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greater manchester

Jimmy Cricket & co a hit at golf club 150 150 mhamer

Jimmy Cricket & co a hit at golf club

Jimmy Cricket with Buzz Hawkins from the Bradshaws, and impressionist Johnny More

Jimmy Cricket will return to a golf club in north Manchester later this year following a recent successful charity show there.

The fundraising event, A Night with the Stars, took place at Blackley golf club and was in aid of the Red Cross and the Ebola crises appeal.

The fundraising event took place at Blackley golf club and was in aid of the Red Cross and the Ebola crises appeal

Jimmy graced the club alongside Buzz Hawkins from the Bradshaws, the impressionist Johnny More (all three are pictured above) and a host of other performers.

Tony Horsfield and Eric Devereux, both very good friends of Jimmy, were the organisers of the event.

It must have been a good night, as Jimmy has already been asked to return to the same venue for his own comedy evening that is being organised by the club captain and his entertainment team.

Keith Harris: ‘Great showman – we salute you’ 150 150 mhamer

Keith Harris: ‘Great showman – we salute you’

Jimmy Cricket appeared on Keith Harris’s holiday laughter show (with Orville and Cuddles) at the Royal Opera House in the summer of 1982

Jimmy Cricket has been paying tribute in his latest newspaper column to ventriloquist Keith Harris, who died last month.

Keith, who, with his puppet duck Orville, became a regular feature of Saturday night TV in the 1980s, was 67.

He entertained generations of children with his sidekick Orville, a bright green duck who wore a nappy and spoke in a high-pitched voice but couldn’t fly. He also gave life to the popular puppet Cuddles the monkey, whose catchphrase was ‘I hate that duck!’

In addition to fronting The Keith Harris Show on BBC One, he (and Orville) gave private performances at birthday parties for Prince William and his brother Harry, at the request of Diana, Princess of Wales.

His 1982 single, Orville’s Song, was a top five hit, selling more than 400,000 copies.

In his May column for the Preston-based Lancashire Evening News, Jimmy says: “Most ventriloquists that are successful discover one dummy that tickles people’s funny bone, but Keith was blessed with two.

“In 1983, holidaymakers were still visiting our summer resorts en masse and Keith’s show was a sellout from start to finish.

“Keith Harris – you weren’t just a superb ventriloquist, you were a great showman and producer.

“We salute you.”

Jimmy Cricket to appear in Blackpool charity gala 150 150 mhamer

Jimmy Cricket to appear in Blackpool charity gala

Jimmy Cricket is appearing in the charity gala, A Night to Remember, at the Viva venue in BlackpoolEntertainer Jimmy Cricket will be appearing in a huge charity gala at the Viva cabaret venue in Blackpool on May 15.

The line-up for A Night to Remember is a stunning collection of high-quality performers, who have been assembled by the organisers of this fundraising event, Jean Parkes and Sue Coolie.

Jean is a former manager of the Bradford Theatres organisation and now runs an agency in Blackpool called  Personality Artistes.

The proceeds from the event will go towards charities, which are associated with two worthy causes – Parkinson’s disease and leukaemia.

Book your tickets now with the Viva box office on 01253 297297.

Johnny Vegas to also feature in film 150 150 mhamer

Johnny Vegas to also feature in film

Johnny Vegas is appearing in the Womble film

Famous actor and comedian Johnny Vegas is to appear in the Womble movie, which is being filmed on location in North Wales and also features entertainer Jimmy Cricket. 

St Helens-born Johnny is well known for his appearances in the hit ITV comedy drama Benidorm and also for popping up in adverts for tea brand PG Tips with a stuffed puppet monkey!

His addition to the cast is another major coup for the people behind Womble the movie, as it also includes top comedian Jimmy, 69, who will play himself as a talent contest judge.

The film is about a man called Aloysius Rupert Womble (played by actor and comedian Tom Spencer), who is in his 30s and living with Asperger’s Syndrome in a typical seaside resort town.

Children and adults affected by Asperger’s Syndrome have difficulty with social interactions and exhibit a restricted range of interests and/or repetitive behaviours.

Aloysius’s dream is to become a stand-up comedian. The film is a week-long snapshot of his life as he goes through the trials of living with a cognitive disorder, while dealing with the injustices forced upon him by society and parts of his community.

Over the seven-day period he prepares for the biggest night of his life – a talent show in his local pub.

The film will feature songs from the Beautiful South’s former lead singer Briana Corrigan and American Pie star Thomas Nicholas, as well as a string of original songs written by songwriters especially for the movie.

