PETER DENNISPeter Dennis, who died on 18 April, 2009, was a British actor best known for his international one-man show based on the works of AA Milne.He performed Bother! The Brain of Pooh across the globe and at venues as prestigious as the Hollywood Bowl and Westminster Palace.His acting career also included a raft of supporting television and later film roles in Britain and America.Peter John Dennis was born on 25 October, 1933, in Dorking, Surrey. Before becoming an actor he was a British Army sergeant in Africa and personal assistant to various businessmen.He discovered theatre at 29 when he saw Derek Jacobi in Look Back in Anger at the Birmingham Rep – he resigned from his job the next day and joined RADA.After his graduation in 1965 he himself appeared on stage at the Birmingham Rep, as well as theatres in London and Liverpool. He also featured in television shows like The Rat Catchers (1966) and The Avengers (1967).He first performed Bother! in Cambridge in 1976, the 50th anniversary of the first Winnie-the-Pooh book. Consisting of vivid readings from various Pooh stories, the show premiered in America 10 years later, to praise and awards from critics, and continued across the world for another two decades.The fame it brought led to an increase in television work, including such series as Yes Minister (1982), Minder (1984) and Prime Suspect (1991). He appeared in several American sitcoms, including Saved by the Bell (1995), Friends (1996) and Seinfeld (1997).He had also worked on films, providing voices for characters in Shrek (2001), Eragon (2006) and Beowulf (2007) and appearing in such diverse fare as Hellborn (2003) and Sideways (2004).Mr Dennis’ association with Pooh also led him to record many audio books. The author’s son, Christopher Robin Milne, once said: “Peter Dennis has made himself Pooh's Ambassador Extraordinary and no bear has ever had a more devoted friend.”A tribute from the LA branch of BAFTA following his death at the age of 75 said: “Peter Dennis will be missed for his joy of life, inspiration, and sublime theatrical magic by hundreds of friends and family on both sides of the Atlantic, but above all by Diane his beloved wife of 30 years.”
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