William Chapman was killed after entering the tiger enclosure at Yorkshire Wildlife Park in Doncaster on Saturday.
It has emerged that Mr Chapman appeared in ITV’s May Contain Nuts in 2009, alongside Henderson, and in the BBC’s True Stories series in 2012.
The Jackie Palmer Stage School, where Mr Chapman was a former student, paid tribute to him on Instagram, saying he “will be remembered with great fondness”.
Mr Chapman appears to have filmed himself approaching the animal in the moments before the attack, according to footage posted on his personal social media and seen by Sky News.
The footage shows him apparently approaching the tiger, which can be seen lying on top of a wooden platform, a few metres in front of the camera.
The person filming can be heard breathing heavily as distant voices shout “Oh my God” and “seriously”.
Earlier this week, South Yorkshire Police confirmed that he was visiting the park alone on Saturday.
Eyewitnesses nearby the enclosure said people were frantically telling Mr Chapman to “play dead”, but it appeared he did not understand. He was heard telling the tiger to “stop being naughty”.
The park remained closed for a fourth day on Tuesday after it was evacuated on Saturday.
City of Doncaster Council has said it has launched a health and safety investigation into the incident.
In a statement on social media on Saturday, the park said its “emergency response procedures were immediately activated”.
Another statement posted later said that “many, many people” had contacted them about the tiger, called Altai, and confirmed that the animal is “safe and well” and will not be euthanised.
Witnesses ‘shaken up’
One witness said they had seen Mr Chapman “dancing with headphones on” shortly before he climbed into the enclosure.
Anthony Hunt, who had been at the wildlife park with his girlfriend, Scarlet, said they had been taking pictures of the tiger when they saw its composure change and its head turn.
“Its eyes locked on to something in the enclosure. We thought maybe he’s getting fed. When Scarlett was taking photos – we suddenly saw in the camera lens that a guy had entered the enclosure,” said Anthony.
The victim “bowed down, on all fours, started praying, and looking up at the sky,” he said.
“The tiger was still on the landing at this point” but then “leapt off the landing, and sniffed the guy”.
Anthony added that he and Scarlet had later spoken to a woman who said she’d “tried to stop” Mr Chapman from entering the enclosure, claiming she’d “tried to pull him back” but was unable to stop him.
“She was shaken up,” said Anthony.
Another witness, Alex Underwood, who had also been at the wildlife park with his girlfriend, said: “We were on the tiger bridge and I spotted him – he was dancing with his earphones on.”
“He said, ‘can you take a photo of me, please?’. She [my girlfriend] said ‘yes’. Then he said ‘another one, another one’. He didn’t look into the camera.
“He looked at us both and said thank you.”
Alex, who said he left the bridge with his girlfriend soon after, added: “We heard someone had jumped in and thought of him for some reason.”
Tiger used ‘predatory instinct’
Videos circulating online appear to show a man being pawed at and grappled by the tiger inside the enclosure.
Speaking to Sky News, animal keeper Reece Oliver said the 30-stone (200kg) tiger was probably “just playing” when it began pawing the victim.
“If it really wanted to kill him, it would have probably killed him within 10 seconds,” he said.
“I don’t think it knew what he was going to do, because the only thing that goes into that enclosure normally would be enrichment toys or food.
“So, I think he was probably just playing, using his predatory instinct, seeing what it was, what he was, and unfortunately it ended up being a fatal attack.”
Tribute from drama school
Jackie Palmer Stage School said on Instagram: “We are deeply saddened to hear of the passing of our former student, William Chapman.
“Our thoughts and heartfelt condolences are with William’s family and friends during this incredibly difficult time.
“We loved watching William grow, both as a person and as a performer, during his time with us. It was a privilege to be part of his journey, and he will be remembered with great fondness by everyone who had the pleasure of knowing him.
“William will be truly missed, and he will always hold a special place in our hearts.
“Rest in peace, William.”
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In a social media post, Ed Miliband, the foreign secretary and MP for Doncaster North, said he was “deeply saddened” by the incident, and that he was sending “my thoughts and deepest condolences to the family of the individual who died”.
Yorkshire Wildlife Park opened in 2009, with the Land of the Tigers attraction opening in 2011. The park also houses lions, giraffes, tigers, leopards and black rhinos.
A 300-metre-long raised walkway runs through the attraction, which is a purpose-built, two-acre reserve for Amur tigers, an endangered subspecies with a population of around 500 left in the wild.
