Where are they now?
One of the main attractions of the series was the long list of celebrities providing the voices for it. The idea of this page is to look at where those same English actors are now, or as recent as possible. The big celebrity voices appear quite frequently on Television, as they are.... well, big celebrities, however alot of the voiceover cast never show up. Despite this, I will keep my eyes open for some of the lesser known voices, and if I spot them turning up on UK TV/Radio, I'll try and add it here.
Dawn French -
Dawn French popped up as a guest actor for the Christmas episodes of
Watership Down, providing the voice of Buttercup. As a comedian, she has
starred in many comedies for the BBC since then, including a series of 4
programmes of her popular 'Vicar of Dibley' sitcom, and another series
of the comedy 'French and Saunders'. The most recent appearance
is in a new BBC comedy called 'Wild West', as the character Mary.
Recently, In Christmas 2002, she appeared in a Christmas special
of the French and Saunders comedy.
Then: Dawn French -As
Buttercup (2000) |
Stephen Fry - Stephen provided the occasional voiceover for the character Cowslip in the series. Whereas he used to be a frequent appearance on BBC comedies, we havent seen much of him lately. He did, however, appear in the specially commissioned Black Adder film for the Millenium Dome. The most recent example of his work is from Classic FM, where he runs a Sunday programme called 'The Incomplete and Utter History of Classical Music'. Then: Stephen Fry -As
Cowslip (2000) |
Jane Horrocks - Jane Horrocks provided the voice
for Hannah in the series. Since then, she has appeared frequently in
Dramas on both ITV and the BBC. The most recent appearance I noticed her
was as a guest star in an episode of the BBC programme 'Linda Green'
broadcast at the end of October 2002. When you hear her voice on this new
clip, you can definately tell its the same voice!! Then: Jane Horrocks -As
Hannah (2000)
Now: Jane Horrocks
-As
Theresa in 'Linda Green'
(29/10/2002)
Phill Jupitus - Phill Jupitus provided
the voiceover for Dandelion (apparently!!) in the series. Since then,
he's been a regular comedian on both 'It's only TV But I like it' and
'Never mind the Buzzcocks', both produced by the BBC. He also acts as a
radio host in the mornings on the BBC digital radio station 6Music. I have
2 clips for him, both from October 2002, one of them featuring him on the
Buzzcocks programme, and the other for the radio. I have to say, I can see
absolutely no similarity between this and the voice of Dandelion, but I'm
just going off what the cast list says. Then: Phill Jupitus -As
Dandelion (2000)
Now: Phill
Jupitus - 'Never Mind the
Buzzcocks' (28/10/2002) + 6Music (Oct
2002)
Added 1/1/2003
John Hurt - John is a veteran when it comes to Watership Down voiceovers. He provided the voice of Hazel in the original 1978 film, as well as the voice of General Woundwort in the TV Series. Since then he has starred in several productions, including the film Harry Potter. This most recent example is from BBC Four, in the Alan Clark Diaries, with Mr Hurt in the title role. Way Back: John Hurt -As Hazel
(1978) |
Rob Rackstraw - I couldn't find a picture for him, as I cant actually find out much about this voiceover actor. All I know for certain, thanks mainly to a 1 minute clip from Lavender Castle, is that he provides the voice for Campion. Since the series, he was provided numerous voices for the BBC programme Bob The Builder. It's from that which this more recent clip comes. Although it was aired on the BBC in Christmas 2002, I am led to believe this special episode was actually shown first the previous Christmas. Both Spud (The Scarecrow) and Travis (The Tractor) are played by him. Then: Rob Rackstraw -As
Campion (2000) |
Added 18/2/2003
Kiefer Sutherland - Kiefer provided
the voice in 3 episodes of series 2, as Hickory - one of the
rabbits who leaves Cowslip's Warren and moves to Redstone, in order to
lead a life free from the shining wires. Since then, Mr Sutherland has
appeared in numerous films, such as Desert Saints and Behind the Red Door.
Neither of these are exactly blockbuster films, however he has also
appeared recently in the well-known and award winning series '24', as Jack
Bauer. After the massive success of the 1st series, Fox decided to produce
a second series. This began airing in the UK on the 16th February, and
it's from that which this clip comes. |
Added 1/10/2003
Tom Eastwood - A British Voiceover artist, Tom provided the voice of Corporal Moss in Series 1 and 2 of Watership Down. Since then, he has provided the voice of Bragan on the TV Series Xcalibur in 2000 (currently being repeated on Channel 5), as well as for several computer games. One of his most recent appearances has been as the voice of Clifford in the UK Version of Clifford The Big Red Dog (where this clip originates from). Then: Tom Eastwood -As Moss
(2000) |
Added 19/2/2004
Richard Briers - Like John Hurt, Richard Briers has appeared in both the film and series adaptions of Watership Down. In the film, as the paranoid voice of Fiver, and in the series as plucky Captain Broom from Redstone. He's one of the only famous names who returned for the third series too. Since the series, he has appeared in several films, as well as providing voiceovers for various adverts. In 2004, his voice was heard again, this time on the promotional trailer for the new Digital Terrestrial Pay-TV service Top-Up TV. Quite a change in fortune for such a talented actor.
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