Jenny Eclair
| Jenny Eclair | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Jenny Clare Hargreaves |
| Born | 16 March 1960 [1] Kuala Lumpur, Federation of Malaya (now Malaysia) |
| Medium | Comedian, novelist |
| Nationality | British |
| Years active | 1983–present |
| Genres | Stand-up |
| Domestic partner(s) | Geoff Powell (1982–present) |
| Notable works and roles | Loose Women (2003, 2011-) Grumpy Old Women (since 2004-2007) I'm a Celebrity ... Get Me Out of Here (2010) |
| Website | Official site |
Jenny Eclair (born Jenny Clare Hargreaves on 16 March 1960) is an English comedian, novelist and actor.
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[edit] Education and career
Eclair was born as Jenny Clare Hargreaves to English parents in Kuala Lumpur, Malaya where her father, Derek Hargreaves, who served as a major in the British Army, serving in the Royal Marines, Parachute Regiment, Green Howards, Trucial Oman Scouts, and BRIXMIS, had been posted in 1952. Eclair returned to England when she was two years old,[2] and she started her education at Queen Mary school (now King Edward VII and Queen Mary School) in Lytham St Annes. She studied at the Manchester Polytechnic School of Theatre and joined a cabaret group variously referred to as Kathy Lacreme and the Rum Babas, and Cathy La Crème and the Rum Babies.
After moving to London her first job was at Camberwell Arts College as a life model which she did for about 2 terms. Then she saw an advert in 'The Stage' looking for novelty acts, and she found work doing punk poems. In 1989, when she was named the Time Out Cabaret Award winner, she said it "was nice because its the first time I've ever won without having to run 100 metres balancing an egg on a spoon."[3]
She was in The Bill and appeared in the early 1990s Channel 4 comedy series Packet of Three with Frank Skinner, as well as the follow-up series Packing Them In. In 1995 she became the first female solo winner of the Edinburgh Festival's Perrier Comedy Award. In 1997 she played 'Josie' in the stage play 'Steaming'. 2001 saw her first novel 'Camberwell Beauty'. In 2005 she appeared in the singing contest, Comic Relief Does Fame Academy.[citation needed].
She helped develop and regularly appeared in the show Grumpy Old Women and a variety of successful spin-offs. She has also hosted her own show on the London radio station LBC radio and starred in various stage productions. On 18 March 2007, she was voted 39th on Channel Four's 100 Greatest Stand-Ups.
[edit] Current work
Eclair appeared at Derby Playhouse in The Killing of Sister George from 13 September 2008 until 18 October 2008.
Until April 2008 she hosted a weekend talk show on LBC 97.3. Her other radio credits include appearing on BBC Radio 4 in the Just a Minute quiz and afternoon plays, various comedy shows on BBC 7 and regularly has covered for Sandi Toksvig on LBC's weekday lunchtime chat show (now defunct).
Eclair has appeared on BBC Two's Grumpy Old Women and its various spin-off shows. In 2006, Jenny starred in the stage-show Grumpy Old Women Live! alongside Dillie Keane and Linda Robson. The show was co-written by Eclair and Judith Holder. The spring saw a sell out national tour, June and July a run at the Lyric Theatre in London's West End and the autumn will see another national tour.
Eclair fronts the Food Standards Agency's salt reduction campaign "Salt, is your food full of it?".[4]
She joined the 2010 UK series of I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here! on 18 November 2010.[5] She finished in third place behind Stacey Solomon and Shaun Ryder.
In 2011, Eclair has returned to being a panellist on Loose Women, a show she was a panellist on in 2003.
Jenny Eclair sat in for Danny Baker on BBC London 94.9 from Tuesday 30 August until Friday 2 September 2011.[6]
[edit] Books
- The Book of Bad Behaviour (non-fiction) Virgin, 1994. ISBN 0863698565; ISBN 978-0863698569
- Camberwell Beauty (novel) Little, Brown, 2000. ISBN 0316853186; ISBN 978-0316853187
- Sit-Down Comedy (contributor to anthology, ed Malcolm Hardee & John Fleming) Ebury Press/Random House, 2003. ISBN 0091889243; ISBN 978-0091889241
- Having a Lovely Time (novel) Little, Brown, 2005. ISBN 0751536059; ISBN 978-0751536058
[edit] Personal life
Eclair is in a long term relationship with Geof Powell, but is not married, having stated that marriages are naff.[7] She has a daughter named Phoebe, to whom she referred during her appearance on Room 101. Phoebe (b. 1989) is now attending the University of Oxford.[citation needed]
[edit] References
- ^ "Researcha profile". Web.researcha.com. http://web.researcha.com/iccquery/detail/?did=28132500&c=uk. Retrieved 23 September 2011.
- ^ Channel 4, Empire's Children
- ^ Programme notes, Thirty Somehow, Gilded Balloon Edinburgh 1990
- ^ "Salt TV ads". Salt.gov.uk. 6 November 2009. http://www.salt.gov.uk/tv_ads.html. Retrieved 23 September 2011.
- ^ Wednesday, 17 November 2010, 10:54 GMT (17 November 2010). "Two more stars confirmed for 'I'm A Celeb' – I'm A Celebrity News – TV". Digital Spy. http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/tv/s100/im-a-celebrity-uk/news/a288263/two-more-stars-confirmed-for-im-a-celeb.html. Retrieved 23 September 2011.
- ^ 15:00 (30 August 2011). "Eclair sitting in for Danny Baker on BBC london 94.9". BBC. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p00jqprj. Retrieved 23 September 2011.
- ^ Interview by Stuart Husband (7 December 2008). "This much I know: Jenny Eclair, comedian, 48, London, The". The Guardian (UK). http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2008/dec/07/celebrity-comedy-jenny-eclair. Retrieved 23 September 2011.
[edit] External links
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- 1960 births
- 20th-century actors
- 20th-century women writers
- 21st-century actors
- 21st-century women writers
- Alumni of Manchester Metropolitan University
- English comedians
- English television personalities
- English women writers
- Fame Academy participants
- I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! contestants
- Living people
- Women comedians
- People educated at King Edward VII and Queen Mary School
