Brian Trueman: Danger Mouse writer dies aged 92

2 September 2024, 22:03 | Updated: 3 September 2024, 11:31

Brian Trueman, the British writer behind cartoons including Danger Mouse and Count Duckula, has died aged 92, his son has said.

Ben Trueman wrote on the X social media platform: "Some sad news. My father, Brian Trueman, has died.

"92 years of happy life. A career in television and radio that included Children's Hour, Clitheroe Kid, Scene at 6.30, Granada Reports, Brass Tacks, Screen Test."

He added his dad, who he described as "clever, funny, resilient, an absolute gentleman", maybe "best known as the writer of and actor in Danger Mouse, Count Duckula, Jamie and the Magic Torch, Cockleshell Bay, Chorlton and the Wheelies."

Of those shows, Danger Mouse, whose main characters were voiced by Only Fools and Horses star David Jason and Carry On star Terry Scott, was perhaps the most famous.

Jason played the fearless hero, self-titled the "world's greatest secret agent", while Scott starred as his hapless sidekick, Penfold.

Trueman contributed to 79 episodes of the original Danger Mouse series, according to his IMDb page.

The original show ran from 1981 to 1992 and was brought back by the BBC from 2015 to 2019.

He was also credited for writing 11 episodes of the cartoon Count Duckula, which followed the adventures of a vegetarian vampire obsessed with fame and wealth.

Trueman also received 47 voice-acting credits for the show over its 65 episodes, playing Nanny, as well as many background characters.

Trueman, who was born in Manchester, was known for his work with the British animation studio, Cosgrove Hall.

The studio, formed in 1976 by animators Brian Cosgrove and Mark Hall and based in the Manchester suburb of Chorlton-cum-Hardy, was behind some of the most successful children's shows of the 1980s, before it was wound down in 2009.