| Alistair McGowan | |
|---|---|
| Born | 24 November 1964 Evesham, Worcestershire, England |
| Nationality | English |
| Years active | 1980s-present |
| Genres | Impressions, sketch comedy |
| Notable works and roles | The Big Impression (1999-2004) |
Alistair McGowan (born 24 November 1964) is an English impressionist, comedian and actor. McGowan is best known for his work with Ronni Ancona on The Big Impression (formerly Alistair McGowan's Big Impression), which spawned his culturally popular impressions of David Beckham, Sven-Göran Eriksson, Gary Lineker, Nicky Campbell, Richard Madeley, Tony Blair, Ross Geller (Friends) and Dot Cotton (EastEnders).
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Personal life and Education
McGowan was born in the village of Badsey, Worcestershire, just outside the town of Evesham to George McGowan, a teacher of Eurasian ancestry, from Calcutta. Although aware his father was born in India, McGowan has said that he was unaware of his father's ethnicity until after his death in 2003, and had assumed his paternal ancestry was Scottish. McGowan's ancestry was explored and investigated in the 4 October 2007 edition of the BBC's Who Do You Think You Are?[1] He attended the Simon de Montfort Middle School in Evesham and took lead roles in school productions. He went on to attend Evesham High School,[2] and took a lead part in the musical West Side Story. This is where he started to make impressions of different people at school including teachers. He graduated from the University of Leeds with a BA English degree in 1986[3] and he then went to the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London, where he graduated in 1989. McGowan is a supporter of football club Leeds United[4] - even claiming that he decided to study at Leeds partly because of its proximity to Elland Road[4] - and his obsession with football forms the basis of his 2009 book, A Matter of Life and Death,[5] a part-memoir and part-comedy self-help manual, which he co-wrote with Ronni Ancona.
Career
McGowan found work as a stand-up comedian, and did some of the voices for the ITV television series Spitting Image. His sporting impressions were showcased on the BBC 2 football magazine programme Sick as a Parrot. He also appeared as the recycling man in the BBC show Think about Science.
Later he took over from Stephen Tompkinson playing Spock in the Tim Firth comedy drama, Preston Front. In his early career, McGowan had minor roles in shows such as Children's Ward, and in the pilot episode of Jonathan Creek. He also starred in the first series of Dead Ringers.
McGowan also appeared in the Scottish Football sketch show Only an Excuse? from 1996 to 1998.
The Big Impression
He is best known for his work with Jan Ravens and Ronni Ancona on The Big Impression, formerly Alistair McGowan's Big Impression. McGowan has a repertoire of well over one hundred impersonations many of which have been covered on Alistair McGowan's Big Impression.
The most popular and regular include David Beckham, Sven-Göran Eriksson, Gary Lineker, Nicky Campbell, Richard Madeley, Tony Blair, Prince Charles, Robert Kilroy-Silk, Lawrence Llewelyn-Bowen Angus Deayton, Terry Wogan and the fictional characters Ross Geller (from Friends) & Dot Cotton (from EastEnders).
McGowan and Ronni Ancona are probably best known for their portrayal of Posh and Becks with McGowan exaggerating David Beckham's perceived lack of intelligence[citation needed] and Ancona exaggerating the role of "Posh Spice" (Victoria Beckham) with pouting lips. As the Beckhams' style of dress regularly changed - in particular David's changing haircuts - McGowan adapted his costumes and style accordingly. In later years he developed his portrayal of Becks into a brainiac infuriated by Posh's lack of intelligence.
Return to acting and radio work (2005)
He made a return to dramatic acting in 2005, appearing in the BBC's adaptation of Charles Dickens's novel Bleak House. In 2006 he starred in the detective series Mayo. He also presented an episode of Have I Got News For You on 20 October 2006. He joined the Royal Shakespeare Company for the Christmas 2006 season playing Mr Page in Merry Wives: the Musical (a version of The Merry Wives of Windsor) opposite Judi Dench, Simon Callow and Haydn Gwynne.
Despite his acting commitments, he has still continued a successful career of celebrity impersonator on the BBC Radio and also did re-voicing of video footages of 'The Sports Review of the Year' and Match of the Day which has turned him into a sideline sporting celebrity.[6] Two releases of 'Alistair McGowan's Football Backchat' were best sellers in both comedy and sports video charts.
In 2007 McGowan starred as the dentist (and other, smaller characters) in the West End transfer of the Menier Chocolate Factory's revival of Little Shop of Horrors, and filmed My Life in Ruins, an American comedy film set in the ruins of ancient Greece.
In 2008 McGowan made his directing debut at Guildhall School of Music and Drama with Noël Coward's classic comedy Semi-Monde.[7]
In January and February 2008, McGowan starred as the eponymous protagonist of The Mikado by Gilbert and Sullivan, in a revival by Carl Rosa Opera Company. On 21 April 2008 he took over the role of Emcee in Cabaret (musical) at the Lyric Theatre (London). In July of that year he appeared in a revival of They're Playing Our Song at the Menier Chocolate Factory.
Alistair is due to appear as a host on the forthcoming BBC series of 'Live At The Apollo'.
Environmental work
McGowan serves as an ambassador to WWF-UK, part of the global World Wide Fund For Nature, and campaigns on a number of environmental issues. In 2004 he launched 'the BIG recycle' national campaign urging public to reduce rubbish by recycling it.
On 2 August 2006, he appeared on BBC Radio 2 on Steve Wright's show to appeal to listeners to be more energy aware. More recently, he appeared on the James Whale Show on Talksport on 20 June 2007 on this issue.
McGowan is a patron of the urban tree-planting charity 'Trees for Cities'.
On 13th January 2009, it was announced[8] that McGowan in partnership with three other Greenpeace activists, including actress Emma Thompson, had bought land near Sipson, a village under threat from the proposed third runway for Heathrow Airport. It is hoped that the area of ground, half the size of a football pitch, will prevent the government from carrying through its plan to expand Heathrow. The field, bought for an undisclosed sum from a local land owner, will be split into small squares and sold across the globe. When interviewed[9] Mr McGowan said: "BAA were so confident of getting the Government's go ahead, but we have cunningly bought the land they need to build their runway."
References
- ^ "Who Do You Think You Are? Series Four". bbc.co.uk However, the programme did not show or prove the ancestry of Alistair's 5th great-grandfather, Major General John McGowan, despite details held by the McGowan family subsequently met by Alistair.. http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/familyhistory/get_started/wdytya_s4_celeb_gallery_05.shtml. Retrieved 2007-10-04.
- ^ "Comedian joins campaign for wildlife", Ludlow & Tenbury Wells Advertiser, 2003-08-28, http://archive.tenburywellsadvertiser.co.uk/2003/8/28/179664.html, retrieved 2007-10-04
- ^ Public eye | Who's been here | Alumni | University
- ^ a b http://www.guardian.co.uk/tv-and-radio/2009/sep/23/alistair-mcgowan-obsession-with-football
- ^ http://www.faber.co.uk/work/matter-of-life-and-death/9780571250547/
- ^ Dave: Who's on Dave: Alistair McGowan
- ^ McGown's directorial debut photo and link to press release
- ^ See http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/7825169.stm
- ^ See http://news.uk.msn.com/uk/article.aspx?cp-documentid=12726578&icid=toptodayuk
External links
- Alistair McGowan at the Internet Movie Database
- Alistair McGowan credits - BBC Comedy Guide
- Alistair McGowan's Big Impression - BBC Comedy Guide
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