Julian Clary - Television, Film and Theatre

Television, Film and Theatre

After a number of appearances on Friday Night Live in the mid-late 1980s, Clary co-hosted the short-lived ITV game show Trick or Treat in 1989 with Mike Smith, before achieving greater success later that year with his own high-camp Channel 4 gameshow, Sticky Moments with Julian Clary. More a vehicle for his brand of humour than a genuine gameshow, Sticky Moments was a light-hearted "non-quiz" satire, with him often awarding points because he liked the contestants, rather than because they possessed a particular skill or aptitude. He later starred in the 1992 audience participation sitcom Terry and Julian with Lee Simpson, again for Channel 4. His next series was the BBC's studio-based All Rise for Julian Clary in 1996, in which he played a judge in a mock courtroom setting.

In 1992, he played a cameo guest star part in the BBC drama, Virtual Murder. In his episode, "A Dream of Dracula", he played an undertaker, alongside other guest stars including Alfred Marks, Jill Gascoine, Ronald Fraser and Peggy Mount. He also appeared in an episode of the improvisational comedy show Whose Line Is It Anyway?. In 1993, he made an infamous appearance at the British Comedy Awards where he made a joke comparing the set to Hampstead Heath and stating that he had just been fisting the then Chancellor of the Exchequer Norman Lamont. Although the joke was met with uproarious laughter from the audience, he was criticized by the tabloid press, particularly the Daily Mail and also Garry Bushell from The Sun who started an unsuccessful campaign to have him banned from television.

From 1998 to 2001, he hosted three series of the Sky TV show Prickly Heat, the first two series with Davina McCall, the last one with Denise van Outen.

Clary is one of the recurring and most popular performers in the ITV Pantos. He played the 'The 1st Henchman' & 'Tim' in 1998's 'Jack and The Beanstalk'; 'The Good Fairy' in 2000's 'Cinderella'; 'The Genie Of The Lamp' in 2000's 'Aladdin'; And possibly his most favourite character as 'Chris the Cat' in 2002's 'Dick Whittington'.

In 1999, he became a team captain on the quiz show It's Only TV... But I Like It along with Phill Jupitus and Jonathan Ross.

In 2003, he presented the first series of the Japanese TV clip show, Sushi TV for Challenge.

In 2004, he took part in the BBC series Strictly Come Dancing, finishing third with his partner Erin Boag.

In 2005, he hosted Come and Have A Go for the National Lottery.

On 1 February 2006, he appeared on the BBC programme Who Do You Think You Are?, a genealogy series which traced his ancestors to a World War I flight engineer and German immigrants among both his mother's and father's forebears. In May 2006, he hosted an episode of the topical quiz show Have I Got News for You (and again in April 2008).

In September 2006, he returned to primetime TV as presenter and judged on Channel 5's brand new celebrity performance programme The All Star Talent Show. He was joined by two guest judges every week to assess celebrity performances and co-presented with Myleene Klass and Andi Peters. He also voiced the Channel 5 children's series The Little Princess with Jane Horrocks.

In November 2006, he joined the panel of QI, a panel game/comedy show hosted by Stephen Fry and also appeared on an episode of The New Paul O'Grady Show.

In 2007, he made a cameo appearance in the Australian soap opera, Neighbours, in scenes filmed in London with Natalie Bassingthwaighte.

From 20 March 2007, Clary presented a brand new show for the BBC called The Underdog Show. Celebrities and children were paired up with rescue dogs. They then commenced training and competed against each other in obedience and agility trials in a live arena. The show ran until 26 April 2007.

In Spring 2007, Clary did a theatre tour of the UK with his show An Evening with... Julian Clary. From 2 October 2007, he played the much coveted role of 'Emcee', in Rufus Norris’s Olivier Award winning production of Cabaret, which was in its second year in the West End of London. Clary was with the show until 19 April 2008.

He also appeared on television regularly in 2008, starting in January when he was drafted in as a relief presenter for This Morning, co-presenting alongside Fern Britton and Ruth Langsford during Phillip Schofield's absence. In April, he once again fronted the BBC 1 series Have I Got News For You, and he filmed an episode of Celebrity Bargain Hunt in May. He was also a short-notice guest on The Paul O'Grady Show in October 2008, after Peter Andre and Katie Price couldn't appear (Clary and O'Grady are friends and neighbours).

He took part in the Strictly Come Dancing Tour in January and February 2009, partnered with Lilia Kopylova and dancing a Quickstep and a Samba.

From December 2009 to January 2010, he starred as Dandini in the pantomime Cinderella at The Hawth Theatre in Crawley, West Sussex. The following season, he co-starred alongside Joan Collins and Nigel Havers in the pantomime Dick Whittington at the Birmingham Hippodrome from December 2010 - January 2011. Ironically, Collins had issued a cease and desist order to prevent Clary using her name in his comedy stage act in the 1980s.

Julian was the 4th housemate to enter Celebrity Big Brother 10 and went on to win the series.