Gary Stephen “Angry” Anderson, the tattooed hard-rock frontman who led Rose Tattoo for 50 years and played the henchman Ironbar Bassey in “Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome,” died Sept. 21, 2026. He was 79.

His death came weeks after he suffered a cardiac arrest while on tour in Germany. The Anderson family and Rose Tattoo announced the death in a statement posted on the band’s social media on Wednesday, Sept. 23. The cause of death was not disclosed.

“It is with great sadness we announce the passing of Gary ‘Angry’ Anderson on the eve of Monday 21 September 2026, surrounded by his loved ones here in Australia,” the family and the band said in the statement.

“Angry was a devoted father, and much-loved member of his friends, bandmates and the wider music and entertainment community,” the statement said. “His loss will be deeply felt by all those who knew and loved him both here in Australia and overseas.”

The family asked for privacy and said they would not give interviews. Anderson is survived by three of his four children — Galen, Blaine and Roxanne. His son Liam died in 2018.

He died in Sydney, the Los Angeles Times reported.

A Farewell Tour Cut Short

Anderson gave his last performance with Rose Tattoo in Cologne, Germany, on Aug. 7, part of the band’s One Last Ride farewell run through Europe. A scheduled appearance at the Alcatraz Metal festival in Belgium was canceled.

On Aug. 10 the band announced that the rest of the tour would not go ahead — nine remaining shows, due to wrap up in Busdorf on Aug. 21. An Aug. 31 statement said Anderson had suffered a cardiac arrest and was hospitalized. He was later brought home to Australia but could not recover.

Beyond the canceled European dates, Rose Tattoo had also been scheduled to play farewell shows in Australia in September — in Melbourne, Sydney, Perth, Adelaide and Brisbane.

Bandmates and Peers Pay Tribute

Guns N’ Roses guitarist Slash paid tribute after the death was announced, writing on social media: “I’m going to miss my good friend, I can’t believe he’s gone. Condolences to his family, friends & band members.”

Singer Sebastian Bach posted a Facebook tribute on the morning of Wednesday, Sept. 23. “You’re not gonna see the likes of Angry anymore. You left us too soon but that’s because you was too good for us. The most gifted vocalist performer up until the day you f—ing died. The James Brown of heavy metal rock ‘n’ roll, you were a poet and you didn’t even know it. I love you so much Angry Anderson, thank you for a lifetime of inspiration,” he wrote.

Jason Donovan, the actor whose “Neighbours” character Scott married Kylie Minogue’s Charlene, called Anderson “a voice like thunder, a heart that never stopped giving.” Jimmy Barnes, who thanked Anderson for mentoring his son Jackie, a recent Rose Tattoo bandmate, said: “He was a caring soul who loved his family, cared for his friends and stood up for the downtrodden.”

Anderson’s other bandmates in that lineup were Mark Evans, Bob Spencer, Mick Arnold and Paul DeMarco. David Campbell, Jimmy Barnes’ son, shared a personal tribute alongside photos of Anderson performing at his 2008 wedding.

From Buster Brown to Rose Tattoo

Anderson was born in Melbourne in 1947 and was expected to become a fitter and turner before music took over. By his own account, he was first nicknamed Mouse for his diminutive stature as a member of the Melbourne motorcycle club the Vigilanties; a habit of taking on men twice his size earned him a new tag, Angry Ant, soon shortened to Angry. He was tiny, bald and heavily tattooed behind mirrored aviator shades.

He fronted the Melbourne band Buster Brown, with AC/DC’s Phil Rudd on drums, and cut the album “Something to Say” for Mushroom in 1974. Rose Tattoo formed in Sydney in 1976, with slide guitarist Pete Wells supplying the menace beneath Anderson’s roar. The band broke through on the charts in 1977 with “Bad Boy for Love.”

A self-titled debut followed in 1978 — the same year as AC/DC’s “Powerage” and the Angels’ “Face to Face,” at the height of the Alberts sound defined by producers Harry Vanda and George Young. Rose Tattoo was banned from “Countdown” after Anderson kissed guitarist Mick Cocks and passed his chewing gum over in the process.

The debut and the follow-up, “Assault and Battery,” both reached No. 1 on the British heavy metal charts in 1981. At the Reading festival that year, Anderson repeatedly head-butted amplifier stacks until his scalp bled. The third album, “Scarred for Life,” yielded the Australian hit “We Can’t Be Beaten,” while “Rock ‘n’ Roll Outlaw” and “Nice Boys” became staples.

Screen, Chart and Public Life

His best-known screen role came in the 1985 film “Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome,” as Ironbar Bassey, the enforcer heading Aunty Entity’s Bartertown security force, opposite Tina Turner and Mel Gibson.

The solo single “Suddenly,” inspired by his daughter Roxanne’s birth, became his biggest hit after soundtracking the 1987 “Neighbours” episode in which Donovan and Minogue’s characters married. That episode drew about 20 million British viewers when it aired there in 1988. “Suddenly” peaked at No. 2 on the Australian charts and found a fresh audience through a Netflix documentary series about Minogue.

Anderson ran for federal parliament twice and lost, as a National for a lower-house seat in 2013 and for a Senate spot in 2016 with the anti-Islam Australian Liberty Alliance. He drew backlash for remarks on Islam and refugee policy, though he acknowledged in later years that his stance had mellowed.

He was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia in 1993 and was known for charitable work and youth advocacy. He was inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame in Melbourne in 2006, attending with his mother, Marie.