Ricardo Montez (born Levy Isaac Attias; 20 September 1923 â 26 October 2010) was a Gibraltarian actor. He was best known for his role as the Spanish bartender Juan Cervantes, a student in Jeremy Brown's EFL class in the ITV sitcom Mind Your Language and one of four students (along with Giovanni Cupello, Anna Schmidt, and Ranjeet Singh) to appear in all four series.
Montez was born Levy Isaac Attias on 23 September 1923 in Gibraltar to Gibraltarian Jewish parents. He and his family were evacuated to England during World War II. On returning to Gibraltar, he worked in different jobs, including as an extra in films. While appearing in the British film Wonderful Things! (1958), the actor Frankie Vaughan persuaded him to travel to London and become an actor, which he did in 1962, changing his name at Vaughan's suggestion to Ricardo Montez. He appeared primarily in television programmes, including The Saint, The Avengers, Doctor at Sea and Don't Drink the Water, in which he usually played Spanish characters.
Montez's most famous role was as 'Juan Cervantes', the moustachioed Spaniard in the diverse international class of mature English-language learners, in the ITV sitcom Mind Your Language (1977âÂÂ1979; revived in 1986). In his later years, he continued to appear on television in programmes including Sharpe's Honour and Casualty, as well as in commercials. MontezâÂÂs final acting role was as 'Stavros' in the 2008 film Mamma Mia!.
Montez lived in the suburb of Richmond in London. He used to visit Gibraltar twice a year. He married Orivida Hatchwell in 1953; they had a daughter, Clara, and a granddaughter, Sara. Montez died from cancer at his daughter's home in Marbella, Spain on 26 October 2010, at the age of 87.