Gopher is a fictional grey anthropomorphic gopher, character who first appeared in the 1966 Disney animated film Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree, introducing himself as Samuel J. Gopher. He has a habit of whistling out his sibilant consonants, one of various traits he has in common with the beaver in Lady and the Tramp, by whom he may have been inspired. While being absent in Welcome to Pooh Corner, Gopher was fleshed out a bit further in the television series The New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh. He is portrayed as generally hard-working, especially in his tunnels (which he inevitably falls into at least once). He does not appear in the original books by A. A. Milne (a fact that is regularly pointed out in Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree, when he breaks the fourth wall by saying he's "not in the book, y'know", also trying to say that he would not be in a phone book). Gopher's voice was originally done by Howard Morris, who retired from the role and was replaced by Michael Gough.
This is a list of characters appearing in the Winnie-the-Pooh books and the Disney adaptations of the series.
Winnie-the-Pooh, or Pooh for short, is an anthropomorphic toy bear and the main character. Despite being naïve and slow-witted, he is a friendly, thoughtful and sometimes insightful character who is always willing to help his friends and try his best. A prime motivation is his love for honey, which quite often leads to trouble.
In the books, Pooh is a talented poet, and the stories are frequently punctuated by his poems and "hums." He is humble about his slow-wittedness, but comfortable with his creative gifts.
In the Disney adaptations, Pooh's catchphrases are "Oh, Bother!" and "Think, think, think". He has been voiced by Sterling Holloway (1966-1977), Hal Smith (1981-1986) and by Jim Cummings (1988–present).
The sole human character in the story books, he has a cheerful and compassionate personality and is someone that Pooh and the others look up to. Despite being a child, he is much wiser and more mature than many of the other characters. Pooh considers both Christopher Robin and Piglet to be his best friends.