The Stage

Peter Robbins

Published Tuesday 28 April 2009 at 10:00 by Nigel Ellacott

Peter Robbins, my friend and ‘sister’ for 30 years, has died, suddenly, aged 56. We first played Ugly Sisters for my brother Vivyan at the Kenneth More Theatre, Ilford in 1981, we enjoyed it and seemed to gel, repeated the partnership at Porthcawl Grand Pavilion next Christmas and then for three decades.

In 1983 we were in Paul Elliott’s office, and remained with the E&B and Qdos family for the following 26 years, appearing in (strangely) 28 pantomimes.

Those pantomimes played most of the major theatres in the UK and each season we worked with folk who have remained firm friends. We were lucky enough to spend several years with Rolf Harris, Windsor Davies, Gary Wilmot and, recently, Brian Conley.

Peter was born on March 31, 1953 and his career began at the Westminster Children’s Theatre, in the Denville Players’ rep at Butlins, and in tours including No Sex Please, The Monkey Walk, and the rock musical Hair.

His first Dame was at Camberley, when, in his own words, he was “far too young and a disaster”. Last autumn, I found a review of that production and would produce it at odd moments, much to his chagrin. It simply said: “Peter Robbins was as tall as the Beanstalk.”

Peter was an accomplished puppeteer, a skill he honed by working with his friend Sue Dacre in the film Little Shop of Horrors and the Henson movies, Muppet Christmas Carol and Muppet Treasure Island. As usual, Peter acquired many long-lasting friendships from these films.

We toured in several productions of A Christmas Carol - with Peter as Scrooge and me as Young Scrooge (a source of fun over the years), and in children’s tours such as Wind in the Willows, The Wizard of Oz, Pinocchio and Hansel and Gretel.

In recent years, Peter spent his summers touring with the Illyria Theatre Company and was proud to be an ‘Illyrian’, appearing as Lady Bracknell on tour and at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, and as Sherlock Holmes in The Hound of the Baskervilles.

For the past 14 years, Peter and I toured our Pantomime Roadshow to primary schools all over the UK, and this was featured in Channel 4’s documentary Pantoland. Other TV appearances included the Sisters in Ready, Steady, Cook, where Peter, an accomplished cook, was delighted to win with Sharon’s Surprise Pudding. He was also very proud of appearing in Jennifer Saunders’ Mirrorball for the BBC.

For 30 years we have shared dressing rooms, quick change rooms and usually digs. Our working relationship was at times like a marriage and to countless pantomime cast members Peter was the provider of teas, coffees and mince pies at every interval. I am proud and privileged to have been one half of a double-act with the much-missed Peter Robbins, who died on April 15.

My thoughts go to his partner, Phillip, and to his brother, Bob, Anne and their children Leslie-Ann, Roxanne and Justin.