Filming under way for Womble movie 150 150 mhamer

Filming under way for Womble movie
Jimmy Cricket with Tom Spencer and actresses Gemma Jones and Georgina Ford

Jimmy with Tom, Gemma and Georgina

Filming for the Womble movie in which Jimmy Cricket will play himself is now under way.

Famous entertainer Jimmy’s cameo role will be filmed on location in North Wales in June and he was recently involved in a photo shoot alongside the central character Womble, played by actor Tom Spencer.

Also at the promotional event, which was held at the Bojangles Theatre, home to the Middleton Popstars Academy in North Manchester, were director Lee Howard, co-writer and actress Gemma Jones, and fellow actress Georgina Ford.

Jimmy said: “I was very grateful to Anne (Marshall, director) and the Popstars organisation for hosting this activity and I am very excited about returning to the theatre later in the year for a show with the Popstars on Saturday the 11th of July.”

The film is about a man called Aloysius Rupert Womble (played by actor and comedian Tom), who is in his 30s and living with Asperger’s Syndrome in a typical seaside resort town.

Children and adults affected by Asperger’s Syndrome have difficulty with social interactions and exhibit a restricted range of interests and/or repetitive behaviours.

Aloysius’s dream is to become a stand-up comedian. The film is a week-long snapshot of his life as he goes through the trials of living with a cognitive disorder, while dealing with the injustices forced upon him by society and parts of his community.

Over the seven-day period he prepares for the biggest night of his life – a talent show in his local pub.

It will feature songs from the Beautiful South’s former lead singer Briana Corrigan and American Pie star Thomas Nicholas as well as a string of original songs written by songwriters especially for the movie.

Top comedian Jimmy, 69, will play himself as a talent contest judge.

Jimmy Cricket and Tom Spencer

My movie debut – as a dream maker 150 150 mhamer

My movie debut – as a dream maker

Jimmy Cricket's column in the Lancashire Evening Post

Jimmy Cricket says he is looking forward to his role as a talent show judge on his  forthcoming silver screen debut.

But the famous veteran entertainer insists he will not be like Simon Cowell in The X Factor, telling readers of the Preston-based Lancashire Evening Post in his monthly column he will be a “dream maker, not a dream breaker”.

Womble, one of the biggest independent movies to be made in North Wales, is being shot over the summer and will be set for release in 2016.

It is about a man called Aloysius Rupert Womble (played by actor and comedian Tom Spencer) who is in his 30s and living with Asperger’s Syndrome in a typical seaside resort town.

Children and adults affected by Asperger’s Syndrome have difficulty with social interactions and exhibit a restricted range of interests and/or repetitive behaviours.

Aloysius’s dream is to become a stand-up comedian. The film is a week-long snapshot of his life as he goes through the trials of living with a cognitive disorder, while dealing with the injustices forced upon him by society and parts of his community.

Over the seven-day period he prepares for the biggest night of his life – a talent show in his local pub.

Jimmy says in the Lancashire Evening Post: “Hopefully, the film will be shown in 2016 at the Cannes Film Festival.”

Daughter Katie wins coveted playwriting prize 150 150 mhamer

Daughter Katie wins coveted playwriting prize

The Stage newspaper reported on Katie Mulgrew's success

Famous entertainer Jimmy Cricket has expressed his immense pride after daughter Katie won a prestigious playwriting competition.

The Rochdale Observer reported on Katie Mulgrew's success

Katie Mulgrew, 30, was the winner of the first ever Liverpool Hope University playwriting prize, with her work entitled Omnibus, which follows a group of friends following a soap opera.

Not only did she earn herself £10,000 in the process, but she now has the opportunity to see the play produced by the Royal Court Theatre in Liverpool, one of the partners for the competition along with the Liverpool Echo newspaper.

She was the only female comic among the 10 finalists.

Katie told The Stage newspaper: “I entered the Liverpool Hope Playwriting Prize because some of my heroes are on the judging panel, and I would adore the opportunity to work with such a beautiful theatre, positively soaked in history and talent.”

Her play was shortlisted at the start of the year as part of a group of 10 plays that went to a judging panel consisting of:

–         Comedienne Kathy Burke

–         Screenwriter Frank Cottrell Boyce

–          Playwright, director and visiting professor at Liverpool Hope University John Godber

–          Playwriter & arts journalist  Paul Allen

–          Chief executive of the Royal Court Theatre Kevin Fearon

–          Principal Lecturer in Drama and Theatre Studies at Liverpool Hope University‌ Dr John Bennett

–          Liverpool Echo arts editor Catherine Jones

Jimmy said: “I am really thrilled for Katie and am incredibly proud of this tremendous achievement.”

The Rochdale Observer reported on Katie Mulgrew's success