- Comedy & Cabaret
- Presenters & Awards Hosts
Topics:
- Comedians
Rory Bremner
Twenty-five years ago, Rory Bremner put on a duffel coat and performed his first public impression. Nine years later, he starred in his first BBC series NOW FOR SOMETHING ELSE, a variety sketch show where he did impressions of Sean Connery and Terry Wogan.
Britain's Sharpest Impressionist
Today, he is widely rated as Britain’s sharpest impressionist – a one-man opposition party – with his weekly Channel Four show BREMNER, BIRD & FORTUNE (Vera Prods) regularly winning awards as the best satire on television. He ‘does’ over 100 people, from Tony Blair to Mohamed al Fayed.
Born in Edinburgh in 1961, Rory was educated at Wellington College and went on to attend King’s College, London, where he graduated with an honours degree in French, German and imitating lecturers. While still at university, he performed at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and began his career on the satirical radio shows NEWS REVUE (LBC) and WEEKENDING (BBC Radio) before embarking on a seven-year spell at the BBC.
Very Busy Schedule
Since then, he’s appeared in countless comedy shows from HAVE I GOT NEWS FOR YOU (HatTrick Prods for BBC TV) to WHOSE LINE IS IT ANYWAY? including: COMIC RELIEF, THEY THINK IT’S ALL OVER and IT’LL BE ALRIGHT ON THE NIGHT, and has been interviewed more than any other performer by both WOGAN and PARKINSON.
He has now written and starred in over one hundred programmes for Channel Four, starting with RORY BREMNER, WHO ELSE? and including the specials: FROM BLAIR TO HERE, BLAIR DID IT ALL GO WRONG?, MY GOVERNMENT AND I (2000) GEOFFREY MALET – A HERO OF OUR TIME (2001), BREMNER, BIRD & FORTUNE AT HER MAJESTY’S PLEASURE (to coincide with the Queen’s Jubilee) and the most recent BETWEEN IRAQ AND A HARD PLACE (all Vera Prods for Ch4).
Elsewhere, he appeared regularly on BREAKFAST WITH FROST (BBC TV), has written and performed the BBC radio series SOME OF OUR PILOTS ARE MISSING and writes articles and diaries for THE NEW STATESMAN, THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH, THE SUNDAY TIMES and THE LONDON EVENING STANDARD.
Since 1999, he has translated two operas: Kurt Weill’s DER SILBERSEE and George Bizet’s CARMEN, the latter for a cast recruited from South African townships who promptly translated the dialogue into Xhosa so Rory couldn't understand it! Both operas were highly acclaimed and Rory continues to work with the cast and hopes to write and translate more.
Off-stage, he loves travelling (he is an active patron of the wildlife charity TUSK TRUST), driving through Europe in a classic Alfa, golf, and cricket.