Jason Forbes (born 27 October 1990) is a British actor, writer, comedian, impressionist, and TV presenter. He is best known for the CITV series ''

Horrible Science ''Horrible Science'' is a similar series of books to ''Horrible Histories'', written by Nick Arnold (with the exception of ''Evolve or Die'', which is written by Phil Gates), illustrated by Tony de Saulles and published in the UK and India by ...

''; '' The Mash Report'' on

BBC Two BBC Two is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It covers a wide range of subject matter, with a remit "to broadcast programmes of depth and substance" in contrast to the more mainstream an ...

; as PC Peasey in the ''

Professor Branestawm ''Professor Branestawm'' is a series of thirteen Children's literature, children's books written by the English author Norman Hunter (author), Norman Hunter. Professor Theophilus Branestawm is depicted throughout the books as the archetypal absen ...

'' movies on BBC One; and as a member of the award-winning sketch trio ' Daphne'. Forbes is co-creator, star and writer of the BBC Radio 4 series, ''

Daphne Sounds Expensive ''Daphne Sounds Expensive'' is a BBC Radio 4 comedy series, written and performed by the sketch comedy trio ' Daphne' (Jason Forbes, Phil Wang and George Fouracres). ''Daphne Sounds Expensive'' was shortlisted for the 'Best Radio Sketch Show' ...

''.

Early life and education

Forbes was born in Bristol, England, and educated at Queen Elizabeth's Hospital in

Clifton Clifton may refer to: People *Clifton (surname) *Clifton (given name) Places Australia * Clifton, Queensland, a town **Shire of Clifton *Clifton, New South Wales, a suburb of Wollongong *Clifton, Western Australia Canada *Clifton, Nova Scotia ...

. He then went up to Jesus College at the University of Cambridge to read English, graduating in 2012. At school he joined the 'Gabblers' Club' – a Bristol-based after-dinner speaking society for young students; and, in 2008, was awarded the Gabblers' prize for 'Best Speaker' – a prize formerly awarded to stand-up comedian Mark Watson. At Cambridge University, Forbes wrote and performed in a number of comedy shows as a member of the famous Cambridge Footlights. In 2012, he co-wrote and performed in ''Perfect Strangers'' – the Footlights' 50th annual revue – touring the UK and the United States. He also performed in a number of 'serious plays', from contemporary to Shakespeare; and on London's

West End West End most commonly refers to: * West End of London, an area of central London, England * West End theatre, a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London, England West End may also refer to: Pl ...

as part of a showcase directed by former Artistic Director of the Royal Court Theatre, Max Stafford-Clark. Prior to becoming a professional actor, Forbes worked as a marketing executive, civil servant, computer programmer, web designer, graphic designer and teacher of languages.

Career

Comedy

In September 2014, Forbes reunited with his Cambridge Footlights contemporaries Phil Wang and George Fouracres to form the sketch group ' Daphne'. The trio began hosting a comedy night called ''Nova Nova'', every other month at the Cockpit Theatre, Marylebone, where they trialled their new material alongside guests, including British comedians Harry Hill and James Acaster. Daphne went on to win the London Sketchfest's prize for 'Best New Act' in 2015. Their first

Edinburgh Festival Fringe The Edinburgh Festival Fringe (also referred to as The Fringe, Edinburgh Fringe, or Edinburgh Fringe Festival) is the world's largest arts and media festival, which in 2019 spanned 25 days and featured more than 59,600 performances of 3,841 dif ...

show, ''Daphne Do Edinburgh'', was critically acclaimed and Daphne were nominated for the 2015 Foster's (formerly Perrier) Award for 'Best Newcomer'.

Radio

''Daphne Sounds Expensive'' (BBC Radio 4)

In February 2016, the BBC announced that Daphne would be bringing a " Goon Show-esque" comedy called ''

'' to BBC Radio 4, with the first episode airing on 14 July 2016. The series consists of four thirty-minute episodes. ''Daphne Sounds Expensive'' was shortlisted for the 'Best Radio Sketch Show' award at the Comedy.co.uk Awards 2016. Radio 4 commissioned a second series which it would broadcast from 13 July 2017.

Other radio work

Forbes is a regular guest on the

satirical Satire is a genre of the visual, literary, and performing arts, usually in the form of fiction and less frequently non-fiction, in which vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, often with the intent of shaming or e ...

sketch show Newsjack on

BBC Radio 4 Extra BBC Radio 4 Extra (formerly BBC Radio 7) is a British digital radio station from the BBC, broadcasting archived repeats of comedy, drama and documentary programmes nationally, 24 hours a day. It is the sister station of BBC Radio 4 and the p ...

. In 2017 he appeared in the two-part BBC Radio 4 sitcom ''Life on Egg'' by Daniel Maier, alongside Harry Hill, Marek Larwood and Gyles Brandreth.

