Greenock Telegraph - Prentis Hancock

A GREENOCK actor who starred in Dr Who has taken his very own trip through time and space to reminisce about his upbringing in the town.

Prentis Hancock, who has been appearing on television screens for the past 40 years and who also featured in 70s sci-fi show Space: 1999, is returning to Scotland from London for the Edinburgh Festival.

Prentis, 64, moved to Greenock when he was 12 years old and went to Greenock Academy. He also used to contribute stories about amateur dramatics to the Tele.

His parents, Douglas and Isobel Hancock, still live in Greenock. Both live in Bagatelle.

Prentis said: "My mother is Greenock through and through.

"I was at Greenock Academy and got involved in a theatre group with Bill Bryden. I also kept the Tele informed every week and when there was no other news they would put our notices in. That was when I was with the Drama Workshop. Quite a lot of us went on to become professionals.

"I was up in Greenock last weekend to visit the folks and my sister is in Skelmorlie. I have a brother who is a policeman in Hong Kong and another brother who lives in Skelmorlie and is a teacher in Port Glasgow."

Prentis’s credits include roles in Spy Trap, Space: 1999 and numerous Dr Who stories. He starred in 14 episodes with the original Timelord, William Hartnell, and returned to work with other Doctors, including Tom Baker and Jon Pertwee.

Prentis also did some of the dubbing for in the original Wicker Man film.

He is appearing at the Edinburgh Festival for the first time in the play Meslier, a 17th century drama about one man’s struggle with conscience and belief.

The play runs every night for the next week at Edinburgh College of Art from 8.30pm.

This story appeared in the Greenock Telegraph on Sat, 19 Aug, 2006 - http://www.greenocktelegraph.co.uk/readstory.php?id=7556