Neil Hurst (born 5 June 1982) is an actor and presenter born in

Halifax, West Yorkshire Halifax () is a minster and market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Calderdale in West Yorkshire, England. It is the commercial, cultural and administrative centre of the borough, and the headquarters of Calderdale Council. In the 15th cen ...

, England best known for his television and stage theatre career. Adopted by Hull panto audience's

Film and television career

Hurst first came prominence on British television as the comic sidekick of

Vernon Kay Vernon Charles Kay (born 28 April 1974) is an English television and radio presenter, and former model. He presented Channel 4's ''T4'' (2000–2005) and has presented various television shows for ITV, including ''All Star Family Fortunes'' (2 ...

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 ...

's '' All Star Family Fortunes'', but his career has seen him appear in many other TV roles from drama to comedy and even presenting. His TV credits include: Benny Grew in the 2018 adaptation of

Agatha Christie Dame Agatha Mary Clarissa Christie, Lady Mallowan, (; 15 September 1890 – 12 January 1976) was an English writer known for her 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections, particularly those revolving around fictiona ...

's ''

The A.B.C. Murders ''The A.B.C. Murders'' is a work of detective fiction by British writer Agatha Christie, featuring her characters Hercule Poirot, Arthur Hastings and Chief Inspector Japp, as they contend with a series of killings by a mysterious murderer kn ...

'', Baz in ''

Coronation Street ''Coronation Street'' is an English soap opera created by Granada Television and shown on ITV since 9 December 1960. The programme centres around a cobbled, terraced street in Weatherfield, a fictional town based on inner-city Salford. Origi ...

'', Ray Glossop in ''

Doctors Doctor or The Doctor may refer to: Personal titles * Doctor (title), the holder of an accredited academic degree * A medical practitioner, including: ** Physician ** Surgeon ** Dentist ** Veterinary physician ** Optometrist *Other roles ** ...

'', Peter in '' Fresh Meat'', Frank in ''

The Syndicate ''The Syndicate'' is a British television drama series. It was written by Kay Mellor and is broadcast on BBC One. It sees five members of a betting syndicate win the lottery. Each series follows a different syndicate. The first series is set i ...

'' and Gary Plunkett in ''Home From Home''. In addition to this he has appeared in small cameo roles in ''

Casualty Casualty may refer to: *Casualty (person), a person who is killed or rendered unfit for service in a war or natural disaster **Civilian casualty, a non-combatant killed or injured in warfare * The emergency department of a hospital, also known as ...

'', '' Moving On'' and ''

4 O'Clock Club ''4 O'Clock Club'' is a British comedy drama and musical children's television series set in a secondary school, which premiered on 13 January 2012 on CBBC. A second series began airing on 4 January 2013, and the third series premiered on 20 Dec ...

''. In 2019, Hurst began appearing as a series regular on ''

Michael McIntyre's Big Show ''Michael McIntyre's Big Show'' (adapted from ''Michael McIntyre's Big Christmas Show'') is a British variety and stand-up comedy television series, presented by British comedian Michael McIntyre. The show was originally a one-off Christmas spe ...

'' helping Michael McIntyre prank the Unexpected Star of the show. These episodes were filmed at the London Palladium. In 2020, Hurst appeared as Baz for a short run in ''

'', plus cameo roles in '' Ackley Bridge'' and ''

''. 2021 saw Hurst joining the cast of '' All Creatures Great and Small'' as Harold Ingledew, the annoying neighbour of Siegfried. Hurst also filmed the role of a teacher in ''

The Railway Children Return ''The Railway Children Return'', known as ''Railway Children'' in the US, is a 2022 family drama film directed by Morgan Matthews and written by Danny Brocklehurst. It is a sequel to the 1970 film ''The Railway Children'', itself based on the E ...

''.

Theatre career

In 2018, Hurst, and ''

'' actress

Vicky Binns Victoria Jane Binns (born 27 August 1982) is an English actress, known for her two roles in the two veteran ITV soap operas ''Emmerdale'' and ''Coronation Street'' respectively. She had a lead role in ''Von Trapped'' opposite Caroline Quentin a ...

, joined the original cast of Craig Cash's and Phil Mealey's sitcom '' Early Doors'', in the live stage version of the show. Hurst was playing the role of 'Freddie' (a replacement character for Mark Benton's character, 'Eddie') and toured arenas in the UK after sold out run at

The Lowry The Lowry is a theatre and gallery complex at Salford Quays, Salford, Greater Manchester, England. It is named after the early 20th-century painter L. S. Lowry, known for his paintings of industrial scenes in North West England. The complex ope ...

