David Graham in Los Angeles, California in March 2016. .Photo:
Charley Gallay/Getty
Graham was the voice behind characters on iconic shows over the last 50 years
Voice actor David Graham has died. He was 99.
The star was best known for voicing Grandpa Pig on the animated show Peppa Pig from 2004 to 2021 and the character Aloysius Parker in the 1960s family adventure series Thunderbirds. In the ‘60s and ‘70s, Graham was also the voice of the mutant Daleks on Doctor Who.
Thunderbirds creator Gerry Anderson confirmed Graham’s death on X (formerly known as Twitter) on Friday, Sept. 20 with a touching tribute.
“We’re incredibly sad to confirm the passing of the legendary David Graham,” he tweeted. “The voice [of] Parker, Gordon Tracy, Brains and so many more. David was always a wonderful friend to us here at Anderson Entertainment. We will miss you dearly, David. Our thoughts are with David’s friends and family.”
Before voicing roles for TV and film, Graham was a radar mechanic during World War II and an office clerk until he joined a theater school.
In an interview with Mirror in 2015, Graham discussed how he developed the voice for Doctor Who’s Daleks.
“I created it with Peter Hawkins, another voice actor,” he told the outlet at the time. “We adopted this staccato style then they fed it through a synthesizer to make it more sinister.”
Landing his role on Thunderbirds paved the way for more work including the opportunity to act with Laurence Olivier at the National Theatre.
“A wonderful man,” Graham said of Olivier. “I auditioned for him and he said, ‘Are you doing anything at the moment?’ As if I was the most in demand actor in the country! I don’t know if his children were fans of Thunderbirds…”
Peppa Pig introduced the actor to another generation of young viewers, which Graham took particular pride in.
“Just because it’s a cartoon or puppet doesn’t mean you don’t take it seriously,” the actor told Mirror. “I take it as seriously as working at the National [Theatre].”