Film and television

Forbes made his first TV appearance in 2013 in ''Kerry'', a BBC Three ' Comedy Feed' episode by comedic actress Kerry Howard. He later appeared in '' The Mimic'' on Channel 4 and '' Pompidou'' by

Little Britain Little Britain may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Little Britain'' (sketch show), a British radio and then TV show ** ''Little Britain USA'', an American spin-off * "Little Britain", a song by Dreadzone from the 1995 album '' Second Light'' ...

star Matt Lucas on BBC One. In 2014, he appeared on BBC One alongside Harry Hill, David Mitchell, Ben Miller,

Miranda Richardson Miranda Jane Richardson (born 3 March 1958) is an English actress. She made her film debut playing Ruth Ellis in '' Dance with a Stranger'' (1985) and went on to receive Academy Award nominations for ''Damage'' (1992) and ''Tom & Viv'' (1994). ...

, Simon Day and Charlie Higson, as PC Peasey in Higson's adaptation of '' The Incredible Adventures of Professor Branestawm'' by Norman Hunter. In May 2015,

ITV ITV or iTV may refer to: ITV *Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of: ** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network covering the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islan ...

announced that Forbes would among the cast of their new series ''Horrible Science'', based on the ''

'' books by Nick Arnold. Forbes also joined the cast of Tracey Ullman's new sketch show, '' Tracey Ullman's Show'', for BBC One and

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...

. He will be a regular in the next series of '' Tracey Ullman's Show'', and will portray former American World No. 1 professional tennis player, Arthur Ashe, in the 2017 movie ''

Borg/McEnroe ''Borg vs McEnroe'' ( sv, Borg, fi, Borg/McEnroe) is a 2017 biographical sports drama film focusing on the famous professional rivalry between tennis players Björn Borg and John McEnroe at the 1980 Wimbledon Championships, culminating in the ...

'', starring

Sverrir Gudnason Sverrir Gudnason (born 12 September 1978; in Icelandic: ''Sverrir Páll Guðnason'') is a Swedish actor of Icelandic origin. Gudnason was born in Lund, Sweden, and raised in Reykjavík, Iceland. He moved with his family to Tyresö, Sweden, in ...

and Shia LaBeouf. In 2021, broadcaster UKTV announced that Forbes would be joining

Kemah Bob Kemah Bob is an American comedian. She achieved fame in the United Kingdom, and is best known for hosting '' It's a Sin: After Hours''. Early and personal life Bob grew up in Houston, Texas, and went to school in Waco, Texas. She has lived ...

and Tom Allen as co-host of a new panel show called ''The Island'' on its comedy channel

Dave Dave may refer to: Film, television, and theater * ''Dave'' (film), a 1993 film starring Kevin Kline and Sigourney Weaver * ''Dave'' (musical), a 2018 stage musical adaptation of the film * Dave (TV channel), a digital television channel in the ...

. The show was co-created by comedians John Robins, Lloyd Langford, Ed Gamble, and James Acaster. Recording of the first eight episodes began in June 2021. He has also joined the cast of Netflix’s upcoming sci-fi, '' The Three Body Problem''.

Style and influences

Forbes is a lover of physical comedy and often incorporates

slapstick Slapstick is a style of humor involving exaggerated physical activity that exceeds the boundaries of normal physical comedy. Slapstick may involve both intentional violence and violence by mishap, often resulting from inept use of props such a ...

humour into his routines. He has cited

Laurel and Hardy Laurel and Hardy were a British-American Double act, comedy duo act during the early Classical Hollywood cinema, Classical Hollywood era of American cinema, consisting of Englishman Stan Laurel (1890–1965) and American Oliver Hardy (1892–19 ...

Charlie Chaplin Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin Jr. (16 April 188925 December 1977) was an English comic actor, filmmaker, and composer who rose to fame in the era of silent film. He became a worldwide icon through his screen persona, the Tramp, and is consider ...

Rowan Atkinson Rowan Sebastian Atkinson (born 6 January 1955) is an English actor, comedian and writer. He played the title roles on the sitcoms '' Blackadder'' (1983–1989) and ''Mr. Bean'' (1990–1995), and the film series ''Johnny English'' (2003–201 ...

, the late

Sir Norman Wisdom Sir Norman Joseph Wisdom, (4 February 1915 – 4 October 2010) was an English actor, comedian, musician and singer best known for a series of comedy films produced between 1953 and 1966 featuring a hapless onscreen character often called Norman ...

and, "most of all", Michael Crawford among his physical influences. "Against all advice," says Forbes in an interview with online blog ''Comedy Blogedy'', "I'd try everything they did at home: bumping into things, falling over, deliberately spilling stuff and – to my mother's horror – throwing myself down the stairs." Forbes apparently perfected his stair-fall in a university production of Michael Frayn's '' Noises Off''. Of his sketch group Daphne's debut

show, '' The List'' magazine's Brian Donaldson remarked upon a "wild slapstick moment that will hopefully not result in an injury to Forbes before August is out."

Credits

Film and television

Radio

Video games

Awards and nominations

Forbes' sketch group Daphne were the winners of the London Sketchfest's prize for 'Best New Act' in 2015. Their first

show, ''Daphne Do Edinburgh'', was critically acclaimed and Daphne were nominated for the 2015 Edinburgh Comedy Award for 'Best Newcomer'.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Forbes, Jason 1990 births People educated at Queen Elizabeth's Hospital, Bristol Alumni of Jesus College, Cambridge British sketch comedians English male comedians English male film actors English male television actors Black British male actors 21st-century English male actors English male radio actors English male stage actors British comedy writers Living people English people of Jamaican descent English people of Dominica descent Male actors from Bristol