Jim Dale

Jim Dale

Jim Dale is a British singer, songwriter, actor and stage performer. He is born James Smith and receives an MBE. His work spans pop singles, comedy, musical theatre, film, stage and narration.

Early recording career

As a singer, Dale places several songs in the UK singles chart in the 1950s, including “Be My Girl”, “Just Born”, “Crazy Dream” and “Sugartime”. He also writes “Dick-a-Dum-Dum (King’s Road)”, which becomes a minor hit for Des O’Connor in 1969.

Songwriting and awards

Dale writes the lyrics for the film theme “Georgy Girl”. The song, performed by The Seekers, later reaches number 1 in the US, and his lyrics are nominated for an Academy Award in 1966. He receives an MBE in 2003.

Film, stage and television

He appears in several Carry On films, usually as the romantic lead. He also appears in the silent short film The Plank, and plays comic villain roles in Disney films including Pete’s Dragon and The Spaceman and King Arthur. On stage, he works in both straight plays and musicals, and he receives four Tony Award nominations, winning for Barnum.

Narration and later recognition

Dale is widely known as the narrator of the American editions of the Harry Potter audiobooks and the related DVDs, and he records all seven books in the series. He also narrates the television series Pushing Daisies. As a narrator, he wins two Grammy Awards, receives six Grammy nominations, and wins a record nine Audie Awards, along with two Benjamin Franklin Awards and eleven Audio File Earphone Awards.