Wallace and Gromit

This page is dedicated to the late Peter Sallis, who died on June 12, 2017. He definitely deserved Cheese and Crackers.

Wallace and Gromit "Hang in there Gromit, everything's under control. I'll have that if you don't mind eh? [Looks up and sees kitchen hatch approaching]" - Wallace Gender: Male Type: Soft-Spoken, Dorky yet Endearing Engineer (Wallace) Wallace's Greatest Pet (Gromit) Age: 61 (Wallace) Unknown (Gromit) Species: Human (Wallace) Dog (Gromit) Portrayed by: Peter Sallis (1989-2010) Ben Whitehead (2005-present) Status: Alive Media of origin: Wallace & Gromit

Wallace and Gromit are the titular main protagonists of the franchise of the same name.

Wallace is an inventor who loves cheese, crackers, lives at 62 West Wallaby Street, and keeps a pet dog named Gromit. There is not much known about him, but he sure is a nice and pleasant person to be around and Gromit is Wallace's silent sidekick, best friend, and pet dog who is nicknamed "Lad", "Mate", or "Chuck" by Wallace.

He is the brains of the duo, and often rolls his eyes at Wallace's mad antics and ideas, often having to save Wallace from many scrapes and calamities. Nevertheless, he has a good nature and a kind heart, yet still very critical of Wallace's inventions. Gromit doesn't express himself with spoken words, but his facial expressions and body language speak volumes.

Why They Deserve Cheese and Crackers

Wallace

1. Wallace's portrayal is a kind-hearted, friendly, funny, and eccentric man as you can tell by his charming personality.
2. He's a near-genius intellect who can be able to invent some inventions like his moon rocket or the Techno Trousers (The two of which are by far his most well-known inventions).
3. Despite being eccentric, Wallace has shown signs of bravery and heroic actions when he saves Lady Tottington from being threatened by Victor Quartermaine and became so dedicated to her.
4. Wallace's character proves to viewers that while he could be a type of mad scientist (it's because his inventions range from malfunctioning Rube Goldberg-esque devices to clever and ground-breaking gadgets), he's a friendly guy compared to the typical mad scientist being depicted as villainous, malicious, antagonistic or underhanded.
5. His famous craving for cheese and crackers. All is said since that is his favorite food.
6. No crackers Gromit. We've forgotten the crackers!
7. His buddy-like relationship with Gromit. It's an iconic feature for Wallace and would make sure to take some good care of him like he was his pet. How nice of him if you ask us.
8. According to his creator Nick Park, he made Wallace a man who is homely yet doesn't mind the odd adventures he gets himself into.
9. Wallace may be clumsy and absent-minded, but he does have some level of common sense. You see when he learned that Piella Bakewell was a serial killer all thanks to Gromit who help warned him about what happened in the first place.

Gromit

1. He is an amazing dog who's one of the most memorable cartoon dogs in history.
2. His levels of intelligence and resourcefulness are much to be desired, especially when he practically saves the day from most predicaments.
   • He is also very handy with electronic equipment and often helps Wallace with making his many inventions function correctly.
   • He has also shown to be an excellent airplane pilot, with the ability to fly just about any kind of small plane. For example, In A Close Shave, he flew a small monoplane with a porridge gun to thwart Preston, the evil dog, and he was able to pilot a toy biplane in The Curse of the Were-Rabbit, though this is hard to explain since the plane was a toy and not meant to fly.
3. His sarcastic and deadpan remarks are very hilarious, which is all done by communicating his emotions through body language mind you.
4. Despite never talking, it's very easy to understand what his personality is like through his facial expressions, his actions, and body language, thus making him iconic for being a non-speaking character.
5. He is always there for Wallace, generally helping him out with any task or any experiment Wallace tests out. Making him a very supportive companion to have.
6. His design is very iconic alongside Wallace.
7. As mentioned above, he is a sensitive, intelligent, resourceful dog with a genuine affection for Wallace. Being the less eccentric one of the two, he's much more aware than his master and has a better judge of character, especially for a dog!
8. In most cases, Gromit does the actual work while Wallace panics or gets himself into trouble. He is also shown to be very annoyed with Wallace when the latter makes friends with untrustworthy people, such as Piella Bakewell in A Matter of Loaf and Death.
9. Despite Gromit generally having plenty of snarky remarks over Wallace's blunders and awkward nature, he is nevertheless very heroic and helpful towards Wallace. Gromit always has a solution, idea, or plan of action that stops any type of danger or situation that happens around him.
10. He is very loyal to Wallace and has a strong sense of justice. Not even at gunpoint did he waver in saving his master and upholding the law, as seen in The Wrong Trousers.
11. On top of that, his levels of hyper-competence whenever he solves a problem in a heroic fashion are just satisfying and entertaining to watch.
12. He can have a level of reliability to his character. Sure he's sarcastic and all, but he can be sympathetic when Gromit is subjected to a situation he didn't deserve or how his sarcasm, while played for laughs, is understandable since Wallace can make some very stupid mistakes.
13. Many critics have shared how Gromit's silence makes him the perfect straight man with a pantomime expressiveness that drew favorable comparisons to Buster Keaton. Although at times he does make dog-like noises, such as yelps or grunts.

