Neil Mullarkey is an English actor, writer and comedian.

Early life and education

From 1972—1979, Mullarkey was educated at

Kingston Grammar School Kingston Grammar School is an independent co-educational day school in Kingston upon Thames, England. The school was founded by Royal Charter in 1561 but can trace its roots back to at least the 13th century.

, an

independent school An independent school is independent in its finances and governance. Also known as private schools, non-governmental, privately funded, or non-state schools, they are not administered by local, state or national governments. In British En ...

for boys (now coeducational), in

Kingston upon Thames Kingston upon Thames (hyphenated until 1965, colloquially known as Kingston) is a town in the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames, southwest London, England. It is situated on the River Thames and southwest of Charing Cross. It is notable as ...

, followed by

Robinson College Robinson College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1977, it is one of the newest Oxbridge colleges and is unique in having been intended, from its inception, for both undergraduate and graduate students of bo ...

at the

University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

, where he was a member of the

Footlights Cambridge University Footlights Dramatic Club, commonly referred to simply as the Footlights, is an amateur theatrical club in Cambridge, England, founded in 1883 and run by the students of Cambridge University. History Footlights' inaugural ...

and was Junior Treasurer during

Tony Slattery Tony Declan James Slattery (born 9 November 1959) is an English actor and comedian. He appeared on British television regularly from the mid-1980s, most notably as a regular on the Channel 4 improvisation show '' Whose Line Is It Anyway?'' His ...

's term as president. He became president in 1982 with

Nick Hancock Nicholas John Hancock (born 25 October 1962) is an English actor and television presenter. He hosted the sports quiz ''They Think It's All Over'' for 10 years. He also formerly presented ''Room 101'' (1994–1999) on TV, as well as its earlier ...

Steve Punt Stephen Mark Punt (born 15 September 1962)Mr Stephen Mark Punt
company-director-c ...

and

Hugh Dennis Peter Hugh Dennis (born 13 February 1962) is an English comedian, presenter, actor, writer, impressionist and voice-over artist who has appeared in the comedy double act Punt and Dennis with partner Steve Punt. He played Dr Piers Crispin in the ...

as his contemporaries. Mullarkey formed ''Hancock & Mullarkey'' with Hancock, performing their act (which consisted of spoofing television shows' title sequences to that show's accompanying theme music) several times on television. This included ''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series depicts the adventures of a Time Lord called the Doctor, an extraterrestrial being who appears to be human. The Doctor explores the ...

'', ''

Kojak ''Kojak'' is an American action crime drama television series starring Telly Savalas as the title character, New York City Police Department Detective Lieutenant Theodopolis "Theo" Kojak. Taking the time slot of the popular ''Cannon'' series, ...

'', and ''

Dad's Army ''Dad's Army'' is a British television sitcom about the United Kingdom's Home Guard during the Second World War. It was written by Jimmy Perry and David Croft, and originally broadcast on BBC1 from 31 July 1968 to 13 November 1977. It ran fo ...

''.

Career

Mullarkey has been in a double act with

Tony Hawks Antony Gordon Hawksworth, MBE (born February 27, 1960), known professionally as Tony Hawks, is a British comedian and author. Early life Born in Brighton, Sussex, Hawks was educated at Brighton, Hove and Sussex Grammar School and Bright ...

called the Timid Twins. In the mid-1980s, he teamed up with

Mike Myers Michael John Myers OC (born May 25, 1963) is a Canadian actor, comedian, screenwriter, and producer. His accolades include seven MTV Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, and a Screen Actors Guild Award. In 2002, he was awarded a star on the Hollywoo ...

as 'Mullarkey and Myers'. They would perform sketches based on their shared love of cartoons, B-movies and bad TV. They played around the burgeoning London pub circuit, particularly at the George IV in

Chiswick Chiswick ( ) is a district of west London, England. It contains Hogarth's House, the former residence of the 18th-century English artist William Hogarth; Chiswick House, a neo-Palladian villa regarded as one of the finest in England; and F ...

, where they often shared the bill with the young

Hugh Grant Hugh John Mungo Grant (born 9 September 1960) is an English actor. He established himself early in his career as both a charming, and vulnerable romantic lead and has since transitioned into a dramatic character actor. Among his numerous a ...

, then plying his trade in the ''Jockeys of Norfolk'' revue. As their fame increased, Mullarkey and Myers toured the UK, ending in a sold-out season at the

Edinburgh Festival __NOTOC__ This is a list of arts and cultural festivals regularly taking place in Edinburgh, Scotland. The city has become known for its festivals since the establishment in 1947 of the Edinburgh International Festival and the Edinburgh F ...

. The two appeared as 'The Sound Asleep Club' on TV-am's 'Wide Awake Club', a children's TV show hosted at the time by

Tommy Boyd Timothy Leslie Boyd (born 14 December 1952), better known as Tommy Boyd, is a British radio presenter. Television From 1977 to 1980, Boyd was co-presenter of the ITV children's magazine programme ''Magpie'' replacing Douglas Rae. In 1981, ...

