Mike Hayden was born on September 9, 1930 in County Wicklow, Ireland. His family moved to Liverpool when he was fourteen and he worked as an electrician at a ship repair yard, attended evening classes in draughtsmanship before selling engineering products. During this time, he was also performing as a stand-up comic and storyteller in nightclubs. He became an actor appearing in several productions for Ken Loach, The Boys From the Blackstuff and Coronation Street. He died on February 25, 2004.