David Prowse played a superhero who would teleport in and save children from being crushed by inattentive or speeding drivers

The man behind Britain’s no-nonsense road safety superhero Green Cross Man, David Prowse, has died in the UK aged 85 after a short illness.

Prowse starred as the imposing pedestrian protector for 14 years from 1975, spreading the “Green Cross Code” catchphrase “Stop! Look! Listen!” to thousands of children.

Green Cross Man was a hit in 1970s and 1980s Britain

His road safety work earned him an MBE in 2000, and while Prowse won some coveted roles in his career, including Darth Vader in the original Star Wars trilogy, he was fond of saying the Green Cross Man was his favourite role.

In the British road safety campaign, Green Cross Man would teleport into dangerous situations to save children, leaving them with a warning: “I won’t be there when you cross the road, so always use the Green Cross Code!’

The campaign was briefly revived in 2014 to address newer safety issues, such as smartphone zombies walking into traffic. “When the original Green Cross Code public information films ran, road accident rates reduced significantly. But that was in the days before pedestrians wandered around glued to their smartphones or wearing giant headphones – now it appears adults are completely out of practice with road safety,” said Prowse at the time.

The Green Cross Man instilled “Stop! Look! Listen!” in thousands of British kids