Glenn Quinn obituary in “The Guardian” in 2002.

In the United States, the Irish actor Glenn Quinn, who has died aged 32, acquired a small, but devoted, following from appearances in the television situation comedy Roseanne, and as the half-demon Doyle, in Angel, the spin-off from Buffy, The Vampire Slayer. In Roseanne, from 1990 to 1997, he played Mark Healy, the boyfriend of Roseanne’s daughter Becky Conner, with whom he eloped, making Roseanne “the mother-in-law from hell”. Eventually, Mark went to work for her intermittently employed husband Dan (John Goodman). 

The show was an extraordinary break for a foreign newcomer, and Quinn managed the part – and the blue-collar American accent – with aplomb. But it was his nine episodes in Angel, in 1999, that gave him his following – and, as Doyle, he was allowed to use his native Dublin accent. When the character was killed off, fans calling themselves “Doyle’s Loyals” and “Quinn-T-Essentialists” campaigned online to bring him back. 

Quinn was less successful on the big screen. His first role was as a drummer in the John Travolta rock musical Shout (1991), in which he shared a kiss with Gwyneth Paltrow, but later parts – in the horror movies Dr Giggles (1992) and Campfire Tales (1997), and Live Nude Girls (1995) – were forgettable. Ironically, his most recent film, the noir drama RSVP (2002), was voted the best of the film festivals in its category, and was released to good reviews last autumn. 

Quinn grew up in Cabinteely, County Dublin, in what he described as “humble” circumstances. His father, Murty, was a musician and singer, and Quinn, who was educated at Clonkeen College, started out as a pop group drummer and guitarist. In 1988, he emigrated to the US with his mother Bernadette, and sisters Sonya and Louisa. 

With his television money, he bought a half-share in the Los Angeles nightclub Goldfingers, and would visit it quietly every week without patrons realising he was the co-owner. He was sometimes likened to the young Mel Gibson. 

· Glenn Martin Christopher Francis Quinn, actor, born May 28 1970; died December 3 2002