Tim Clark (comedian)
Encyclopedia
Tim Clark is a British comedian, writer and presenter on both television and radio. He currently lives in London with wife and two of his children.
, he has hosted shows throughout the country. In January, 1990 he introduced the first 'Pillar Talk' show at the Pillar Room in the Cheltenham Town Hall
, a venue which has seen some of the top acts in the UK including Simon Pegg
, Mark Lamarr
, Bill Bailey
and Frank Skinner
. Tim was on hand to witness one of the crazier moments in Jim Jefferies'
career. The Australian comic was on stage at the Comedy Store, Manchester
when he was attacked by a heckler
. As well as touring with Frank Skinner, Tim has toured extensively throughout Europe
(including Kosovo
and Bosnia
) and in Asia
. In fact in 1995, he became the first western comic to perform in Beijing
, China
. He is now a regular compère with Comedy Store
and Jongleurs
.
At the 2002 Edinburgh Fringe
, Tim performed his one-man drama, "Talking to Ted". Playing the role of a less than stellar comedian he tries to come to terms with his coke habit and how he's going to explain to his wife about the Welsh mistress which has now given him a son. His only companion he can talk to is the teddy bear his daughter left in the car. Fiona Stuges reviewed the show in The Independent
praising Tim as "a revelation. has a strong feel for human frailty and performs with acute intelligence. For that, he shouldn't be overlooked.". The show was broadcast on 7 July 2004 on BBC Radio 4
with Les Dennis
taking up the main role.
He later returned to Edinburgh in 2006 with the Fringe First production of "What I Heard About Iraq". Based on the Eliot Weinberger
article and using direct quotes and statistics from the people and events that surrounded the war on Iraq, each member of the production take turns to say 'What I heard about Iraq'. Tim gave a 'powerful performance' and the reviewer ended by saying the play 'is likely to become one of the Fringe’s most talked about shows, and rightly so'.
, Tim co-hosted a sports phone-in show on Channel 4
called "Under the Moon
". Starting on 12th Feb 1997, it was aired in the early hours of the morning. Tim only lasted about 10 episodes into its two season run. In an interview Kelly would claim that "it didn't help that he wouldn't rehearse and he was having trouble with his contact lenses so couldn't read the autocue."
When the BBC
tried to revive the show "Give Us a Clue
" (originally on rival network ITV) Tim was called on to host the show. The format of the show basically followed the games of charades
with one member of the team miming in order to convey to the rest of the team a popular phrase, book, TV or film. If their team was unable to guess it was passed over to the other team who could steal the points. The teams were captained by Christopher Blake
and Julie Peasgood
. It was broadcast in the afternoon it ran from 10 November until 19 December 1997 before being axed.
He has probably gained the most national recognition from his television advert
for the airline
Virgin Atlantic
. Appearing alongside actor Paul Blackthorne
, Tim played the role of the Grim Reaper. Despite a costume and make-up which took several hours to applying, Tim was still easily recognised on the streets.
As well as TV, there have been a couple of short film roles. Tim starred along side Nina Pasale in Graeme Cole's "Pilot for a 22nd Century Sitcom". Tim plays a scientist whose wife has stopped doing the house work fearing an impending nuclear war. He also had a brief appearance in the 2006 short film "The Bed Guy" in the guise of Santa.
Tim has also made guest appearances on radio including six times on BBC Radio 5 Live's
"Fighting Talk
".
. His writing career also includes speeches written for ex-England football manager Graham Taylor, ex-footballer Neil Ruddock
and also Prime Minister Gordon Brown
. He has recently signed to literary agent Eve White
and has written his first book and is currently awaiting a publisher. Entitled "The Shot" it follows the rivalry between a burnt-out club comic and his former friend, a big shot TV celebrity.
Comedy & Stage
For more than 20 years, Tim has been building a reputation for himself on the comedy scene. Working as a compèreMaster of Ceremonies
A Master of Ceremonies , or compere, is the host of a staged event or similar performance.An MC usually presents performers, speaks to the audience, and generally keeps the event moving....
, he has hosted shows throughout the country. In January, 1990 he introduced the first 'Pillar Talk' show at the Pillar Room in the Cheltenham Town Hall
Cheltenham Town Hall
Cheltenham Town Hall is an early-20th century assembly rooms in Cheltenham, England. Unlike most town halls, it is a public venue and not the seat of the borough council, which is housed in the nearby municipal offices....
, a venue which has seen some of the top acts in the UK including Simon Pegg
Simon Pegg
Simon Pegg is an English actor, comedian, writer, film producer, and director. He is best known for having co-written and stared in various Edgar Wright features, mainly Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz, and the comedy series Spaced.He also portrayed Montgomery "Scotty" Scott in the 2009 Star Trek film...
