Stefan Dennis
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| Stefan Dennis | |
|---|---|
| Born | 30 October 1958 Tawonga, Victoria, Australia |
| Occupation | Television actor, musician |
| Years active | 1979-present |
| Spouse | Gail |
| Children | 3 |
| Website | |
| www.stefandennis.com | |
Stefan Dennis (born 30 October 1958)[1] is an Australian actor, best known for playing the role of Paul Robinson in the soap opera, Neighbours, from its first episode in March 1985 to the present day. He is also known for his 1989 hit single "Don't It Make You Feel Good?", which reached #16 in the UK Singles Chart.[2]
Contents |
[edit] Biography
Dennis was born in Tawonga, but his family moved to Queensland for 12 years where Dennis did most of his schooling. Dennis started showing his genuine interest in music and acting at the age of 7 and was 11 years old when he started in Amateur Theatre in Queensland. His debut with this first theatre company was in Oliver!. Also, this time Dennis and his brother formed a vocal duo and performed on many occasions. They played at weddings, charity events, and some large concerts.
By the age of 14, Dennis was convinced he wanted to go into the entertainment business. Dennis understood the pitfalls associated with choosing the career of an entertainer, so he decided to get a trade behind him to support him through the times when he may be out of work.
He left school at 15 and took an apprenticeship as a chef. On completion of his chef's certificate, Dennis moved from the Gold Coast in Queensland to Melbourne, Australia's thriving financial and entertainment capital. In the following five years, Dennis worked hard gaining knowledge, experience and a respected name within the industry, filling all the empty gaps in the kitchens of Melbourne's abounding restaurants.
Dennis started out in guest roles on programmes such as Skyways, Carson's Law, Young Ramsay, Prisoner, Home, The Henderson Kids, The Sullivans, The Young Doctors and many others.[3] Dennis has a number of credits to his name. He had a major role in The Henderson Kids, a co-lead in an ABC production called Infinity Limited, and he co-starred in The Flying Doctors mini-series. In 1984, Dennis auditioned for the roles of Shane Ramsay and Des Clarke in new soap opera Neighbours. He was later cast as Paul Robinson instead.[4][5] Through the role in Neighbours came opportunities like appearing at the Royal Variety Performance along with other cast members.
After finishing Neighbours in 1992, Dennis moved to the UK and worked on a variety of TV shows and theatre productions. Dennis appeared in many pantomimes, plays, and musicals. In 1994, Dennis played Mickey in Blood Brothers, touring in New Zealand and Australia before returning to the UK to appear in the show in both the West End, and in a national tour of the UK. He appeared in many television shows, including Dream Team, River City, The Bill, and Casualty. Dennis also returned to Australia from time to time for guest roles in shows such as Blue Heelers, Good Guys Bad Guys, and Stingers. Dennis has worked as a voiceover artist for many years both in Australia and the UK.
Dennis was part of the team that set a new world record in 1995 for 24 hour endurance outdoor karting. The team – Dennis, David Brabham, Russ Malkin, Steve Malkin set the record of 1664.7 km on a 1.3 km track at Brooklands, Weybridge, Surrey, UK on 24 and 25 February 1995.
Whilst in the UK, Dennis became a partner in Lex Film Entertainment, and was associate producer on the movie The Truth About Love. He also met and married his wife, Gail. The couple have two sons, Cameron and Declan, and a daughter Darci. The family are now back living in Australia.
He returned to Neighbours at the end of 2004, and was a regular character once again as of 2005, signing a three-year contract which ran to the end of 2008, which he has now extended. He is the only current cast member who appeared in the first episode, although he is not the longest serving due to his long break.
