Early Life
Davison was born Peter Moffett in Streatham, London, son of an electrical engineer who was originally from Guyana. The family then moved to Knaphill in Surrey. Before becoming an actor, he gained three O-levels at Winston Churchill School, St John's, Woking, Surrey, and then had several odd jobs, including a stint as a mortuary attendant.
Davison studied at the Central School of Speech and Drama. His first job was as an actor and assistant stage manager at the Nottingham Playhouse. He chose the stage name Peter Davison to avoid confusion with the actor and director Peter Moffatt, with whom Davison later worked.
His first television work was in a 1975 episode of the children's science fiction television programme The Tomorrow People, alongside American actress Sandra Dickinson, whom he married on 26 December 1978. Davison portrayed an alien named "Elmer", often tortured with "tickling boots" under the control of his sister (played by Dickinson) and his mother (played by Margaret Burton), known as "the Mama".
The couple composed and performed the theme tune to Button Moon, a children's programme broadcast in the 1980s. Davison subsequently appeared alongside Dickinson as the Dish of the Day in the television version of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (1981), whose producers considered it humorous for an actor known for playing a veterinary surgeon to appear as a cow. The couple had a daughter, Georgia Moffett, in 1984, and later divorced in 1994.
In 1977, Davison had a prominent role in the 13-segment TV miniseries Love for Lydia opposite a young Jeremy Irons. In 1978, Davison's performance as the youthfully mischievous Tristan Farnon in All Creatures Great and Small made him a household name. Davison has said that he was mainly cast in the role because he looked as if he could be Robert Hardy's younger brother. Davison also appeared in some British sitcoms, including Holding the Fort and Sink or Swim, as well as appearing in dramatic roles.
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