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Gary Wilmot AI simulator
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Gary Wilmot AI simulator
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Gary Wilmot
Harold Owen "Gary" Wilmot, MBE (born 8 May 1954) is a British actor who rose to fame as a contestant on New Faces.
As a television presenter, he is best known as the host of You and Me, So You Want To Be Top and Showstoppers. His West End credits include Me and My Girl, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, The Prince of Egypt, and Wicked.
Wilmot was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2018 Birthday Honours for services to drama and charity.
Wilmot was born in Lambeth, London, into a mixed-race household; his mother was English, and his father, Harry, was Jamaican and arrived in Britain on the Empire Windrush in 1948. Harry was a member of vocal harmony group The Southlanders, but died in 1961, when his sons were still young. Despite these show business roots, Wilmot's upbringing was outside of the limelight; his mother suffered poor health and could only work part-time jobs, meaning they had to rely on family allowance. Wilmot worked on building sites and in warehouses and factories, but soon realised he did not wish to continue in this line of work.
Wilmot started his career in entertainment after a friend informed an agent of his talent, and soon began to perform as part of the variety circuit. However, his big break came in 1978, when he featured as part of a comedy double act with Judy McPhee on New Faces; the pair were later finalists. This would lead to numerous television appearances on Copy Cats, Knees Ups, Cue Gary!, and The Keith Harris Show. One of his most notable television roles was with the BBC children's quiz show So You Want To Be Top, which he co-presented with Leni Harper.
In 1994, Wilmot hosted Showstoppers, a programme which featured him performing songs from musicals alongside special guests. Originally commissioned as a one-off series in which celebrities were given ten days to learn and perform a song, Wilmot was asked to record a further series of six spectaculars due to popular demand. He also starred in and directed a tour of Showstoppers which proved so popular that its original sixty dates were increased to one hundred and sixty.
In 1989, Wilmot made a move into musical theatre debuting in the West End production of Me and My Girl, playing the role of Bill Snibson at the Adelphi Theatre. He played the role to critical acclaim for two years, with Jack Tinker describing him as a "Musical Talent of the Highest Order". Wilmot was subsequently nominated in the "Best Actor" category at the Olivier Awards, and theatre tour of a new comedy, Teething Troubles followed. He was also cast as Joe in Carmen Jones at the Old Vic before starring in the world premiere of the Barry Manilow musical Copacabana at London's Prince of Wales Theatre.
In 2001, Wilmot joined The New Shakespeare Company to play Bottom in A Midsummer Night's Dream at the Open Air Theatre, Regent's Park, and the Pirate King in The Pirates of Penzance national tour with Sue Pollard as Ruth, in 2001–2002. The national tour of Giles Havergal's adaptation of the Graham Greene novel Travels with My Aunt followed. In 2003, he was Caractacus Potts in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang at the London Palladium, taking over from Michael Ball, and returning in 2006 and 2007 on the UK tour. Wilmot also played Billy Flynn in the national touring company of Chicago.
Gary Wilmot
Harold Owen "Gary" Wilmot, MBE (born 8 May 1954) is a British actor who rose to fame as a contestant on New Faces.
As a television presenter, he is best known as the host of You and Me, So You Want To Be Top and Showstoppers. His West End credits include Me and My Girl, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, The Prince of Egypt, and Wicked.
Wilmot was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2018 Birthday Honours for services to drama and charity.
Wilmot was born in Lambeth, London, into a mixed-race household; his mother was English, and his father, Harry, was Jamaican and arrived in Britain on the Empire Windrush in 1948. Harry was a member of vocal harmony group The Southlanders, but died in 1961, when his sons were still young. Despite these show business roots, Wilmot's upbringing was outside of the limelight; his mother suffered poor health and could only work part-time jobs, meaning they had to rely on family allowance. Wilmot worked on building sites and in warehouses and factories, but soon realised he did not wish to continue in this line of work.
Wilmot started his career in entertainment after a friend informed an agent of his talent, and soon began to perform as part of the variety circuit. However, his big break came in 1978, when he featured as part of a comedy double act with Judy McPhee on New Faces; the pair were later finalists. This would lead to numerous television appearances on Copy Cats, Knees Ups, Cue Gary!, and The Keith Harris Show. One of his most notable television roles was with the BBC children's quiz show So You Want To Be Top, which he co-presented with Leni Harper.
In 1994, Wilmot hosted Showstoppers, a programme which featured him performing songs from musicals alongside special guests. Originally commissioned as a one-off series in which celebrities were given ten days to learn and perform a song, Wilmot was asked to record a further series of six spectaculars due to popular demand. He also starred in and directed a tour of Showstoppers which proved so popular that its original sixty dates were increased to one hundred and sixty.
In 1989, Wilmot made a move into musical theatre debuting in the West End production of Me and My Girl, playing the role of Bill Snibson at the Adelphi Theatre. He played the role to critical acclaim for two years, with Jack Tinker describing him as a "Musical Talent of the Highest Order". Wilmot was subsequently nominated in the "Best Actor" category at the Olivier Awards, and theatre tour of a new comedy, Teething Troubles followed. He was also cast as Joe in Carmen Jones at the Old Vic before starring in the world premiere of the Barry Manilow musical Copacabana at London's Prince of Wales Theatre.
In 2001, Wilmot joined The New Shakespeare Company to play Bottom in A Midsummer Night's Dream at the Open Air Theatre, Regent's Park, and the Pirate King in The Pirates of Penzance national tour with Sue Pollard as Ruth, in 2001–2002. The national tour of Giles Havergal's adaptation of the Graham Greene novel Travels with My Aunt followed. In 2003, he was Caractacus Potts in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang at the London Palladium, taking over from Michael Ball, and returning in 2006 and 2007 on the UK tour. Wilmot also played Billy Flynn in the national touring company of Chicago.