[In association with Motors]
Peter Serafinowicz is one of the most recognisable actors in Britain, even if his name is not as familiar as some of his contemporaries. He has been a regular feature on television, radio and on the big screen since the early ‘90s, including regular collaborations with Simon Pegg.
Born in 1972 in Liverpool, Serafinowicz was first heard on the radio in 1993 in a spoof documentary about the music industry, an opportunity which lead to him working with Harry Hill, and featuring on shows such as Grievous Bodily Radio. His vocal skills are considerable, and he was the voice of Darth Maul in Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace.
His work with Simon Pegg includes the Channel 4 programme Spaced, in which he plays Duane Benzie, a man with an eye for other people’s girlfriends. Next came the phenomenal Shaun of the Dead, in which he played Pete, the personality-free housemate who soon ends up as a zombie. His most recent exploit is the Motors.co.uk advert, which includes a voiceover by Serafinowicz.
He also appeared in the hugely successful comedy Black Books, alongside Dylan Moran and Bill Bailey. In 2012 he got the chance to perform in a starring role as he took the lead in Bad Sugar, a sitcom from the producers of Peep Show, with Olivia Colman, Julia Davis and Reece Shearsmith.
Peter Serafinowicz is also an acclaimed writer – in 2002 he wrote Look Around You, a series of humorous videos which took the Michael out of the old fashioned educational videos which were used in schools in the 1970s (and for many years since). The series was so popular that the BBC commissioned a second series, which was broadcast in 2005 as part of the Tomorrow’s World programme.
Not content with being a writer and actor, Peter added the role of director to his CV by directing three music videos for the Isle of Wight band Hot Chip. Twitter is a big part of Serafinowicz’ life – he has over 600,000 followers, making him one of the most followed people on Twitter. In 2012 he published A Billion Jokes (Volume One), a book containing a collection of one-liners that Peter has aired on Twitter since he joined the site.
Peter is married to Sarah Alexander, an actress, and they have two children – Sam and Phoebe. The Serafinowicz family has an artistic inclination – his brother is also a writer, and features in the title sequence of every episode of Look Around You.
Serafinowicz is a prolific actor and writer, yet his name is not one that is first thought of when thinking about television stars. He seems to have struck the right balance between success and fame – who knows that the future will hold for this talented yet low-key actor.
