William John Fennell OAM (20 January 1920 – 9 September 1992)[2] was an Australian radio, television (serials and mini-series), stage and film actor, comedian, producer, radio scriptwriter and writer who appeared in many Australian television series in a lengthy career spanning over 50 years, recognised by his slightly nasal, raspy voice, moustache and pork pie hat.

As a comedian, his style was stated as a sad humour worth more than a belly-laugh and said to be contrasted with the blue comedy of contemporary performer Roy Rene.

[1] He appeared in numerous films, TV movies, miniseries and series, but is probably best known for his longer running roles in The Young Doctors as Arthur Simmonds and Sons and Daughters as Spider Webb.

[3] He became interested in scriptwriting and wrote a radio program based on the comic strip characters Blondie and Dagwood.

On television, he was well known for roles in the 1970s and 1980s, including Jeremiah Quizzel in The Lost Islands, Arthur Simmonds on a recurring basis in The Young Doctors from 1976 to 1978, and Sons and Daughters as Spider Webb in the mid-1980s.