Ray Brooks (actor)

Early work

Ray Brooks began as a television actor. He appeared in the long-running ITV soap Coronation Street, and played Terry Mills in the series Taxi! with Sid James (1963). He played small roles in British films such as H.M.S. Defiant, Play It Cool and Some People, and then rose to prominence in the UK after starring alongside Michael Crawford and Rita Tushingham in the 1965 film The Knack …and How to Get It. The film, directed by Richard Lester, won the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival in 1965. Brooks followed up this success starring in the ground-breaking 1966 television drama Cathy Come Home.

Through the 1960s, he also had small roles in a number of other cult television series: including The Avengers, Danger Man, and Doomwatch. He played the major role of David Campbell in the Doctor Who film Daleks – Invasion Earth: 2150 A.D..

Major film roles in the 1970s were less numerous. These included roles in the all-star Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, and in Carry On Abroad (1972) as oversexed waiter Giorgio. He also appeared in a number of Pete Walker films including The Flesh and Blood Show, Tiffany Jones and House of Whipcord. In this decade Ray released an album of his own songs, and built a successful career doing voiceovers for television advertisements, and children's television series Mr Benn.

The 1980s

Brooks returned to prominence with the BBC comedy drama Big Deal (1984–86), where he co-starred with Sharon Duce. After Big Deal ended, Duce and Brooks starred together, as different characters, in the popular Growing Pains (1992) about a pair of middle-aged foster parents.

Brooks was also the narrator of the well known children's animations by David McKee: Mr Benn and King Rollo. From 1980-1983, he played Detective Sergeant Dave Brook in a BBC Radio 4 detective series, rebroadcast as Robert Barr - Detective on BBC Radio 4 Extra from 2013 to 2017.

In 1987, the BBC chose Brooks as one of the principal character voices for the acclaimed French animated science fiction film Les Maitres du Temps, which the BBC had co-produced in 1982.

The 2000s

Brooks was the original 'next stop' announcement voice of the London Tramlink system, before being replaced by Nicholas Owen.

In 2002, he acted in BBC drama Two Thousand Acres of Sky.

He joined the cast of the long-running BBC soap opera EastEnders as Joe Macer in 2005. On 30 September 2006, it was announced that Brooks' EastEnders character would depart in January 2007 following the departure of Joe's wife, Pauline Fowler (Wendy Richard), at Christmas. His final appearance was on 26 January when his character confessed to killing Pauline, before falling from a window to his death.

He starred as Detective Sergeant Brook in the Radio 4 Extra police series: Robert Barr - Detective; series 1: 13 episodes, series 2: 10 episodes, and series 3: 8 episodes (2013 to present). The series is written by Robert Barr.