, Mark Lamarr
Mark Lamarr
Mark Lamarr is an English comedian, radio DJ and television presenter.-Early life:Lamarr was born in the Park South area of Swindon and has three elder sisters. His father is Irish...
, Bill Bailey
Bill Bailey
Bill Bailey is an English comedian, musician and actor. As well as his extensive stand-up work, Bailey is well known for his appearances on Black Books, Never Mind the Buzzcocks, Have I Got News for You, and QI.Bailey was listed by The Observer as one of the 50 funniest acts in British comedy in...
and Frank Skinner
Frank Skinner
Frank Skinner is a British writer, comedian and actor. He is best known for his television presenting, often alongside David Baddiel, with whom he also collaborated for the football song "Three Lions."He is a radio presenter on the Saturday morning slot on Absolute Radio.-Youth and early career...
. Tim was on hand to witness one of the crazier moments in Jim Jefferies'
Jim Jefferies
James "Jim" Jefferies is a Scottish football former player and manager. Jefferies played for Heart of Midlothian for almost his whole playing career and enjoyed a successful first managerial spell with the club, winning the 1998 Scottish Cup...
career. The Australian comic was on stage at the Comedy Store, Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
when he was attacked by a heckler
Heckler
A heckler is a person who harass and try to disconcert others with questions, challenges, or gibes.Hecklers are often known to shout disparaging comments at a performance or event, or interrupts set-piece speeches, for example at a political meeting, with intent to disturb its performers or...
. As well as touring with Frank Skinner, Tim has toured extensively throughout Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
(including Kosovo
Kosovo
Kosovo is a region in southeastern Europe. Part of the Ottoman Empire for more than five centuries, later the Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija within Serbia...
and Bosnia
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina , sometimes called Bosnia-Herzegovina or simply Bosnia, is a country in Southern Europe, on the Balkan Peninsula. Bordered by Croatia to the north, west and south, Serbia to the east, and Montenegro to the southeast, Bosnia and Herzegovina is almost landlocked, except for the...
) and in Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
. In fact in 1995, he became the first western comic to perform in Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
, China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
. He is now a regular compère with Comedy Store
The Comedy Store, London
The Comedy Store is a comedy club located in Soho, London, England, opened in 1979 by Don Ward and Peter Rosengard.It was named after The Comedy Store club in the United States, which Rosengard had visited the previous year...
and Jongleurs
Jongleurs
Jongleurs is a chain of comedy clubs in the United Kingdom. Maria Kempinska MBE established and opened the first Jongleurs club in 1983 in Battersea, London. In 1985 Maria then met her business partner John Davy, and together they built the Jongleurs brand. The company evolved into a corporate...
.
At the 2002 Edinburgh Fringe
Edinburgh Fringe
The Edinburgh Festival Fringe is the world’s largest arts festival. Established in 1947 as an alternative to the Edinburgh International Festival, it takes place annually in Scotland's capital, in the month of August...
, Tim performed his one-man drama, "Talking to Ted". Playing the role of a less than stellar comedian he tries to come to terms with his coke habit and how he's going to explain to his wife about the Welsh mistress which has now given him a son. His only companion he can talk to is the teddy bear his daughter left in the car. Fiona Stuges reviewed the show in The Independent
The Independent
The Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
praising Tim as "a revelation.
BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4 is a British domestic radio station, operated and owned by the BBC, that broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history. It replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. The station controller is currently Gwyneth Williams, and the...
with Les Dennis
Les Dennis
Les Dennis is an English comedian, television presenter and actor best known as the host of Family Fortunes for 15 years.-Early life:...
taking up the main role.
He later returned to Edinburgh in 2006 with the Fringe First production of "What I Heard About Iraq". Based on the Eliot Weinberger
Eliot Weinberger
Eliot Weinberger is a contemporary American writer, essayist, editor, and translator. His work regularly appears in translation and has been published in some thirty languages...
article and using direct quotes and statistics from the people and events that surrounded the war on Iraq, each member of the production take turns to say 'What I heard about Iraq'. Tim gave a 'powerful performance' and the reviewer ended by saying the play 'is likely to become one of the Fringe’s most talked about shows, and rightly so'.
TV & Radio
Alongside Danny KellyDanny Kelly (journalist)
Danny Kelly is a music journalist, sports presenter and internet publisher. He is the former editor of the music weekly New Musical Express....
, Tim co-hosted a sports phone-in show on Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
called "Under the Moon
Under the Moon
Under the Moon was an offbeat, late-night 1990s sports show on the UK's Channel 4. The show was originally hosted by Danny Kelly and comedian Tim Clark...
". Starting on 12th Feb 1997, it was aired in the early hours of the morning. Tim only lasted about 10 episodes into its two season run. In an interview Kelly would claim that "it didn't help that he wouldn't rehearse and he was having trouble with his contact lenses so couldn't read the autocue."
