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TOM O'CONNOR |
| Tom O'Connor has become a household name through the realms of television, hosting his own shows - Tom O'Connor, Wednesday at Eight, London Night Out, The Tom O'Connor Show & The Tom O'Connor Roadshow. He has emerged as one of the most popular entertainers in the country & one of Britain's funniest comedians. |
| Not only that, Tom has carved a fine reputation for himself as a most accomplished Quiz & Game Show Host with no less than seven successful series to his credit - Name That Tune, Gambit, Zodiac, Password, I've Got a Secret, A Question of Entertainment, That's News to Me & the ever popular Cross Wits. |
| Tom was born in Bootle, Merseyside. His father was a Docker & it was in Liverpool that Tom later became a Schoolmaster. Whilst working as a maths teacher & Assistant Headmaster at the St. Joan of Arc School in Bootle, he developed his unique comedy routines. |
| In actual fact, the school's Headmaster had a lot to do with the progress of Tom's career in comedy. When his pupils showed very little interest in the academic side of mathematics, the Headmaster told him: 'Never mind the algebra & logarithms - just remember you are saving souls'. |
| It had a great effect, for Tom found a distinctive way of teaching his subject & communicating with his charges. 'The only way I could think of getting through to them was to tell jokes', says Tom. 'It worked a treat....& that's really how the comedy all started. I actually started my showbusiness career as a singer & would have been quite happy doing that but I soon found out that comedians got paid more money than singers so I gradually introduced comedy into my act & concentrated on talking to the audience about people & observing life. Real life can be very funny. It really took off from there'. |
| For several years, Tom O'Connor lived a double life - teaching his pupils by day & entertaining club audiences by night. His reputation spread throughout showbusiness & it soon became obvious that he would have to make a decision about his future career. |
| 'I was working very late at night, sometimes getting home at three or four o'clock in the morning'says Tom. 'I had to be up at seven to go to school. So I had to decide whether to give up teaching in order to concentrate on a full-time showbusiness career...or forget the entertainment industry altogether in favour of school. Actually, it wasn't much of a gamble to take, for when I had twelve months engagements in my diary, I took the plunge'. |
| In 1974, Tom hung up his cap & gown for good to become a professional entertainer. He hasn't looked back since. |
| Success rapidly followed success. He made such an impact on television - winning three separate shows on Opportunity Knocks - that within a year of his TV debut, he was hosting the Thames TV series, Wednesday at Eight, followed by his own series The Tom O'Connor Show. A year later, he received the highest accolade in the theatrical profession when he was invited to appear in the Royal Variety Show at the London Palladium. In 1977, Tom was the subject of This Is Your Life. |
| Tom's success, however, has not just been confined to television. In cabaret, he starred at every major night-spot in the country & headlined his own summer season shows in the country's top resorts. His work has taken him to most English speaking countries including America where he featured at the prestigious Carnegie Hall in Manhattan. |
| Tom is in constant demand for corporate functions both here & aboard & his client list includes many multi-national companies where his ability to mix with & relate to people from every station in life from the M.D. to the tea lady coupled with his hilarious & scrupulously clean material has placed him firmly at the top of the Premier division of after dinner speakers. |
| No mean golfer, Tom took the literary world by surprise when his first humorous golf book, From the Wood to the Tees made the best-sellers list. Subsequent successful books include; One Flew Over the Clubhouse, Take a Funny Turn, Follow Me - I'm Right Behind You & Eat Like a Horse...Drink Like a Fish. |
| A surprise television acting debut came about when Tom was invited to play the part of Father Tom in the BBC series Doctors since which time he has admitted to having caught the acting bug & now looks forward to being offered further suitable roles. |
| In 2005 Tom was made a Freeman of the City of London & also an Honorary Freeman of the Guild of Carmen. |
| Tom lives in Berkshire with his wife, Pat. They have four children; Ann, Stephen, Frances & Helen. |
For more information on Tom O'Connor, Contact Arena. Tel: 0113-239-2222 |