of Charley's Aunt and in the same year, he made his first West End appearance with the London Mask company co-directed by J. B. Priestley, at the Westminster Theatre, playing Paris in Troilus and Cressida. He remained with the company until March 1939, playing a range of roles, including Gordon Whitehouse in a revival of Priestley's Dangerous Corner, Redpenny in The Doctor's Dilemma and the Rev Alexander Mill in Candida. He made his television début in January 1939, when the BBC relayed the company's production of Eugene O'Neill's Marco Millions. Denison and Gray married in London in April 1939; they had no children. The Stage, in an obituary of Denison, observed that the couple appeared in more than 100 West End shows "and their marriage, which lasted very nearly 60 years, was regarded as one of the happiest in showbusiness". The couple, in the words of The Times, "honeymooned in rep in Aberdeen". They joined A. R. Whatmore's repertory company at His Majesty's Theatre, Aberdeen, alongside colleagues including Elspeth March and Stewart Granger. The couple appeared there together in plays including Coward's Hay Fever and The Young Idea, Shaw's Arms and the Man, Priestley's Dangerous Corner and Gerald Savory's George and Margaret. Denison and Gray returned to London in October 1939; he appeared again at the Westminster as Peter Horlett in Priestley's Music at Night and Stephen Undershaft in Shaw's Major Barbara. In March 1940 Denison and Gray joined the H. M. Tennent Players, appearing in repertory in Edinburgh and Glasgow. Denison made his film debut in the 1940 British comedy Tilly of Bloomsbury, in which he played the juvenile lead, Dick Mainwaring. In June 1940 Denison was called up for military service. He joined the Royal Signals and then transferred to the Intelligence Corps. Gray later commented, "He left as a 24-year-old repertory actor and came home six years later as a captain in Intelligence." Denison said that being away from the theatre was a trial for him: "Not to be able to act was terrible. It meant, too, that I missed my opportunity to get a grounding in Shakespeare. I was too old to start after the war". Post-war While Denison was serving in the armed forces his wife's acting career flourished, and by the time he returned she was an established star. At first he was seen by some as "Mr Dulcie Gray" and he struggled to