When the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
tried to revive the show "Give Us a Clue
Give Us A Clue
Give Us a Clue is a British televised game show version of charades which was broadcast on ITV from 1979 to 1992. The original host was Michael Aspel from 1979 to 1983, followed by Michael Parkinson from 1984 to 1992. The show featured two teams, one captained by Lionel Blair and the other by Una...
" (originally on rival network ITV) Tim was called on to host the show. The format of the show basically followed the games of charades
Charades
Charades or charade is a word guessing game. In the form most played today, it is an acting game in which one player acts out a word or phrase, often by pantomiming similar-sounding words, and the other players guess the word or phrase. The idea is to use physical rather than verbal language to...
with one member of the team miming in order to convey to the rest of the team a popular phrase, book, TV or film. If their team was unable to guess it was passed over to the other team who could steal the points. The teams were captained by Christopher Blake
Christopher Blake
Christopher Blake was an English actor and screenwriter who is best remembered for starring in the British sitcom That's My Boy alongside Mollie Sugden.- Early life:...
and Julie Peasgood
Julie Peasgood
Julie May Peasgood is an English actress, television presenter, author and voice over artist known for her distinctive voice. She attended Grimsby's Wintringham School as a student. She is best known for her role as Fran Pearson in the television soap Brookside...
. It was broadcast in the afternoon it ran from 10 November until 19 December 1997 before being axed.
He has probably gained the most national recognition from his television advert
Television advertisement
A television advertisement or television commercial, often just commercial, advert, ad, or ad-film – is a span of television programming produced and paid for by an organization that conveys a message, typically one intended to market a product...
for the airline
Airline
An airline provides air transport services for traveling passengers and freight. Airlines lease or own their aircraft with which to supply these services and may form partnerships or alliances with other airlines for mutual benefit...
Virgin Atlantic
Virgin Atlantic Airways
Virgin Atlantic Airways Limited is a British airline owned by Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Group and Singapore Airlines...
. Appearing alongside actor Paul Blackthorne
Paul Blackthorne
Paul Blackthorne is a British actor on film, television and radio. Although born in Shropshire, England, he spent his early childhood on British Military bases in both England and Germany. Blackthorne broke into acting via television commercials in England...
, Tim played the role of the Grim Reaper. Despite a costume and make-up which took several hours to applying, Tim was still easily recognised on the streets.
As well as TV, there have been a couple of short film roles. Tim starred along side Nina Pasale in Graeme Cole's "Pilot for a 22nd Century Sitcom". Tim plays a scientist whose wife has stopped doing the house work fearing an impending nuclear war. He also had a brief appearance in the 2006 short film "The Bed Guy" in the guise of Santa.
Tim has also made guest appearances on radio including six times on BBC Radio 5 Live's
BBC Radio 5 Live
BBC Radio 5 Live is the BBC's national radio service that specialises in live BBC News, phone-ins, and sports commentaries...
"Fighting Talk
Fighting Talk
Fighting Talk is a topical sports show broadcast on BBC Radio 5 Live during the English football season. Its first series aired in October 2003, and was presented by Johnny Vaughan. The second series featured Christian O'Connell. It is currently hosted by Colin Murray and is aired on Saturday...
".
Writing
As part of Channel 4' Sitcom Festival in 1995, Tim wrote the play "The Beautiful Game". The 30-minute piece about two football fans was written for television but performed in front of a live audience at the Riverside Studios, LondonRiverside Studios
Riverside Studios is a production studio, theatre and independent cinema on the banks of the River Thames in Hammersmith, London, England. It plays host to contemporary and international dramatic and dance performance, film, visual art exhibitions and television production.-History:In 1933, the...
. His writing career also includes speeches written for ex-England football manager Graham Taylor, ex-footballer Neil Ruddock
Neil Ruddock
Neil "Razor" Ruddock is a retired English footballer, who played as a central defender.He made his debut at Millwall , and he had a long career playing for Tottenham Hotspur, Southampton, Liverpool, West Ham, Crystal Palace, and finally a short-lived spell as a player/coach at Swindon Town Neil...
and also Prime Minister Gordon Brown
Gordon Brown
James Gordon Brown is a British Labour Party politician who was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 until 2010. He previously served as Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Labour Government from 1997 to 2007...
. He has recently signed to literary agent Eve White
Eve White
Eve White was an English television actress.Among other roles, she appeared as Sue Morgan on the soap opera Hollyoaks from 1999 - 2002.-As literary agent:She is now a literary agent and her clients include:...
and has written his first book and is currently awaiting a publisher. Entitled "The Shot" it follows the rivalry between a burnt-out club comic and his former friend, a big shot TV celebrity.