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Lee Mead
Lee Stephen Mead (born 14 July 1981) is an English musical theatre, television actor and occasional singer, best known for winning the title role in the 2007 West End revival of ''Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat'' through the BBC TV casting show '' Any Dream Will Do''. As well as subsequent West End roles in '' Wicked, Legally Blonde: The Musical'' and The West End Men, Mead has pursued a music career, releasing four solo albums and undertaking concert tours in the UK and Japan. In 2014, he joined the cast of the BBC One drama ''Casualty'', playing the role of Ben 'Lofty' Chiltern, while continuing to tour the UK with his band between filming commitments. He returned to the stage in May 2016 as Caractacus Potts in the UK Tour of ''Chitty Chitty Bang Bang''. In 2017, he returned to the role of Lofty, but in Casualty's sister series, the BBC One drama ''Holby City''. Early career After studying at performing arts college, Mead gained his first professional stage ex ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Southend-on-Sea
Southend-on-Sea (), commonly referred to as Southend (), is a coastal city and unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area with Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough status in south-eastern Essex, England. It lies on the north side of the Thames Estuary, east of central London. It is bordered to the north by Rochford (district), Rochford and to the west by Castle Point. The city is one of the most densely populated places in the country outside of London. It is home to the longest pleasure pier in the world, Southend Pier, while London Southend Airport is located to the north of the city centre. Southend-on-Sea originally consisted of a few fishermen's huts and farm at the southern end of the village of Prittlewell. In the 1790s, the first buildings around what was to become the High Street of Southend were completed. In the 19th century, Southend's status as a seaside resort grew after a visit from the Princess of Wales, Caroline of Brunswick, and the const ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Lofty Chiltern
Ben "Lofty" Chiltern is a fictional character from the BBC medical dramas ''Casualty'' and ''Holby City'', played by actor Lee Mead. He first appeared in ''Casualty'' twenty-eighth series episode "The Last Chance Saloon", broadcast on 1 March 2014. The character is introduced to fill the role of a young, male nurse. Mead previously appeared in the drama in the twenty-sixth series of ''Casualty''. Lofty originally appears as a staff nurse but is promoted to senior staff nurse in 2016. The character is specifically written for Mead and he was contracted to the show for a year. Lofty is portrayed as a nice person who is likeable and popular. His clumsiness often leaves him in awkward situations although he is a brilliant nurse and a team player. Lofty's backstory states that when his parents grew tired of his wild behaviour, they kicked him out. The character's introduction sees him found to be living in Robyn Miller (Amanda Henderson) and Max Walker's ( Jamie Davis) loft. In ''Ca ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
News International
News Corp UK & Ireland Limited (trading as News UK, formerly News International and NI Group) is a List of newspapers in the United Kingdom, British newspaper publisher, and a wholly owned subsidiary of the American mass media Conglomerate (company), conglomerate News Corp. It is the current publisher of ''The Times'', ''The Sunday Times'', and ''The Sun (United Kingdom), The Sun'' newspapers; its former publications include the ''Today (UK newspaper), Today'', ''News of the World'', and ''The London Paper'' newspapers. It was established in February 1981 under the name News International plc.The Times Online Style Guide – see entry for News International for change from plc to Ltd In June 2002, the company name was changed to News International Limited, and on 31 May ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Benedict Nightingale
William Benedict Herbert Nightingale (born 14 May 1939) is a British journalist, formerly a regular theatre critic for ''The Times'' newspaper. He was educated at Charterhouse and Magdalene College, Cambridge. His first published theatre review was for the '' Tunbridge Wells Advertiser'' in 1957, a production of '' Look Back in Anger'' by a local amateur group. He worked for ''The Guardian'' as a reporter, and in 1969 was appointed drama critic of the ''New Statesman'' in London, a post that he held until 1986 when he was appointed Professor of English with special reference to Drama at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. He spent the whole of the 1983–84 season in New York, writing a series of Sunday theatre columns for ''The New York Times''. His diary of the period was first published by Times Books in 1986 as ''Fifth Row Center: A Critic's Year On and Off Broadway''. He was appointed chief theatre critic for ''The Times'' in London in 1990, in succession to Irving W ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Close Every Door
"Close Every Door" is a song from the musical '' Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat'' by Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber. It is the penultimate song of the first act of the musical, sung by Joseph while imprisoned for his supposed relationship with Mrs. Potiphar. Along with " Any Dream Will Do", it is one of the most popular songs from the musical. In addition to voicing Joseph's despair at being jailed for a crime he did not commit, the song also touches on the history of Jewish persecution; for instance, the lyrics "Just give me a number instead of my name... Destroy me completely, then throw me away" reflect the well-documented Nazi practices during the Holocaust. The lyrics have even been incorporated into a Seder service for educators in New South Wales. Australian singer Jon English released a version a single in Australia in 1973. The song was released as a single by former BBC children's TV anchor Phillip Schofield in 1992, when he played the role of J ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Any Dream Will Do (song)
"Any Dream Will Do" is a popular song written by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice for the 1968 musical '' Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat''. It is generally the beginning and the concluding song of the musical, sung by the title character of Joseph. The song has been sung by numerous performers. In 1969, it was released as the B-side of the 7-inch single "We Will Rock You" by child singer Christopher. This recording was produced by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice, and arranged by Andrew Lloyd Webber. Max Bygraves released a popular version in 1972 which had another track from the film on the B-side "Close Every Door To Me". This may have been the most popular version released. Joe Cuddy's version was a number-one hit in Ireland in 1974. The song was voted Broadway Song of the Year in 1981, and won an Ivor Novello Award in 1991. The song was also covered by Jason Donovan and Lee Mead, whose versions reached number one and number two respectively in the UK chart. Do ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Children In Need