Qualities that Don't Deserve Cheese and Crackers

Wallace

1. Wallace can be quite gullible at times like when he saw a slice of moon rock, thinking that the moon is made of cheese.
2. He can be lazy like when he made inventions to make his life easier. But not to the point where he's unlikable.
3. Speaking of his inventions, some of the machines and gadgets he made would backfire on him from time to time. This would make him seem somewhat incompetent compared to the more resourceful and sensible Gromit.
4. At times he can be inadvertently selfish and inconsiderate, but always means well and has a good heart.

Gromit

1. There have been times when Gromit himself has been wrongly accused of crimes, like in A Close Shave, when he's accused of sheep slaughter, and A Matter of Loaf and Death, he was accused and overly punished for biting Piella Bakewell.
2. Despite his faithfulness, he does occasionally ignore or simply refuse to do what Wallace says. One example was in A Close Shave, where Shaun the Sheep was eating Wallace's cheese and Gromit disregards an order to sic him.

Trivia

• Wallace was originally a postman named Jerry, but Nick Park felt the name did not fit with Gromit.
• Wallace has a different look in A Grand Day Out, his top of his head is smaller, bigger ears and his mouth is not so wide.
• Wallace is loosely based on Nick Park's father, whom he described in a radio interview as "an incurable tinkerer."
• Wallace's original voice actor, Peter Sallis, passed away at age 96 on June 2, 2017.
• Born on February 12th (possibly in mid-80s), Gromit went on to graduate from "Dogwarts University" with a double first in "Engineering for Dogs".
• He enjoys knitting, playing cards, reading the newspaper, building things, and cooking.
• His prized possessions include an alarm clock, bone, brush, and a framed photo of himself with Wallace.
  • He also cherished his giant vegetable marrow grown for the annual Giant Vegetable Competition shown in The Curse of the Were-Rabbit.
• Gromit may resemble Snoopy from "Classic Peanuts".
• Gromit is recognized by most kennel clubs as a beagle.
• Gromit's age is unknown, but he can be implied to be a young dog, somewhere around 5 human years, and 35 dog years.
• Gromit was originally meant to be a cat, but Nick Park changed him into a dog because it proved easier to model.
• Peter Hawkins was originally going to voice Gromit whether he was a cat or dog, but the idea of Gromit speaking was dropped when it became clear how expressive he could be just through small movements of the eyes, ears, and brows. So the voice was never used, and it was also done for being realistic, especially since cats and dogs don't talk. However, several times in interviews, Nick Park has mentioned having an unreleased recording of Peter Hawkins doing Gromit's "voice" for A Grand Day Out, The Wrong Trousers, and A Close Shave, and how only Nick Park himself has heard the recording to this very day.
• Gromit's eyes aren't black but are in fact a very dark blue, seen for a brief time in A Grand Day Out.

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