PETER SALLIS
Star of Britain’s longest-running sitcom and the voice of Wallace from beloved Oscar-winning animated films dies at 96
GROWING old on screen without ever growing up, Peter Sallis aged like a fine vintage wine.
But the last remaining star of Last of the Summer Wine – Britain’s longest running sitcom – died yesterday at 96.
Peter was in his 50s by the time he shot to fame on the show, but spent 37 years dashing down the Yorkshire Dales as mild-mannered Clegg.
He also became an unlikely Hollywood star as the voice of absent-minded inventor Wallace in the Oscar-winning Wallace and Gromit animated films.
Peter died peacefully on Friday with his family by his side in a north London retirement home.
Wallace and Gromit creator Nick Park led the tributes last night.
He said: “He was my first and only choice for Wallace.
“Working with him was always a delight and I will miss his wry, unpredictable humour.
“His silliness started the moment he greeted you and didn’t stop when the mic was switched off.”
Peter took on the role in return for a £50 payment to his favourite charity. It took six years for A Grand Day Out to reach the screen in 1989 and it was a huge success.
Follow-ups The Wrong Trousers, A Close Shave and The Curse of the WereRabbit all won Oscars.
Nick revealed Peter’s charm and voice helped shape Wallace. He said: “The way he said, ‘We’ve forgotten the crackers, Gromit’ and ‘Cracking toast, Gromit’ or just ‘Cheeeese’ led to Wallace’s enormous coathanger mouth.”
Last of the Summer Wine creator Roy Clarke, 87, said: “I admired Peter enormously, he was a very nice guy. I used to give him the best lines, because he always knew what to do with them.”
Peter was a radio instructor at RAF Cranwell during World War II when he first took to the stage.
He once said: “I had definitely caught the bug. So I decided that after the war, if I survived it, I would become an actor.”
He won a scholarship to the Royal
Working with him was always a delight. I will miss his wry humour NICK PARK
Academy of Dramatic Art and became a successful stage actor, appearing opposite Dame Judi Dench, Sir Laurence Olivier, Orson Welles and Sir John Gielgud. Peter also appeared in TV shows including Z Cars and Doctor Who.
He married actress Elaine Usher in 1956 and they had a son, Crispian.
In 1973, he was cast in a one-off pilot called Last of the Summer Wine.
The show ran for 37 years and Peter, as Norman “Cleggy” Clegg, was the only cast member to appear in all 295 episodes.
He featured in the show’s classic line-up with Bill Owen as Compo, Brian Wilde as Foggy Dewhurst and Kathy Staff as Nora Batty.
Bill died aged 85 in 1999. Kathy was 80 and Brian was 81 when they died in 2008.
Peter loved the show, once remarking: “It’s basically Wind in the Willows, isn’t it? It’s like Badger, Ratty and Mole messing about in boats and passing the time of day.”
And he was proud to be the voice of animated inventor Wallace.
He said: “To have a legacy like this is very comforting.”