of everything he has been in. He had enough appearances in Eastenders to count as notable.  Since most of his work was done in decades past, hard to know what role he played in them, and if it was just a bit part or something significant.   D r e a m Focus  03:51, 23 December 2010 (UTC)
 * Weak keep; I think he's just notable enough. Needs better referencing though. Fences and windows makes a good point but the internet's slightly less comprehensive for actors who weren't on screen in the last decade or so. When Tandy was in Eastenders, the internet looked like this. bobrayner (talk) 16:20, 28 December 2010 (UTC)
 * Relisted to generate a more thorough discussion so a clearer consensus may be reached.

 Please add new comments below this notice. Thanks,  Sandstein   00:57, 6 January 2011 (UTC)
 * Relisted to generate a more thorough discussion so a clearer consensus may be reached.


 * Weak Keep: squeaks by WP:BIO. --Monterey Bay (talk) 04:04, 6 January 2011 (UTC)
 * Delete. Most of his roles look decidedly minor, and in the absence of any real coverage we simply don't have a basis for an article.--Michig (talk) 06:37, 6 January 2011 (UTC)
 * Weak Keep If it's a hoax, it's a very elaborate one. If not, there's enough coverage to squeak past 74.50.113.31 (talk) 00:43, 10 January 2011 (UTC)
 * The above discussion is preserved as an archive of the debate. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page (such as the article's talk page or in a deletion review). No further edits should be made to this page.