Ota Jirák was a Czech actor, mime and voice actor. He died on Saturday, 17 October 2026, aged 77. [1][2] The wider public knew him above all for his voice, heard in children's programmes, animated films and dubbed series. [1]
Life and theatre
He was born in Debř near Mladá Boleslav, spent his childhood in Prague and studied puppetry at the Academy of Performing Arts (DAMU) in Prague. [1] In the second half of the 1970s he worked as a mime in the Cirkus Alfréd ensemble of Ctibor Turba, and in the early 1980s he moved to the GAG group of Boris Hybner. He occasionally appeared as a guest at the Prozatímní divadlo of František Ringo Čech and at the Semafor theatre. In September 2003 he joined the Městské divadlo in Mladá Boleslav. [1]
Film and television
He came to the television camera thanks to the director Ján Roháč, who cast him as a mime in the grotesque Tři chrobáci. He later acted in fairy tales and series, among them Arabela, Život na zámku, Nováci and Slunečná. According to Echo24 he usually played friendly characters with a sense of humour. [1]
Dubbing
He voiced the character Hele in Studio Kamarád from 1980 until January 2026, when Kryštof Mende replaced him in the role. Hele appeared alongside the character Jů, voiced by Jiří Lábus; according to iDNES.cz they worked together for more than forty years. Jirák took over the role from Milan Neděla. [1][2]
In the Czech version of the American sitcom ALF he voiced the title alien, whom he himself called his "favourite" role. [2] He also dubbed Tigger in the series Winnie the Pooh, Manny the mammoth in the Ice Age series, Obelix in the films Asterix and the Vikings, Asterix at the Olympic Games and Asterix and Obelix: God Save Britannia, the cat Prince in the film Garfield: A Tail of Two Kitties, Colonel von Strohm in the sitcom 'Allo 'Allo! and the lion Aurix in the film Čtyřlístek ve službách krále. [2] In the Polish animated series Slavný lovec Pampalini he voiced the main character and all the other roles and commentary. [1][2]
Among Czech productions, his voice appeared in the puppet series Hajadla and in the films Fimfárum Jana Wericha and Fimfárum 2. [1][2] In the Czech versions of the Harry Potter films he voiced Hagrid. [2]
Other activities
In his free time he devoted himself to painting, graphic art and the making of enamels. [1]
Chronology
- — The actor and dubbing artist Ota Jirák has died at the age of 77; among other roles, he voiced the character Alf in the Czech dub. Echo24 iDNES.cz