Of his role as the antagonist in Neighbours, Dennis has said that people struggle to tell the difference between himself and the character and "shy away" from him because "they think I'm going to bark at them." He has conceded that it could be a testament to his acting and says "It's a real compliment though as people know the character that well, they actually think I am like him in real life."[6]
In 2009, Dennis was stalked by two fans whilst presenting the Best Villain award at the British Soap Awards.[7]
[edit] Music
In 1989, he started a side-line music career, and released the single "Don't It Make You Feel Good?", which reached #16 in the UK,[8] in May of that year. He released a second single, "This Love Affair", which reached #67 in the UK Singles Chart in October 1989.[2]
[edit] Filmography
[edit] Television
- Neighbours – Paul Robinson
- The Sullivans
- The Young Doctors (1982)
- Prisoner – as "Shayne Berkley"
- Young Ramsay (1 March 1980) – as "Sid Atkinson" in episode: "Gift Horse"
- Prisoner (1981) – as "Peter Richards"
- Five Mile Creek (3 April 1985) – as "Boy #2" in episode: "The Best of Mates"
- The Flying Doctors (1985) (mini series) – as "Doug Hennassy"
- The Henderson Kids (1985) as "Terry"
- The Office (1996) – as "Nigel"
- Blue Heelers (1 July 1997) – as "Colin Docker" in episode: "Poetic Justice"
- Good Guys Bad Guys (14 April 1998) – as "Andy Caesar" in episode: "Don't Cry for Me Arch 'n' Tina"
- Stingers (22 February 1999) – as "Snr. Com. Karl Hiller" in episode: "Nothing Personal"
- The Big Breakfast (14 December 2001) – as himself
- Dream Team (2001–2002) – as "Samuel Irving"
- River City (2002) – as "Dr. Marcus McKenzie"
- Casualty (19 November 2002) – as "Mark Christie"
- The Bill (7 May 2003) – as "Gene Bishop"
- Rove Live (19 July 2005) – as Himself
[edit] Films
- Channel Chaos (1984) – Actor as "Cameraman"
- The Truth About Love (2004) – Production as associate producer – Actor as "Dougie"
[edit] Theatre
- 1990/91 – Robin Hood – Liverpool, UK
- 1991/92 – Aladdin – Southampton, UK
- 1992/93 – Cinderella – Bournemouth, UK
- 1993 – Whose Life is It Anyway? – UK Tour
- 1993/94 – Jack and the Beanstalk – Wimbledon, London, UK
- 1994 – Blood Brothers – Australia
- 1994 – Blood Brothers – New Zealand
- 1994/95 – Peter Pan – Blackpool, UK
- 1995 – Blood Brothers – UK
- 1995 – Point of Death – UK Tour
- 1997 – Murder by Misadventure – UK Tour
- 1998/99 – Aladdin – Weston-Super-Mare, UK
- 2000 – Fool for Love – Edinburgh
- 2007 – Aladdin – Aberdeen
- 2009/10 – Cinderella – Wolverhampton Grand Theatre, UK
[edit] References
- ^ Stefandennis.com
- ^ a b Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 150. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
- ^ "Stefan Dennis – Neighbours". Neighbours. Neighbours. http://neighbours.com.au/1100.htm. Retrieved 21 June 2010.
- ^ "Stefan Dennis (Neighbours' Paul Robinson) Interview". Last Broadcast. http://www.lastbroadcast.co.uk/soaps/interviews/v/3157-stefan-dennis-neighbours-paul-robinson-interview.html. Retrieved 1 May 2010.
- ^ Hopwood, Clive (1990). The Official Neighbours Annual 1990. World International. p. 15. ISBN 0-7235-6859-6. http://books.google.com/books?id=TYNMNAAACAAJ&dq=isbn:0723568596&cd=1. Retrieved 4 June 2010.
- ^ Sperling, Daniel (27 December 2010). "Soaps – News – 'Neighbours' Dennis: 'People think I'm Paul' – Digital Spy". Digital Spy. Digital Spy. http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/soaps/s14/neighbours/news/a294831/neighbours-dennis-people-think-im-paul.html. Retrieved 28 December 2010.
- ^ Green, Kris (12 May 2009). "Soaps – News – 'Neighbours' icon stalked at BSAs – Digital Spy". Digital Spy. Digital Spy. http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/soaps/s14/neighbours/news/a155677/neighbours-icon-stalked-at-bsas.html. Retrieved 28 December 2010.
- ^ UK charts Search "Stefan Dennis"