''BBC Children in Need'' is the BBC's UK Charitable organization, charity dedicated to supporting disadvantaged children and young people across the country. Established in 1980, the organisation has raised over £1 billion by 2023 through its fundraising efforts. The charity's flagship event is an annual telethon broadcast every November on BBC One and BBC Two. #Pudsey Bear, Pudsey Bear has served as its mascot, while the late Sir Terry Wogan hosted the event for 35 years. As a cornerstone of British television, Children in Need is one of the UK's two major telethons, alongside Comic Relief's Red Nose Day. It remains the BBC's sole in-house charity. Originally broadcast from the Television Centre, London, BBC Television Centre, the telethon relocated to the BBC Elstree Centre between 2013 and 2020 following the closure of the former. Historically lasting up to seven hours, the event was streamlined to a three-hour programme (7:00 pm to 10:00 pm) from 2020 onwards. To accommod ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Keith Jack
Keith Jack (born 2 March 1988) is a British actor and singer. He was the runner-up on the BBC reality talent show '' Any Dream Will Do'', which offered the chance to be the next West End Joseph for the hit musical ''Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat'' by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice. He lost out to Lee Mead in the final on 9 June 2007. Early life Before his appearances on ''Any Dream Will Do'', Jack was studying performance skills in Edinburgh and a HNC in Musical Theatre at Telford College, also in Edinburgh. Since winning the 2006 ''Chicago Rock Café Rock Idol'' contest, held in the English West Midlands, he has been a student of celebrity vocal coach Carrie Grant. Jack attended St. David's High School in Dalkeith, where he performed in various Christmas concerts and other events. ''Any Dream Will Do'' Since the start of ''Any Dream Will Do'', Jack was noted as a strong contender; his vocals in particular were praised very highly. The main criticis ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Joseph (Hebrew Bible)
Joseph (; ) is an important Hebrews, Hebrew figure in the Bible's Book of Genesis. He was the first of the two sons of Jacob and Rachel (Jacob's twelfth named child and eleventh son). He is the founder of the Tribe of Joseph among the Israelites. His story functions as an explanation for Israel's residence in Egypt. He is the favourite son of the patriarch Jacob, and his envious brothers sell him into slavery in Biblical Egypt, where he eventually ends up incarcerated. After correctly interpreting the dreams of Pharaohs in the Bible, Pharaoh, he rises to vizier (Ancient Egypt), second-in-command in Egypt and saves Egypt during a famine. Jacob's family travels to Egypt to escape the famine, and it is through him that they are given leave to settle in the Land of Goshen (the eastern part of the Nile Delta). Scholars hold different opinions about the historical background of the Joseph story, as well as the date and development of its composition. Some scholars suggest that the bibli ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
The Phantom Of The Opera (1986 Musical)
''The Phantom of the Opera'' is a musical by Andrew Lloyd Webber, lyrics by Charles Hart, additional lyrics by Richard Stilgoe, and a libretto by Lloyd Webber and Stilgoe. Based on the novel by Gaston Leroux, it tells the tragic story of beautiful soprano Christine Daaé, who becomes the obsession of a mysterious and disfigured musical genius living in the subterranean labyrinth beneath the Paris Opera House. The musical opened in London's West End in 1986 and on Broadway in New York in 1988, in a production directed by Harold Prince and starring English classical soprano Sarah Brightman (Lloyd Webber's then-wife) as Christine Daaé, screen and stage star Michael Crawford as the Phantom, and international stage performer Steve Barton as Raoul. It won the 1986 Olivier Award and the 1988 Tony Award for Best Musical, with Crawford winning the Olivier and Tony for Best Actor in a Musical. A film adaptation, directed by Joel Schumacher, was released in 2004. ''The Pha ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
West End Theatre
West End theatre is mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres in and near the West End of London.Christopher Innes"West End"in ''The Cambridge Guide to Theatre'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998), pp. 1194–1195, Along with New York City's Broadway theatre, West End theatre represents the highest level of Theatre of the United Kingdom, commercial theatre in the English-speaking world. Seeing a West End show is a common tourist activity in London. Prominent screen actors, Cinema of the United Kingdom, British and World cinema, international alike, frequently appear on the London stage. There are approximately 40 theatres in the West End, with the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, opened in May 1663, the oldest theatre in London. The Savoy Theatre—built as a showcase for the popular series of comic operas of Gilbert and Sullivan—was entirely lit by electricity in 1881. Society of London Theatre, The Society of London Theatre (SOLT) announced that 201 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Miss Saigon
''Miss Saigon'' is a sung-through musical theatre, stage musical by Claude-Michel Schönberg and Alain Boublil, with lyrics by Boublil and Richard Maltby Jr. It is based on Giacomo Puccini's 1904 opera ''Madama Butterfly'', and similarly tells the tragic tale of a doomed romance involving an Asian woman abandoned by her American lover. The setting of the plot is relocated to 1970s Ho Chi Minh City, Saigon during the Vietnam War, and ''Madama Butterfly''s story of marriage between an American lieutenant and a geisha is replaced by a romance between a United States Marines, Marine and a seventeen-year-old South Vietnamese bargirl. The musical premièred at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, London, on 20 September 1989, closing after 4,092 performances on 30 October 1999. It opened on Broadway theatre, Broadway at the The Broadway Theatre, Broadway Theatre on April 11, 1991, with a record advance of over $39 million, and was later staged in many other cities and embarked on tours. Prior ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
