Reg Whitehead appeared in a number of television programmes over the course of his career, including Z Cars, The Power Game, The Avengers, The Saint, and Counterstrike. In Doctor Who, he is attributed with the first appearance of a Cyberman in the series, appearing at the cliff-hanger to The Tenth Planet: Episode 1; he played Cybermen in subsequent stories The Moonbase and The Tomb of the Cybermen, and also a Yeti in The Abominable Snowmen.

Outside of acting he was an avid horse lover, and owned several racehorses.