Tony Gardner (born 10 January 1964) is an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...

and

doctor 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 ** ...

. He sits on the national governing body of the actors' trade union

Equity Equity may refer to: Finance, accounting and ownership * Equity (finance), ownership of assets that have liabilities attached to them ** Stock, equity based on original contributions of cash or other value to a business ** Home equity, the dif ...

Career

Gardner qualified as a physician at

Guy's Hospital Guy's Hospital is an NHS hospital in the borough of Southwark in central London. It is part of Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust and one of the institutions that comprise the King's Health Partners, an academic health science centre. ...

in 1987, then as a general practitioner in 1993. He combined medicine and comedy during the 1990s as half of the award-winning comedy duo ''

Struck Off and Die Struck Off and Die were a British comedy duo active during the 1990s which consisted of doctors Tony Gardner and Phil Hammond. Their material drew heavily on their knowledge and experience of healthcare, and took a particularly cynical view of the ...

'' with Phil Hammond.

Acting career

Gardner eventually left medicine to become an actor, starring in a number of TV commercials, including that for the

Renault Mégane The Renault Mégane () is a small family car produced by the French car manufacturer Renault for model year 1996, and was the successor to the Renault 19. The Mégane has been offered in three- and five-door hatchback, saloon, coupé, converti ...

. He reached prominence playing Brian Johnson in

CITV CITV (short for Children's ITV, also known as the CITV Channel) is a British free-to-air children's television channel owned by ITV plc. It broadcasts content from the CITV archive and acquisitions, every day from 6 am to 9 pm which ...

's ''

My Parents Are Aliens ''My Parents Are Aliens'' is a British children's television sitcom that was produced for eight series by Yorkshire Television and aired on ITV from 8 November 1999 to 18 December 2006. Overview The show primarily follows the lives of three or ...

'' (episodes of which he also wrote) and Michael, the café owner in

Jack Dee James Andrew Innes Dee (born 24 September 1961), known professionally as Jack Dee, is an English stand-up comedian, actor, presenter and writer known for his sarcasm, irony and deadpan humour. He wrote and starred in the sitcom ''Lead Balloon'' ...

's BBC sitcom ''

Lead Balloon ''Lead Balloon'' is a British television series produced by Open Mike Productions for BBC Four. The series was created and is co-written by comedian Jack Dee and Pete Sinclair. It stars Dee as Rick Spleen, a cynical and misanthropic comedian ...

''. In 2009–10 he starred in three plays directed by Sir Peter Hall. In 2011 he played Professor Tony Shales in the Channel 4 series '' Fresh Meat''. Between 2012 and 2020, he played John in five series of the critically acclaimed romantic drama series ''

Last Tango in Halifax ''Last Tango in Halifax'' is a British comedy-drama series that began broadcasting on BBC One on 20 November 2012 until its final episode which was broadcast on 15 March 2020. Screenwriter Sally Wainwright loosely adapted the story of her mothe ...

''. The programme attracted impressive ratings for BBC One, with the third series posting an average of 7.8 million viewers. Between 2013 and 2015, he appeared as Lieutenant Colonel Phillip Smith in three series of the wartime comedy ''

Bluestone 42 ''Bluestone 42'' is a British sitcom about a British bomb disposal detachment in Afghanistan during Operation Herrick, first broadcast on 5 March 2013 on BBC Three. The third and final series began on 9 March 2015 and ended on 13 April 2015. In J ...

'', about a British bomb disposal detachment in

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...

during

Operation Herrick Operation Herrick was the codename under which all British operations in the War in Afghanistan were conducted from 2002 to the end of combat operations in 2014. It consisted of the British contribution to the NATO-led International Security Assis ...

. He appeared as Dan Miller MP in the BBC political comedy ''

The Thick of It ''The Thick of It'' is a British comedy television series that satirises the inner workings of British government. Written and directed by Armando Iannucci, it was first broadcast for two short series on BBC Four in 2005, initially with a smal ...

''. He was a main character of the music video "Giant Peach" by

Wolf Alice Wolf Alice are an English rock band from London, England. Formed in 2010 as an acoustic duo comprising singer Ellie Rowsell and guitarist Joff Oddie, Wolf Alice have also featured bassist Theo Ellis and drummer Joel Amey since 2012. Wolf Ali ...

. He appeared in a variety of roles in ''

Tracey Ullman's Show ''Tracey Ullman's Show'' is a British sketch comedy television series starring Tracey Ullman. ''Tracey Ullman's Show'' premiered on BBC One on 11 January 2016. The programme marks her first project for the broadcaster in over thirty years, and ...

'' from 2016. He also appeared in an episode of the Netflix show, '' Lovesick'', portraying Dylan’s father at surprise wedding anniversary party. In January 2021, Gardner appeared in S11E1 of ''

Not Going Out ''Not Going Out'' is a British television sitcom that has aired on BBC One since 2006, and has 12 series making it the second longest running British sitcom (in series) behind the longest running sitcom worldwide, Last of the Summer Wine. It sta ...

'' as a neighbour to Lee and Lucy. He then appeared again in S12E4 in 2022.

Filmography

References

External links

*
Profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gardner, Tony English male film actors English male television actors Living people 1964 births 20th-century English medical doctors People from Ashton-under-Lyne Male actors from Lancashire Alumni of King's College London British general practitioners