Whitfield was born in Amlwch, Anglesey, Wales. He studied construction at Sheffield Hallam University in England. He moved to Australia in 1999 to work as an engineer in Lidcombe, before later settling in Sydney. He appeared in several Australian television series, such as Opening Up, All Saints, The Strip, Packed to the Rafters, and McLeod's Daughters.
Whitfield died of non-Hodgkin lymphoma in Sydney, Australia, on 11 September 2011, 18 months after his initial cancer diagnosis.
