Simon Prebble
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Simon Prebble (born February 13, 1942) is an English actor and narrator. Born in Croydon, Surrey, he was the son of the novelist, screenwriter and Scottish historian, John Prebble and fashion artist Betty Prebble (both deceased). In 1960 he attended Guildhall School of Music and Drama, London and began his acting career in one of Britain's first television soap operas, Home Tonight with David Hemmings. For the next eleven years he worked extensively on radio and television and in provincial repertory theatre including a year with Ian Mckellen's Hamlet. In 1967 Prebble also designed and produced the "executive toy" called Newton's Cradle . In 1970 Prebble joined the newsroom at Capital Radio, the second commercial radio station in Britain, where he hosted London's Day. He then embarked on a career as a presenter and voice-over announcer, including thirteen years as the promo voice of Thames Television, and from 1984 he was the announcer for the British version of the phenomenally successful game show The Price Is Right with Leslie Crowther.
In 1990 Prebble moved to New York where he continued doing voice-over work. As well as recording numerous radio and television commercials, he also character-voiced cartoon series, such as 'Courage the Cowardly Dog', hosted and presented several television documentary series, notably 'Target Mafia', and narrated the IMAX film Endurance about the Shackleton expedition. In 1996, he was a lead actor for a year (as villain Martin Chedwyn) on the American daily soap opera As the World Turns.
In the U.S., he also began narrating audio books, and to date has recorded over 300 titles. An Audiofile "Golden Voice", his work has gained him more than eighteen "Earphone" awards, eight nominations for the "Audies" (the audiobook "Oscars"), and in 2005, he was named "Narrator of the Year" by Publishers Weekly.
In 2003, at Chiswick House London, he married Swedish graphic artist, Marie-Janine Hellstrom.
Interesting note: Prebble reads the 26CD, 32 hour marathon audio book, Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell (unabridged) by Susanna Clarke
