Hugh Dennis

Peter Hugh Dennis (born 13 February 1962) is an English comedian, presenter, actor, writer, impressionist and voice-over artist who has appeared in the comedy double act Punt and Dennis with partner Steve Punt. He played Dr Piers Crispin in the sitcom '' My Hero'' from 2000 to 2006, Pete Brockman, the father in the sitcom '' Outnumbered'', and since 2014 has played Toby in the long-running sitcom ''Not Going Out'', all for BBC One. From 2020 he has indulged his long-standing love of geography and social history by presenting the light-hearted community archaeology television show '' The Great British Dig'' on Channel 4.

From 2005 to 2022, Dennis appeared as a regular panellist on the BBC Two satirical comedy show ''Mock the Week'', appearing in every episode in the show’s run.

Early life

Dennis was born in Kettering, Northamptonshire, the younger son of school teacher Dorothy Mary (Hinnels) and John Dennis, an Anglican priest. His brother, also named John, was the British Ambassador to Angola from 2014 to 2018. He grew up in Mill Hill in North London as his father was appointed as vicar of John Keble Church, Mill Hill soon after his birth. His father later became the Bishop of Knaresborough and then of Saint Edmundsbury and Ipswich.

Dennis was educated at independent University College School in London. During his time at UCS, he played rugby with Will Self and was head boy in his final year.

Subsequently, Dennis went on to read for the Geographical Tripos as an exhibitioner at St John's College, Cambridge. His dissertation was titled "The Spatial Distribution of Elementary Education in 19th-century Wakefield". He also joined the Footlights, where he first met Steve Punt and club president Nick Hancock and the trio collaborated on a number of projects besides the annual revue.

In a 2016 interview with ITV's '' This Morning'' programme, Dennis said that he was approached by Britain's domestic intelligence service, MI5, whilst at Cambridge University and attended a preliminary interview; however, he eventually decided that he did not want to take the matter any further, particularly due to being told during the interview that the job would require him to "do people over".

After graduating with a first (his nickname was "Desk"), Dennis worked for Unilever for six years in the marketing department while performing comedy with Punt at venues including The Comedy Store in London at weekends. Whilst at Unilever, Dennis became a brand manager of Lynx deodorant. His time at Unilever came to an end when he and Punt had their BBC Radio 1 show (alongside David Baddiel & Rob Newman) ''The Mary Whitehouse Experience'' commissioned for BBC Two. Dennis was put on sabbatical by Unilever, as rehearsals for the show were to take place on a weekday, but he never returned to the company and instead chose to pursue comedy full-time as a result of the show's success.

Dennis uses his middle name Hugh as his stage name because the actor Peter Dennis was already a member of the performing arts union Equity.

Radio and television career

While an impressionist, Dennis did voices for ''Spitting Image'' and appeared with Punt as resident support comics on two TV series hosted on the BBC by Jasper Carrott. Dennis also appeared twice as a contestant on the topical panel show '' Have I Got News for You'', including one opposite former schoolmate Self.

Punt and Dennis' radio career includes over a decade of performing ''Punt and Dennis'', ''It's Been a Bad Week'', '' The Party Line'' and the satirical radio comedy show, '' The Now Show''. On '' The Now Show'', Dennis was originally in a line-up including Punt, Mitch Benn, Laura Shavin, Jon Holmes and Marcus Brigstocke. He is friends with Chris Morris and has had cameos on '' Brass Eye'' as well as doing the narration for the CBBC show '' Sam and Mark's Guide to Dodging Disaster''.

In December 2009, Dennis joined Oz Clarke in presenting the 60-minute Christmas special ''Oz and Hugh Drink to Christmas'' broadcast on BBC Two. In December 2010 the pair returned for a four-part series called '' Oz and Hugh Raise the Bar'', which puts them in a competition to create a bar featuring only local British food and drinks.

Dennis has starred in a number of sitcoms, including '' My Hero'', in which he played obnoxious GP Piers Crispin. From 2007 to 2014, he starred in '' Outnumbered'', a semi-improvised sitcom based around family life and won a BAFTA nomination in the comedy category for the 2009 Christmas special. On Radio 4 he also featured in the sitcom '' Revolting People'' which, like ''Outnumbered'', was co-written by Andy Hamilton.

Besides his regular television work, Dennis is a panellist on ''Mock the Week'' and has appeared in all episodes since its premiere in 2005, with the exception of a special episode of the programme that was broadcast as part of David Walliams' '' 24 Hour Panel People''. He is a regular guest on various BBC-broadcast comedy panel game shows such as ''They Think It's All Over'', '' Would I Lie To You?'', '' QI'' and has guest hosted '' Have I Got News for You''. In 2011, Dennis hosted the short-lived improvisational comedy series '' Fast and Loose''.

Beginning on 16 February 2012, Dennis and Julia Bradbury hosted a four-part BBC One documentary series ''The Great British Countryside''. From October 2014, Dennis has started appearing in the sitcom ''Not Going Out'' as Toby.

In 2016 Dennis appeared as the Bank Manager in the BBC Three series ''Fleabag'', acting alongside Phoebe Waller-Bridge in the first, fourth, and final episodes of series 1.

In February 2021 Dennis started presenting '' The Great British Dig'' on More 4.

In the September 2021 Bond film ''No Time to Die'', Dennis cameoed as a scientist in an MI6 laboratory.

Personal life

Dennis lives in London. He has been married twice: to Miranda Carroll (1987-1993), and to Catherine "Kate" Abbot-Anderson (1996-2015), with whom he has a son and a daughter. In June 2018, it was confirmed that Dennis was in a relationship with actress Claire Skinner, who starred opposite him in the sitcom ''Outnumbered''.

In July 2008, Dennis received an Honorary fellowship from the University of Northampton.

Dennis took part in the 2007 L'Étape du Tour, cycling an open stage of the Tour de France for amateurs which was held in the mountains two weeks before the main event. He completed it in 11 hours and 7 minutes. He said: "I was an hour ahead of the ''broom'', the vehicle that gathers the slower riders and disqualifies them." In October 2011, Dennis completed the Great South Run in Portsmouth for the Alzheimer's Society.

Dennis was the subject of the BBC One programme '' Who Do You Think You Are?'' (broadcast on 12 September 2012) in which he tries to find out more about his two grandfathers and their backgrounds. His paternal great-grandfather was a miner at Kiveton Park Colliery near Rotherham whose younger son, Dennis' grandfather, served as an officer during World War I, and was coincidentally trained at Dennis' alma mater St John's College.

His maternal grandfather also served in France during the Great War and was in the Suffolk Regiment.

His father was the bishop John Dennis, and he has an older brother, also called John Dennis, who is a diplomat and was the British Ambassador to Angola from 2014 to 2018.

Dennis is a supporter of Arsenal, and also a fellow of the Royal Geographical Society.

On an episode of Taskmaster he revealed that he is a member of Cloud Appreciation Society.

Filmography

Accolades

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Dennis, Hugh
Alumni of St John's College, Cambridge
English comedy writers
English male comedians
English male television actors
English satirists
People educated at University College School
People from Kettering
1962 births
British comedy writers
Living people
20th-century English comedians
21st-century English comedians
Comedians from Northamptonshire
People from Mill Hill