He is a talented presenter, actor and comedian with a varied CV.
And now Les Dennis is set to star as Grandad Trotter in Only Fools and Horses The Musical as he joins the cast of the West End show at the Theater Royal Haymarket from October 3.
The actor, 69, will take on the iconic role, made famous by the late actor Lennard Pearce in the first three series of the much-loved BBC sitcom comedy.
Grandfather ! Les Dennis, 69, is set to star as Grandpa Trotter in Only Fools and Horses The Musical as he joins the cast of the West End show at the Theater Royal Haymarket from October 3
Edward Kitchener ‘Ted’ Trotter, better known simply as Grandpa, was a fictional character who was one of the original protagonists of Only Fools and Horses.
Les will play Grandpa, while Tom Bennett will play Del Boy and Ryan Hutton will play Rodney for the show.
Dressed in a khaki cardigan over a beige striped shirt and trilby hat, Les stepped into character for press photos taken at the theater earlier this month.
In the BBC sitcom, the character Del described Grandpa as “an out-of-work lamplighter waiting for the gas to come back”, which was about as useful as “a pair of sunglasses on a guy with one ear”.
Costume: Wearing a khaki cardigan over a beige striped shirt and trilby hat, Les stepped into character for press photos taken earlier this month
Iconic: The actor will take on the iconic role, made famous by actor Lennard Pearce (pictured right in 1984) in the first three series of the much-loved BBC sitcom comedy
The Cast: Les will play Grandpa, while Tom Bennett will play Del Boy and Ryan Hutton will play Rodney for the stage show
Earlier this year Sir David Jason, 82, said he would “love” to reprise his role as Del Boy, 40 years after Only Fools And Horses premiered.
The actor last appeared in character in July 2021 to wish Gareth Southgate and the England team well in the Euro 2020 final.
Before that, he starred in a 2014 Sports Relief skit called Beckham in Peckham, which saw Del try to sell underwear called Golden Balls which were endorsed by David Beckham – with the footballer featured as himself .
Sir David told The Sun he wanted to put his flat cap back on and review his role as wheel dealer.
He said: “I’ve always loved Del Boy, who is such a wonderful loser. I would love to see it again, I need someone to write me a script.
The show ran for a decade between 1981 and 1991, and the show has had several specials since it aired.
Details: Les sports a mustache for his role as Grandpa Trotteur
Character: In the BBC sitcom, Del described Grandpa as “an out-of-work lamplighter waiting for the gas to come back”, which was as useful as a “pair of sunglasses on a guy with an ear “.
Grandpa’s Chair: Grandpa was usually found keeping Trotter flat in the comfort of his much-loved chair in the BBC series.
He also said, “As a show, it’s very important not to forget that it has a huge audience, it caters to that need of a very large number of people.”
The hit series’ creator and screenwriter John Sullivan died in 2011 aged 64, with his sons Jim and Dan Sullivan using the icon’s unused material in 2014’s Beckham In Peckham.
The TV star recently revealed that he was never supposed to play the famous role of Derek Trotter, better known by his nickname Del Boy.
Speaking on BBC Breakfast, he explained the director initially assumed he was there to audition for Grandad due to his acting background.
He explained: “When I went to interview director and (screenwriter) John Sullivan, because I had played so many silly old roles, like Blanco in Porridge and the 100-year-old gardener in Hark at Barker, they thought I ‘d come for grandpa’s party.’
Ready to go: Les will play the role of grandfather in the stage show from October 3
“When I said no, I wanted to read Del Boy, that’s the part, that’s the part I want, and then they said, well, keep seeing if you can read that and the rest, I guess, is history.”
In David’s memoir A Del of a Life, published October 29, he claimed he was fifth in line for the part, with Enn Reitel and Jim Broadbent being offered the role first.
He said he was also told Robin Nedwell and Billy Murray were considered before the role was given to him.
Despite this, David still managed to grab the role of Del Boy and starred alongside Nicholas Lyndhurst, who played his impressionable younger brother Rodney.
Earlier this year Sir David Jason, 82, said he would ‘love’ to reprise his role as Del Boy, 40 years after Only Fools And Horses premiered