Everything about Matt Lucas totally explained
Matthew Richard Lucas (born
5 March 1974) is an
English comedian and
actor. He currently lives in
West Hampstead,
London. He is perhaps best known for his acclaimed work with
David Walliams in the television sketch show
Little Britain and spoof interview series
Rock Profile, as well as for his portrayal of the surreal scorekeeping baby George Dawes in the
Reeves and Mortimer comedy
panel game Shooting Stars.
In
May 2007, Lucas was placed 8th in the list of the UK's 100 most influential gays and lesbians, in fields as diverse as entertainment, business, politics, and science, by the British newspapers
The Independent and the Daily Mail.
Biography
Lucas comes from a
Jewish family and grew up in
Stanmore, Greater London. He has had
alopecia since his childhood, which in interviews he's inconsistently attributed to various events, including a delayed reaction to a road accident when he was four. He lost all of his hair at the age of six.
He was educated at the prestigious
Haberdashers' Aske's Boys' School, alongside other well known personalities, including
David Baddiel and
Sacha Baron Cohen. He went on to study Drama at
Bristol University between 1993 and 1995.
Career
Lucas' association with
Vic Reeves and
Bob Mortimer began in
1992. In
1994, Lucas appeared in
The Smell of Reeves and Mortimer. The second series of the show featured Lucas in several sketches. He went on to star with them in
Shooting Stars. He quickly rose to fame as George Dawes, the giant baby, who would deliver a string of meaningless gags (often in character) and insults before delivering the score, while sitting at and playing a drum kit. Many of these parts were introduced not in the style of a baby, but of a grown man — indeed, often, he'd come on dressed as a specific adult such as
Elton John. He also appeared as
Marjorie Dawes, George's mother, who also appears in
Little Britain. He also appeared in the Reeves & Mortimer BBC series
Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased), and
Catterick in a variety of roles.
Lucas has written for
Ali G and
Borat actor
Sacha Baron Cohen. Lucas used to work for
Chelsea FC as a sales assistant in the old club shop. His music video appearances include; the
Damien Hirst-directed video for
Blur's "
Country House" (as a psychoanalyst), "Jesusland" by
Ben Folds in 2005, "
I'm with Stupid" by the
Pet Shop Boys and "
Vindaloo" by
Fat Les. Lucas ventured into the world of stage musicals in
2002, when he took one of the main roles in
Boy George's musical
Taboo, at The Venue, London. He played the part of infamous performance artist
Leigh Bowery, which required him to wear some outrageous and spectacular outfits and make-up.
In
2005, he took his first role in a television drama, a supporting part as a
Venetian Duke in the
BBC historical serial
Casanova, written by
Russell T. Davies. Since
2006, Lucas has been the voice of the radio and television character
Digit Al, devised as part of a public information campaign on
digital switchover. On
November 26,
2006 he appeared on the
BBC Radio 4 show
Desert Island Discs. He made a cameo appearance in
Shaun of the Dead as the cousin of Shaun's friend Yvonne.
In
2007, he released "
I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles)", originally by
The Proclaimers, with
Peter Kay as a
charity single for
Comic Relief. He performed the single as Little Britain character
Andy Pipkin, along with Kay playing as
Brian Potter. After being available for less than 48 hours on iTunes alone, the track entered the UK Top 40 at number 3. On March 25th It went to number one, where it stayed for three weeks, selling over 400,000 copies.
He has made appearances in
Kath & Kim and
Neighbours (the latter alongside
David Walliams as
Little Britain stalwarts
Lou and Andy, as well as a cameo role in the
BBC Three sitcom
Gavin & Stacey. Lucas is currently co-writing (with Walliams) a series for
HBO. The pair are also writing a movie for
Dreamworks.
Lucas was the first celebrity to make an appearance in 2008's "
Big Brother Celebrity Hijack" on
E4, working alongside Big Brother in a series containing housemates aged 18-21 with various talents.
Little Britain
Little Britain is commercially Lucas' most successful work. Originally a radio show on
BBC Radio 4, it later became a TV series.
Little Britain has won numerous TV awards, spawning large DVD sales and merchandising. It plays heavily on memorable catchphrases which have become ingrained in playgrounds and offices around the UK. Lucas plays, among many others, four of the most popular characters in the series, which he writes and acts in along with
David Walliams; apparently disabled
Andy Pipkin, teenage chav
Vicky Pollard, homophobic homosexual
Daffyd Thomas and insensitive dietician
Marjorie Dawes
Personal life
Lucas was born to Diana and John in
Stanmore,
Greater London and has a brother named Howard. Lucas is openly
gay and on
17 December 2006, he and his long-term partner TV producer Kevin McGee formed a
Civil Partnership in
London. The ceremony was kept fairly formal, with male guests wearing suits but the evening reception had the guests dressed in
pantomime costumes.
Lucas' cousin
Alexa Tilley appeared as a contestant on the UK version of
The Apprentice; she was fired in the fourth episode by
Alan Sugar.
He is a committed and knowledgeable supporter of
Premiership club Arsenal F.C.. In
Euro 2004 he appeared as the studio guest in the first episode of the series of
Fantasy Football.
He is a huge fan of the
The Proclaimers and
Queen (as he appeared in the British Queen TV Documentary "Killer Queen").
Biography
Official
- Boyd Hilton, Matt Lucas and David Walliams: Inside Little Britain: London: Ebury Press: 2006: ISBN 0-09-191231-8
Unofficial
Neil Simpson: Yeah But No But: The Biography of Matt Lucas and David Walliams: London: John Blake: 2006: ISBN 1-8445-425-80Further Information
Get more info on 'Matt Lucas'.
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