Duncan Dared

Born into a family of variety entertainers and a house bursting with props, Peter seemed destined for the stage from an early age. His boyish good looks and professionalism kept him busy at the National Theatre throughout his teens and soon he was appearing as often on screen as on stage. Yet despite acting success, it wasn't until he became a Blue Peter presenter that Peter Duncan's star truly began to rise. Peter proved enormously popular and indeed, he is the only presenter to be brought back by popular demand. His charming smile and do-anything attitude won the viewers over. Between Blue Peter and his spin-off Duncan Dares, Peter walked tightropes, ran Marathons, attempted an Irish Sea crossing in a VW Beetle, raced a Formular One truck and genuinely took himself to the limits of his physical and mental enduance. But being in the limelight brought controversy. he provoked a top level health and safety row when filmed cleaning the face of Big Ben without a safety harness and he has been plagued by a persistent false rumour that he one appeared in a soft porn film! He became a leading man in musical theatre in the nineties gaining an Olivier nomination before embarking on a new career, documentary making, taking the Duncan family - his wife Annie and their four children - on long backpacking adventures around the world. In 2004, Peter was invited to become Chief Scout, the volunteer leader of Britain's largest youth movement. His time in office has seen the first increase in membership in many years, although some traditionalists resented his informal style. At grass roots, Peter has been enormously popular and he will be remembered for bringing a breath of fresh air into an age-old institution. Today, Peter remains relentlessly enthusiastic. He continues to entertain - from reality TV shows to Shakespeare and the slapsick of his one-man variety show. This is his true story.