Man of a thousand voices
A very happy 98th birthday to David Graham, one of the UK’s longest serving and most versatile voice actors!
Born in London on 11th July 1925, David trained as an actor in New York following service in the Royal Air Force as a radar mechanic, and began a prolific stage career that would include two and a half years as a member of Laurence Olivier’s National Theatre Company at the Old Vic. He made his television acting debut in a 1952 BBC fantasy entitled Portrait of Peter Perowne (in a cast that also included Roger Delgado), while his first appearance on the big screen came in the 1959 World War II POW escape movie Danger Within.
However, it is for his work as a voice actor that David Graham has received the most recognition, creating a wide range of characters that have endeared him to generations who perhaps might not recognise his face or even his name. These include such diverse characters as Parker, Gordon Tracy and Brains in Thunderbirds, Grandpa Pig in Peppa Pig and (alongside Peter Hawkins) one of the two original Dalek voices in Doctor Who, a role he performed in 29 episodes as well as the two big-screen adaptations starring Peter Cushing. Besides Thunderbirds, his work for Gerry Anderson included multiple roles in Four Feather Falls, Supercar, Fireball XL5 and Stingray.
Whilst becoming well known for his voice work, David continued to appear as an actor in a wide variety of film and TV roles, including two onscreen appearances in Doctor Who (Charlie the barman in ‘The Gunfighters’ and Professor Kerensky in ‘City of Death’) and recurring or guest roles in many other cult TV series such as The Avengers, The Saint, Danger Man, Timeslip and Ace of Wands.
Having been born with his left foot twisted due to a fall suffered by his mother during pregnancy, David wore an iron caliper on his leg up to the age of nine and was left with very little movement in his foot. It hasn’t hindered his acting career, and of course in voiceover work it hasn’t been a problem at all! In 1967 he appeared on stage in The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui playing a fictionalised version of Joseph Goebbels, who had a club foot; David says, “I had a shoe built up for me and hobbled around the stage – it was one occasion when my disability came in handy!”
Despite suffering a stroke in 2021, David’s enthusiasm for voice work continues, making him one of the UK’s oldest working actors; indeed, he has found that performing voiceovers has aided in his recovery. Throughout his career, his versatility has allowed him to portray a wide range of characters, from heroes to villains, in both live-action and animated productions, while his dedication to his craft and his ability to infuse each character with depth, nuance, and authenticity have made him a much sought-after talent. Says David: “I’ve been lucky to have been gifted with the ability to produce accents and voices and this has helped prolong my career. It’s been a useful form of income over the years!”
David Graham has contributed to no fewer than four of Fantom’s Who Talk series of episode commentaries. He can be heard on City of Death, The Dead Planet, World’s End and Day of Armageddon, all available now on CD or to download.