. Mike eventually returned to Toronto, but Mullarkey would briefly join him to revive 'Mullarkey and Myers' in Canada. Later still, he appeared in Myers' début in '' Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery'', as the Customs Officer who freaks Austin out with his Swedish-made penis pump. (He also appeared again in '' Goldmember'' and helped

with uncredited rewrites of '' So I Married An Axe Murderer''). As a founding member of

The Comedy Store Players The Comedy Store Players is a group of improvisational comedians who perform at The Comedy Store in London. The group first came into being in October 1985. Members of the group have included: *Dave Cohen * Jeremy Hardy * Kit Hollerbach *Josie L ...

, he is regularly performing on the UK comedy circuit.

Theatre

He is a founder member of

, and still appears with them regularly at London's Comedy Store. He has written and performed four one-man shows; *''A Bit of Quiet Fun'' *''Memoirs of Lord Naughty'' *''All That Mullarkey'' *''Don't Be Needy Be Succeedy'' ''Don't Be Needy Be Succeedy'' won the Fringe Report Award for Best Satire of 2002. In it Mullarkey plays L. Vaughan Spencer, Life Coach, Self-Help Guru and Gangsta Motivator. The book ''Don't Be Needy Be Succeedy: The A to Z of Motivitality'' was published by Profile Books in November 2008. Mullarkey starred with

Eddie Izzard Edward John Izzard (; born 7 February 1962) is a British stand-up comedian, actor and activist. Her comedic style takes the form of what appears to the audience as rambling whimsical monologues and self-referential pantomime. Izzard's stand- ...

in the sell-out West End run of ''One Word Improv'' and has guested with The Groundlings in Los Angeles and

The Second City The Second City is an improvisational comedy enterprise and is the oldest ongoing improvisational theater troupe to be continually based in Chicago, with training programs and live theatres in Toronto and Los Angeles. The Second City Theatre o ...

in Toronto.

Television

On television, his appearances include: *''

Whose Line is it Anyway ''Whose Line Is It Anyway?'' is a short-form improvisational comedy show originating as a British radio programme, before moving to British television in 1988. Following the conclusion of the British run in 1999, ABC began airing an American ...

'' *''

The Manageress ''The Manageress'' is a television series about a woman who becomes manager of a professional football team. It ran from 1989 to 1990 and had two seasons. The series starred Cherie Lunghi as Gabriella Benson and Warren Clarke as the chairman of ...

'' *''

Lovejoy ''Lovejoy'' is a British television comedy-drama mystery series, based on the novels by John Grant under the pen name Jonathan Gash. The show, which ran to 71 episodes over six series, was originally broadcast on BBC1 between 10 January 19 ...

'' *'' Smith and Jones'' *'' Saturday Live'' *'' QI'' *'' Have I Got News For You'' *'' Carrott Confidential'' *'' Paul Merton: The Series'' *'' Absolutely'' *''

Colin's Sandwich ''Colin's Sandwich'' is a British sitcom that was broadcast on BBC2 in 1988 and 1990. It starred Mel Smith as Colin Watkins, a British Rail administrator who aspired to be a horror writer. The show was written by Paul Smith and Terry Kyan and ra ...

'' He was a writer on

's show ''Morris Minor's Marvellous Motors'' and co-wrote (with

Greg Proops Gregory Everett "Greg" Proops (born October 3, 1959) is an American actor, stand-up comedian and television host. He is widely known for his guest appearances on the U.K. and U.S. versions of ''Whose Line Is It Anyway?''. He has also voiced the ...

) ''The Amazing Colossal Show'' for BBC2. He hosted ''American Freak'' for America's Comedy Central network. He also does regular TV advert voiceover work.

Cinema

Mullarkey has acted feature films, including '' Leon the Pig Farmer'', '' Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery'', ''

Austin Powers in Goldmember ''Austin Powers in Goldmember'' is a 2002 American spy comedy film directed by Jay Roach. It is the third in the ''Austin Powers'' film series and stars Mike Myers in four roles: Austin Powers, Dr. Evil, Goldmember, and Fat Bastard. Myers a ...

'', and '' Spiceworld''.

Radio

Mullarkey hosted ''Missed Demeanours'' for BBC Radio 4, was a regular performer on '' Bits from Last Week's Radio'', co-wrote and starred in ''FAB TV'' and has appeared on '' Just a Minute'', ''

The News Quiz ''The News Quiz'' is a British topical panel game broadcast on BBC Radio 4. History ''The News Quiz'' was first broadcast in 1977 with Barry Norman as chairman. Subsequently, it was chaired by Barry Took from 1979 to 1981, Simon Hoggart f ...

'', ''Quote...Unquote'', ''

I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue ''I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue'' is a BBC radio comedy panel game. Billed as "the antidote to panel games", it consists of two teams of two comedians being given "silly things to do" by a chairman. The show was launched in April 1972 as a pa ...

'', ''Loose Ends'', ''In Touch'' and '' ''The Unbelievable Truth''''. He wrote and presented the documentary ''Ten Years of the Comedy Store Players''.

References

External links

*
Profile
neilmullarkey.com
Details
improvyourbiz.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Mullarkey, Neil 1961 births Alumni of Robinson College, Cambridge English male film actors English male stage actors English male television actors English radio personalities Living people Male actors from Hertfordshire People educated at Kingston Grammar School