Bob van der Houven
Description
Bob van der Houven is a Dutch voice actor, radio presenter, and musician, born on May 28, 1957, in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany. He is widely recognized for his extensive work in dubbing animated characters and as the long-standing narrator of the television series Rail Away.
His fascination with voice and performance began in childhood, staging puppet shows where he gave each puppet a distinct character voice. After studying English and working as a teacher, he spent a decade from 1979 to 1989 recording books and magazines for the Nederlandsche Blindenbibliotheek, which provided his first professional experience with voice work. His broadcasting career began in 1986 as a presenter for KRO radio, and he went on to present numerous programs for various public broadcasters in the Netherlands across Radio 1, 2, 4, and 5 for decades. From 1988, he also became one of the regular continuity announcers for the newly launched Nederland 3 television channel.
In the world of animation, van der Houven is celebrated for his versatile character voices. He broke into the field by providing voices for a Walt Disney's World on Ice show, which led to his first major dubbing role as the voices of Huey, Dewey, and Louie, the triplet nephews of Donald Duck, in the DuckTales series. He is perhaps best known as the Dutch voice of the alien experiment Stitch in the Lilo & Stitch franchise. Demonstrating his linguistic range, he voiced the character of Stitch not only in Dutch but also in Flemish, German, and Italian for their respective versions of the original film. Another prominent role is the eccentric villain Dr. Heinz Doofenshmirtz in the animated series Phineas and Ferb, a role for which he also served as the dialogue director during the show's first season in the Netherlands. His extensive list of credits also includes the voice of Dobby the house-elf in the Harry Potter films and E.T. in E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial for Dutch audiences.
Beyond voice acting, van der Houven has maintained a parallel career as a musician, singer, and songwriter, following in the footsteps of his father, a jazz musician. He has released several albums, including Alleen op reis in 1997 and Far Away a Voice in 2022. In 2010, he established his own sound studio, Bobsound, in Almere, where he continues to work on various projects and also coaches and directs other voice talents.
His fascination with voice and performance began in childhood, staging puppet shows where he gave each puppet a distinct character voice. After studying English and working as a teacher, he spent a decade from 1979 to 1989 recording books and magazines for the Nederlandsche Blindenbibliotheek, which provided his first professional experience with voice work. His broadcasting career began in 1986 as a presenter for KRO radio, and he went on to present numerous programs for various public broadcasters in the Netherlands across Radio 1, 2, 4, and 5 for decades. From 1988, he also became one of the regular continuity announcers for the newly launched Nederland 3 television channel.
In the world of animation, van der Houven is celebrated for his versatile character voices. He broke into the field by providing voices for a Walt Disney's World on Ice show, which led to his first major dubbing role as the voices of Huey, Dewey, and Louie, the triplet nephews of Donald Duck, in the DuckTales series. He is perhaps best known as the Dutch voice of the alien experiment Stitch in the Lilo & Stitch franchise. Demonstrating his linguistic range, he voiced the character of Stitch not only in Dutch but also in Flemish, German, and Italian for their respective versions of the original film. Another prominent role is the eccentric villain Dr. Heinz Doofenshmirtz in the animated series Phineas and Ferb, a role for which he also served as the dialogue director during the show's first season in the Netherlands. His extensive list of credits also includes the voice of Dobby the house-elf in the Harry Potter films and E.T. in E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial for Dutch audiences.
Beyond voice acting, van der Houven has maintained a parallel career as a musician, singer, and songwriter, following in the footsteps of his father, a jazz musician. He has released several albums, including Alleen op reis in 1997 and Far Away a Voice in 2022. In 2010, he established his own sound studio, Bobsound, in Almere, where he continues to work on various projects and also coaches and directs other voice talents.