, Salford. Hurst reprised his role at

for the 2019 production of ''Early Doors: One More Chance''. In 2017, Hurst originated the role of Alan in Kay Mellor's ''

Fat Friends The Musical ''Fat Friends The Musical'' is a stage musical by Kay Mellor with music by Nick Lloyd Webber, based on Mellor's ITV series ''Fat Friends''. Production History 2017-18 UK tour The musical made its world premiere at the Grand Theatre, Leeds in ...

'', the musical premièred at the Grand Theatre, Leeds in November 2017, prior to a UK tour from January to June 2018. While appearing in the musical, Hurst was nominated for best actor in the Entertainment Views Awards. For a decade, 2009 to 2019, he appeared at the Victoria Theatre, Halifax each Christmas in their annual pantomime, clocking up almost 1000 performances on the stage. On 28 February 2019, Hurst announced his departure from the Victoria Theatre pantomime after 10 years. Since his departure from Halifax, he has been appearing in pantomime for Qdos Entertainment. In 2020, Hurst co-wrote an adult pantomime, ''Cinderella'', with

Jodie Prenger Jodie Prenger (born 12 June 1979) is an English actress and singer, best known as the winner of BBC television series '' I'd Do Anything'' on 31 May 2008 and the second series of ''The Biggest Loser'' in 2006. In 2022, she began portraying the ...

for the

Turbine Theatre The Turbine Theatre is a commercial theatre on the banks of the River Thames at Battersea in the London Borough of Wandsworth, which opened in 2019. The theatre was established as part of the redevelopment of Battersea Power Station. The inaugur ...

. Starring Rufus Hound, Scott Paige,

Debbie Kurup Debbie Kurup (born 3 July 1979) is an English actress. Acting career Kurup's theatrical credits include: !Sweet Charity! (Donmar Warehouse), "Girl from the North Country" (Old Vic -original London cast) and "The Threepenny Opera" (National Theatr ...

, Oscar Conlon-Morrey, Sean Parkins and Daisy Wood Davis, the run of the show was cut short due to lockdown restrictions due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

. Other theatre roles include: ''

Bouncers A bouncer (also known as a doorman or door supervisor) is a type of security guard, employed at venues such as bars, nightclubs, cabaret clubs, stripclubs, casinos, hotels, billiard halls, restaurants, sporting events, schools, concerts, ...

'', ''

Evita Evita may refer to: Arts * Evita (1996 film), ''Evita'' (1996 film), a 1996 American musical drama film based on the 1976 concept album of the same name * Evita (2008 film), ''Evita'' (2008 film), a documentary about Eva Péron * Evita (album), ''E ...

'', ''

Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat ''Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat'' (often colloquially known as ''Joseph'') is a sung-through musical with lyrics by Tim Rice and music by Andrew Lloyd Webber, based on the character of Joseph from the Bible's Book of Genesis. Thi ...

'', '' Michael Frayn's Matchbox Theatre'', '' Lost In Yonkers'', ''

The Last Five Years ''The Last Five Years'' is a musical written by Jason Robert Brown. It premiered at Chicago's Northlight Theatre in 2001 and was then produced Off-Broadway in March 2002. Since then it has had numerous productions both in the United States and ...

'' and '' The Wizard of Oz''. In December 2022, Hurst will appear at the

Hull New Theatre The Hull New Theatre is a theatre in Kingston upon Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It opened in 1939 as a successor to the Hull Repertory Theatre Company. The Hull New Theatre features musicals, opera, ballet, drama, children's shows an ...

in their pantomime, ''

Jack and the Beanstalk "Jack and the Beanstalk" is an English fairy tale. It appeared as "The Story of Jack Spriggins and the Enchanted Bean" in 1734 4th edition On Commons and as Benjamin Tabart's moralized "The History of Jack and the Bean-Stalk" in 1807. Henry Cole ...

'', alongside

Gareth Gates Gareth Paul Gates (born 12 July 1984) is an English singer-songwriter and actor. He was the runner-up in the first series of the ITV talent show ''Pop Idol'' in 2002. As of 2008, Gates had sold over 3.5 million records in the UK. He is ...

in the lead role.

Presenting

In 2016, Hurst presented a documentary in the United States called ''Hopping The Pond''. The show was a documentary about craft beers of America. Filming took place in

Duluth, Minnesota , settlement_type = City , nicknames = Twin Ports (with Superior), Zenith City , motto = , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top: urban Duluth skyline; Minnesota ...

and Grand Marais, Minnesota He also co-hosted the weekly 'Mishaps Podcast' with the '' Emmerdale'' actress, Natalie Anderson and musical theatre actor,

Hurst also narrates many TV documentaries.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hurst, Neil 1982 births Living people 21st-century English male actors English male musical theatre actors Male actors from Yorkshire People from Halifax, West Yorkshire