Trivia

Father of actress Nicole Van der Veken.

He made well over 100 appearances. One of his most popular roles was that of Paul Thienpondt in the comedy series De Collega's. Years later, he was still addressed on the street as 'director'.".

He ended his theater career in 2008 with the play "The Red Star Line" from the Zeemanshuis theater in Antwerp.

In 2018 he was invited to the talk show Van Gils & Gasten following the release of the film "De Colleagues 2.0", a film by Jan Verheyen. (He had already refused to appear as a guest star in the film). Then the actor did not mince his words and predicted that the film would not be a success. "If something is done well, you should stay away from it," he may have sounded a little too honest at the time, but he was right about what he said about the film... and his prediction came true.

A familiar face on Belgian television, Van Der Veken's career began in 1956.

He was a happy man and that had everything to do with the fact that he spent his life doing what he loved: acting.

He was passionate about theater, and he was also a huge Shakespeare fan. Every play had to be perfect and he also strove for perfection in his own roles. Some fellow actors therefore found him difficult to work with at times.

Bob Van Der Veken was a Belgian actor and director.

Since his starring role in the television series De Collega's, Van Der Veken has been inextricably linked to director Paul Tienpondt. "Even though he played so many other roles, everyone still talked about 'the director' and he was fine with that" said his wife, actress Mariette Van Arkkels.

Off the boards, Bob was a hilarious man, according to his colleagues. "He could come off very dry. When he told a joke his face didn't move, he didn't laugh himself, but we were in stitches. He had that typically British dry humour, he liked that too. Bob was convinced that an actor who can do comedy well can play anything. He was such an actor.".

At 14, Bob Van Der Veken already played his first role in the Antwerp Youth Theater; he continued to play until he was almost 80.

At 78 and after 60 years of theater, he bid farewell to the stage, but continued to work for television.

Van Der Veken was an actor for years at the 'NTGent theater' (NTG) and 'Het Zeemanshuis' in Antwerp.

He was a born actor who could handle a wide variety of roles, but his somewhat weak high-pitched voice kept him away from the top in the Flemish theater and film world.