Jimmy Nail

Jimmy Nail
Birth name	James Michael Aloysius Bradford
Also known as	Jimmy Bradford
Born	16 March 1954 (age 55); Benton, Newcastle upon Tyne, England
Genre(s)	Soul, Classic rock, Rock and roll, Country and western
Occupation(s)	Actor, singer
Instrument(s)	Vocals, guitar
Years active	1983–present
Label(s)	Virgin Records, Warner Music UK Ltd, London Records
Associated acts	Gary Holton, Mark Knopfler

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Jimmy Nail (born 16 March 1954) is an English actor and singer.

He has starred in numerous roles on television since 1983. He is 6'3" tall and is an avid Newcastle United supporter. He is most famous for his role as Leonard "Oz" Osbourne, in the hit television show, Auf Wiedersehen, Pet, his title role in Spender, and for his 1992 number one single Ain't No Doubt.

[edit] Biography

[edit] Personal life

Nail was born James Bradford in Benton, Newcastle upon Tyne, the son of Laura (née Johnson) and James Bradford. He was brother to two sisters: Shelagh (who died in June 1967) and Val McLane, who starred with him in the second series of Auf Wiedersehen Pet playing Norma Patterson.

[edit] Career

Nail rose to fame playing Leonard Jeffrey 'Oz' Osborne in Auf Wiedersehen, Pet in 1983, despite having no acting experience whatsoever (he had appeared as an extra in the movie Get Carter). Nail has also starred in a number of films and had a long musical career, having been a singer before he was picked out at an audition to play Oz.

After the first two series of Auf Wiedersehen, Pet, Nail found himself typecast before creating the detective series, Spender, which he co-wrote with Ian La Frenais. The show ran for three series from 1990 to 1993 and also produced a tele-film and a novel. This was followed in 1995 by Crocodile Shoes, which he also created and starred as musician Jed Shepherd. After working with Madonna and Antonio Banderas in Alan Parker's Evita (1996) he co-starred in Clement & La Frenais' Sony movie 'Still Crazy' (1998). A song from the movie, 'The Flame Still Burns', sung by Nail, was nominated for a Golden Globe. In 1999 he began work on reviving the Auf Wiedersehen, Pet series, this time for the BBC. It was filmed in 2001 and aired in 2002, garnering audience figures of over 12 million. Another series saw the brickies holed up in Cuba, and the final two-hour instalment, set in Thailand, aired over Christmas 2004 attracting over 7 million viewers.

He has released a number of albums of his own compositions, the first being 'Take It Or Leave It' in 1986, 1991's 'Growing Up In Public' (featuring among others Gary Moore, David Gilmour and George Harrison), the last being 'Tadpoles In A Jar' in 1999 . His 'Crocodile Shoes' album of 1995 sold over a million copies. Mark Knopfler plays guitar on some tracks, a compliment that was repaid with an important plot reference to Oz's being a fan of Dire Straits in the third (revived) series of Auf Wiedersehen, Pet (2002).

His work has resulted in five Bafta nominations (three in total for 'A.W.P.', one for 'Spender', one for 'Crocodile Shoes')), a Golden Globe nomination ( Best Original Song - 'Still Crazy'), an Ivor Novello nomination (for 'Ain't No Doubt) and numerous other awards and nominations.

In 2004, Jimmy Nail successfully sued the News of the World for defamation (Nail v News Group Newspapers Limited, 20 December 2004) and subsequently received damages of £30,000. However, the defendants had earlier made an offer of amends of £37,500 which exceeded the damages awarded to Nail by the judge. Nail refused this offer, and so became liable for the legal costs from the time of refusal. Nail and his solicitors, Schillings, appealed, but lost, and Nail's legal costs are reported to have amounted to c£200,000.^[1]

In 2005 Jimmy Nail's autobiography, 'A Northern Soul', was published in the U K by Penguin Books.

In 2008 Nail created and starred as Phil Parker in 'Parents of the Band', a 6 x 30 mins series on BBC1, broadcast November 2008-January 2009. The series revolves around a group of teenagers who form a band just for their own enjoyment, and their parents, who fully expect them to be nothing less than the next Led Zeppelin. As a result of the BBC scheduling the episodes in direct competition with Coronation Street, ratings were disappointing, around the 3 million mark, and there are presently no plans for a second series.

Nail is currently said to be developing projects with the BBC.

[edit] Filmography

Television Shows in which he has appeared include:

Minder - (1984)... as Nathan Loveridge in the episode "The Car Lot Baggers"
Auf Wiedersehen Pet - (1983, 1986, 2002, 2004)... as Leonard Jeffrey "Oz" Ozbourne
Spyship - (1983) ... as Metcalfe
Blott on the Landscape (1985)... as Edwards
Master Of The Game (1985)... as Schmidt
Wallenberg (1986)... as Vilmos Langfelder
nicking kids (1986)...as Criminal 1
Lenny Henry Tonite (1986) as Guest Star
Shoot For The Sun (1986)... as Geordie
Spender (1989-93)... as Freddie Spender
Crocodile Shoes (1994, 1996)... as Jed Shepperd
Parents of the Band (2008) ... as Phil Parker

Films in which he has appeared include:

Get Carter (1971)... (uncredited extra)
Morons from Outer Space (1985)... as Desmond
Howling II: Stirba - Werewolf Bitch (1985)...as "Punk"
Crusoe (1986)... as Tarik
Dream Demon (1987)... as Paul
Just Ask For Diamond (1988)... as Boyle
Danny, the Champion of the World (1990)... as Rabbets
Evita (1996)... as Agustín Magaldi
Still Crazy (1998)... as Les Wickes
The 10th Kingdom (2000)... as Clayface the Goblin

[edit] Own Projects

Spender (1991-1993)... Actor, Writer, Producer, Creator.
Crocodile Shoes (1994)... Actor, Writer, Executive Producer, Creator.
Crocodile Shoes II (1996)... Actor, Writer, Executive Producer, Title Music Composer, Creator
Parents of the Band (2008)... Actor, Creator, Executive Producer, Title Music Composer.