Bio
Michael de Pinna is an English-born South African actor, singer, dancer and television presenter best known as the leopard-skinned yuppie buffoon in the "Yebo gogo" Vodacom commercials.
In 2008 he was the presenter of the SABC2 supernatural travel series Phantom, in which he toured around South Africa investigating paranormal legends.
Born in England and educated at Hilton College, Michael trained in the hotel trade before discovering his true calling - acting. He has been active in show business since the early eighties.
Focusing initially on the stage as a singer and dancer, Michael has appeared in numerous musicals over the years, including Babes in the Wood, Those Good Old Days and Annie.
He played Fagin in Oliver and Daddy Warbucks in Annie. He was also the leading man in the Brickhill Burke Extravaganza Bedazzled at Sun City and Leading Man at The Lido, Paris.
He has staged numerous revues and cabarets, including It's the Top - Cole Porter. His cabaret tours have taken in Aphrodite's, London and L'Hirondelle in London's West End.
He has also worked on The Sun International Circuit and has been cruise or entertainment director on four ships.
Michael has acted in a number of feature films and television soapies, including the mini-series Rhodes, the M-Net soapie Egoli, and Leon Schuster's Zulu on my Stoep (1993).
He also acted in the made-for-TV movies Le Propre de l'homme (1996) and Pride of Africa (1997).
He has numerous musicals and stage plays under his belt, performing both locally and abroad. He is also a sought-after master of ceremonies.
In May 2008 he made his television preenting debut, as the host of the paranormal-themed SABC2 travel documentary series Phantom, produced by Curious Pictures. Covering all areas and all types of phantoms, Michael discovers and unearths the 'dark side' of South Africa through stories of the 'other side' you've never known existed.
A firm believer in the paranormal, he studied for a time at the College of Psychic Studies in the UK. From his childhood he was drawn to the stories and visions of his Russian grandmother and has himself experienced those feelings of spiritual premonitions.
In 2014 he began co-presenting the SABC3 talk show Tongue in Cheek.