Memorable career in showbusiness
Sir Tom Jones, Bing Crosby, Dean Martin – not a bad lineup to have rubbed shoulders with during your career and these are only a few of the titans Jimmy Tarbuck has worked with in his 60 years in showbiz.
Born in Liverpool in February 1940, James Joseph Tarbuck started mixing with greats at a young age as he was a schoolmate of the late Beatles star John Lennon.
The veteran singer and stand-up comedian later became one of the most popular household names when he rose to fame in the 1960s, known for his broad Liverpudlian accent, gaptoothed grin and quick wit.
He secured his first comedy show, It’s Tarbuck, in 1964 and he later hosted hit variety shows such as Sunday Night At The London Palladium.
“I love it, I love every minute of it”, Tarbuck, 84, says as he reflects on his passion for performing.
“People once said to me ‘What’s it like being Jimmy Tarbuck?’. I said ‘Magic’.
I just love it. And people have been nice to me, I can honestly say, all over the world. And the people I’ve worked with – Tom Jones, Bob Hope, Bing Crosby, Dean Martin ...”
The entertainer is now set to reflect on his career in a seres of shows called An Evening With Jimmy Tarbuck.
He will take the audience down memory Lane as he pulls on his vast repertoire of tales and celebrity anecdotes from across his more than six decades in the industry.
The audience will also have the chance to ask him questions and he has no qualms in giving his opinion about people within the business.
“The best young comic? Peter Kay, by a mile,” he says. “The best quizmaster? That would have to be Bob Monkhouse, he was better than all of them put together.
“The most talented person I worked with in England? Roy Castle, followed closely by Bruce (Forsyth).”
An Evening With Jimmy Tarbuck opens on April 6 at The Apex, Bury St Edmunds Tickets and other dates are available on his website.