Ronnie Le Drew

Ronnie Le Drew (born 23 October 1947) is a Canadian-born British puppeteer who was born in Toronto, Canada. He is best known for playing "Zippy" from the ITV children's show Rainbow since the early 1970s and trained at the Little Angel Theatre, London under John Wright. His association with the Little Angel spans over thirty years as performer, and later as director.

Theatre

His theatre credits have included Ala-al-din (Clifford Heap Miniature Theatre UK Tour) Through Wooden Eyes (Hogarth Puppets UK Tour) Hans the Bell Ringer (Oxford Play House and Civic Theatre Darlington.) Angelo (

Midlands Arts Centre, Birmingham.) and Polynesia in Doctor Dolittle UK Tour Scottish Arts Council Funded Tours, and visits to America, Israel, Denmark, France, Belgium and Czechoslovakia

followed.

Television

His numerous television credits began in 1964 with A Touch of Don Juan (

Sooty Show (Thames Television), and also Sooty Heights (Granada), mainly as Sweep, occasionally as Sooty and once as Scampi. Drew also played a dancing podling and several other background characters in The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance, released on Netflix in 2019.^[1]

However he is probably best known as "

Five (TV)'s Night Fever, The Jonathan Ross Show (Channel 4), The World of Puppets (BBC), The Greatest 100 Kids TV Shows (Channel 4), Ashes to Ashes

(BBC), as well as appearances at the Fridge, The Hammersmith Pallais, as well numerous Universities, Night Clubs, and Discos, all over Great Britain with the Rainbow Disco Road Show and Rainbow's Play Your Cards Right.