Just after his 18th birthday, Sellers was drafted into the British Royal Air Force. In the early 1940s, Sellers played the drums with touring jazz bands and also learned to play the banjo and ukulele. He spent his childhood traveling the vaudeville circuit, where he gained a fondness for entertaining and a desire to succeed beyond the realm of vaudeville.Īs a youth, Sellers attended Miss Whitney’s School of Dancing in Southsea and Madame Vacani’s Dancing Classes in London before enrolling in St Aloysius’ Boarding and Day School for Boys. Sellers’ parents were vaudeville entertainers, and at two days old, Sellers was carried onto the stage at King’s Theatre. His parents, Agnes (Peg) and Bill Sellers, called him Peter in memory of his stillborn older brother.
Master impressionist Peter Sellers was born Richard Henry Sellers on Septemin Southsea, Hampshire, England.
