Ray Brooks, actor and voice of Mr Benn, dead at 86
Ray Brooks, a prolific TV actor and the voice of beloved cartoon Mr Benn, has passed away at the age of 86.
The actor died on August 9th after a short illness, his family told the BBC. His sons Will and Son said they believed their father to be more well known for the character Mr Benn, sharing that “people [would] continually ask him to say the catchphrase, ‘As if by magic!’”
They added, “Although only 13 episodes were made, they were repeated twice a year for 21 years.” His familiar voice has also been used in thousands of adverts for the likes of Marmite, Guinness and Whiskas.
The actor rose to fame in the 1960s and was one of only a handful of actors to appear on both EastEnders and Coronation Street.
Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, Brooks appeared on plenty of shows, such as Danger Man, Dixon of Dock Green, Emergency-Ward 10, The Avengers, Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased) and Z Cars.
He starred in many movies, too. Notable works include the 1965 film The Knack… and How to Get It, which won the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival. In the movie, a young and sexually frustrated school teacher rents out a room in his old house to a drummer with a motorcycle who is an expert at seduction in the hope of finding love.
Brooks also took to the stage several times. He starred opposite Felicity Kendal in Tom Stoppard’s On The Razzle and alongside Richard Briers, Peter Bowles, and Phyllida Law in Absent Friends.
Despite his impressive career on and off screen, his sons shared that he really loved spending time with his family most of all. ‘His three true loves were family [his daughter Emma died in 2003], Fulham Football Club, and spending time in Brighton, where he was born,” they shared.
Reportedly, Brooks had spent the last few years living with dementia but died peacefully on Saturday with his family at his bedside.
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