Ota Jirák: key obituary facts
Is Ota Jirák dead? Yes. Ota Jirák died on October 17, 2026, at age 77.
Cause of death: Ota Jirák's cause of death has not been publicly confirmed.
What was Ota Jirák known for?
Ota Jirák was a Czech actor, voice actor and entertainer.
Ota Jirák, the Czech actor, voice actor and entertainer, died on October 17, 2026, aged 77.
Born in Debř on April 12, 1949, he studied puppetry at the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague and began his career as a puppeteer. His work spanned theatre, television and performance, including a decade with Cirkus Alféd Ctibor Turba from 1973 to 1983 and five years at Boris Hybner’s GAG studio from 1980 to 1985.
He also appeared twice at František Ringo Čech’s Provisional Theatre and was a guest performer at Semafor in the early 1990s. From 2003 to 2009, he was a permanent member of the artistic company at the Municipal Theatre in Mladá Boleslav. Jirák was widely recognized for his rich, honey-toned bass voice and his work in children’s television. He voiced Hele, a character on Studio Kamarád, from 1980 until January 2026, and the bird Čau on Studio Rosa. In 1999, he played the elf František in Kouzelná školka; Tomáš Juřička took over the role two years later.