Profile of Michael Barrymore on Famous Like Me

Michael Kieron Barrymore, (born 1952 in Bermondsey, South London, England) is a lanky British comedian. Best known as the star of the eponymous Saturday night entertainment series, Barrymore, produced by Maurice Leonard for LWT, he has hosted a number of game shows, among them Get Set Go, Strike It Lucky, Marry The Midwife and My Kind of Music. He also went straight for a short while taking the lead role in flop drama, Bob Martin which was penned by the comedian and quiz show emcee Bob Mills.

His on screen personality struck a chord with millions of people and he became a major star in the United Kingdom, becoming the highest paid person on British television.

Early history

Michael Barrymore was born in Bermondsey, London. His father was an alcoholic and a gambler.

He spent his early career working as a RedCoat at Butlins holiday camps.

To great surprise, Barrymore announced that he was homosexual and split from his wife Cheryl in 1995 whom he had married in 1976. Cheryl had also been his manager for 20 years. They later divorced in 1997 and Cheryl went on to publish an autobiograhpy which contained details of their acrimonious split. The couple subsequently had no contact. On 1 April 2005 Cheryl Barrymore died suddenly at the age of 56, having been diagnosed with lung cancer just six weeks earlier. Shortly before her untimely death she asked that details of her condition be kept secret from her former husband and also left instructions that he should not be invited to attend her funeral.

Catchphrase

His catchphrase is "Aw-wight!"

Controversy

In April 2001 Michael Barrymore's home in Roydon, Essex was searched when Stuart Lubbock drowned in his swimming pool after a party. Many tabloid newspapers labelled Barrymore a murderer, and accused him of holding gay drug-fuelled orgies in his home.

Following a police investigation, Barrymore received a caution for possession and use of cannabis; no other charges were filed against him or anyone else. The inquest that took place in September 2002 reached an open verdict on Mr Lubbock's death. However, Mr Lubbock's father is seeking to sue Barrymore for a dereliction in his duty of care. In her autobiography, his former wife, Cheryl, also alleged that Barrymore had perjured himself during the inquest when he stated that he had been unable to dive into the pool to save (a drowning) Mr Lubbock because he could not swim. However, no action has ever (subsequently) been taken by the Crown Prosecution Service.

Career

The Lubbock incident severely damaged Barrymore's image as a wholesome family entertainer.

Following the revelations of Lubbock's death, ITV terminated Barrymore's contract and his UK TV career subsequently collapsed. A new series of Kids Say the Funniest Things recorded prior to the scandal was pulled from the ITV schedule and never broadcast. He has since tried to re-build his career with live stage shows in New Zealand and Australia with moderate success. As of 2005, he is appearing in the stage musical, Chicago, in Napier, New Zealand.

In September 2003 Barrymore's staged a one-man show at London's Wyndham Theatre and he now resides in New Zealand on a permanent basis with his partner, Shaun Davis.

In May 2004 he filed for bankruptcy as a result of unpaid tax debts.

TV Credits

• Now Who Do You Do? (1976)
• Seaside Special (1977)
• Cabaret Showtime (1978)
• Starburst (1981)
• Russ Abbot's Saturday Madhouse (1981)
• The Michael Barrymore Show (1983)
• Get Set Go (1984)
• Strike It Lucky (1987) (Name changed to Strike It Rich from the 1996 season onwards)
• Saturday Night Out (1988)
• Mick And Mac (1990)
• Barrymore (1992)
• My Kind Of People (1995)
• My Kind Of Music (1998)
• Kids Say The Funniest Things (1998)
• Animals Do The Funniest Things (1999)
• Barrymore On Broadway (2000)
• My Favourite Hymms At Christmas (2000)
• Bob Martin (2001)
• GMTV (2002)
• The Salon (2003)
• The Late Late Show (2003)

This content from Wikipedia is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article Michael Barrymore