David James Stuart Mitchell was born in Salisbury on 14 July 1974,[2][3] the son of hotel managers Kathryn Grey (née Hughes) and Ian Douglas Mitchell.[2] As his mother is Welsh, hailing from Swansea, and his father was born to a family that was originally Scottish,[4] he considers himself British rather than specifically English.[5] He would explore his ancestry in a 2009 episode of Who Do You Think You Are? and discover his connection to the Gaelic scholars John Forbes and Alexander Robert Forbes.[6] In 1977, when Mitchell was two years old, his parents left their jobs to give lectures on hotel management as this gave them more time with him.[3] He has a brother named Daniel, who is seven years younger.[1][7]
Mitchell's family moved to Oxford, where his parents became lecturers at Oxford Polytechnic (now Oxford Brookes University).[3][7] He attended the independent preparatory New College School. In a 2006 interview with The Independent, he recalled his childhood dreams: "When I was at school I either wanted to be a comedian-stroke-actor or prime minister. But I didn't admit that to other people, I said I wanted to be a barrister and that made my parents very happy. I didn't admit I wanted to be a comedian until I came to university, met a lot of other people who wanted to be comedians, and realised it was an okay thing to say."[8] From the age of 13, Mitchell was educated at Abingdon School, a public school. Having always been top of the class at primary school and prep school, he realised after moving to Abingdon that there were plenty of people more intelligent than he, so he turned his attention to debating and drama "where [he] had a chance of being the best".[7]
Mitchell often took part in plays "largely because [he] got to play cards backstage".[8] His roles mainly consisted of small minute-long parts until he won the role of Rabbit in an adaptation of Winnie-the-Pooh. This was the first time that he was "consciously aware [he] was doing a performance" and that this "was better, even, than playing cards".[8] He had been "obsessed" with comedy writing since his school days as he "always felt that doing a joke was the cleverest thing" and "would intrinsically prefer a parody of something to the actual thing itself".[9]
As part of his gap year, he worked as a "general dogsbody" at Oxford University Press, in their English Language teaching division.[10] He was rejected by Merton College, Oxford,[11] then went to Peterhouse, Cambridge in 1993, where he studied history.[3] There, he began performing with the Cambridge Footlights, of which he became president[12] for the 1995–1996 academic year.[13] In his first year at university, he met Robert Webb during rehearsals for a Footlights production of Cinderella in 1993, and the two men soon established a comedy partnership.[14] According to Mitchell, these factors had a detrimental effect on his academic performance at university and he attained a 2:2 in his final exams.[9]
"We have superficial differences and underlying similarities. We pretty much agree about what we think is funny. But we come across differently. We get on really. And together we're greater than the sum of our parts."
Mitchell's first project with Webb was in January 1995, a show about a nuclear apocalypse[16] entitled Innocent Millions Dead or Dying: A Wry Look at the Post-Apocalyptic Age.[17] Webb later described it as being "fucking terrible".[14] After leaving university he and Webb began performing a number of two-man shows at the Edinburgh Fringe.[9]
As a result of their performances at the Edinburgh Fringe, the duo were given the chance to write for Alexander Armstrong and Ben Miller and for series two of Big Train.[12] After minor work on The Jack Docherty Show and Comedy Nation,[18] their first break into television acting was in 2000, on the short-lived BBC sketch show Bruiser, which they primarily wrote, and starred in. The show also featured future Academy Award and BAFTA winner Olivia Colman, who would become a regular cast member of Mitchell and Webb projects, and Martin Freeman, later of The Office fame. Other cast members included Matthew Holness and Charlotte Hudson. Additional material for the show was provided by various people, including Ricky Gervais and James Bachman.[19]
In 2001 the two men were commissioned for a sketch show of their own, entitled The Mitchell and Webb Situation, which ran for six episodes on the now-defunct channel Play UK.[12] The show was reasonably well received. Wessex Scene's Darren Richman said: "What the series lacked in budget, it made up for in magnificent material," and went on to call it "far superior to the vastly overrated Little Britain" and "perhaps the greatest forgotten sketch show of modern times".[9]Eureka! TV, which released The Mitchell and Webb Situation on DVD in 2005, said that the show "gushes forth an hilarious stream of surreal and quirkily inventive sketches," as well as calling it a "cult success".[20] In the interview with Wessex Scene, Mitchell stated that he was "more proud of the way it turned out than annoyed that it was only aired on a small channel".[9]
Mitchell and Webb's next project came in 2003, with starring roles in the Channel 4 sitcom Peep Show, as flatmates Mark Corrigan and Jeremy Usbourne respectively.[21] The show originated from writers Jesse Armstrong and Sam Bain's failed attempt to complete a team-written sitcom for the BBC; they had an old script that they wanted to revive and Mitchell and Webb helped out, with it eventually evolving into Peep Show.[8] Despite low viewing figures (which almost got the show cancelled after series three)[22] the show was received to wide critical acclaim.[18] The British Sitcom Guide called it "without a doubt one of the best sitcoms of the decade".[21] Ricky Gervais has been cited as saying: "The last thing I got genuinely excited about on British TV was Peep Show, which I thought was the best sitcom since Father Ted."[23] The BBC hailed Mitchell's performance in the series, stating that: "As Mark Corrigan, David reached out to all those middle-aged men in a twentysomething's body, who believe drugs are boring and systems are necessary if society is to function at all."[12] Mitchell has stated that he empathises with Mark and enjoys playing him and that he "agrees with many of [Mark's] opinions".[9]Peep Show aired for nine series, which makes it the longest-running sitcom in Channel 4 history.[24]
In 2009, Mitchell won the British Academy Television Award for Best Comedy Performance for his work on Peep Show, after having lost in the same category the year before.[25][26] He was nominated again in 2010.[27] He won the award "Best Television Comedy Actor" at the 2007 British Comedy Awards,[28] and the pair shared the 2007 Royal Television Society Award for "Comedy Performance".[29] They were also jointly nominated for "Best Television Comedy Actor" at the 2006 British Comedy Awards.[30]Peep Show itself has also won the BAFTA for "Best situation comedy" in 2008,[31] and the British Comedy Award for "Best TV comedy" in 2006,[32] and retained it the following year.[28] It also won "Best TV Comedy" at the South Bank Show Awards,[23] and claimed a Golden Rose in 2004.[33]
Other Mitchell and Webb projects
Mitchell (right) as "Ginger" on stage with Robert Webb during a performance of their The Two Faces of Mitchell and Webb stage tour
After the success of Peep Show, Mitchell and Webb returned to sketch comedy with their BBC Radio 4 sketch show That Mitchell and Webb Sound, which ran for five series. The show was adapted for television and became That Mitchell and Webb Look. Producer Gareth Edwards described it as "the shortest pitch [he had] ever written".[14][34] The show ran for four series.[35] Towards the end of 2006 the pair made their first tour, with a show called The Two Faces of Mitchell and Webb.[36] The tour was criticised as just "a succession of largely unrelated scenes" by The Guardian's Brian Logan, who gave it a rating of two stars.[37]
That Mitchell and Webb Look won them the BAFTA for Best Comedy Programme or Series at the 2007 awards,[38] and they earned a further nomination for it in 2009.[39] It was nominated for two British Comedy Awards in 2006: Britain's Best New TV Comedy and the Highland Spring People's Choice.[30] Their stage tour The Two Faces of Mitchell and Webb was nominated for the British Comedy Award for Best Stage Comedy,[30] and That Mitchell and Webb Sound won a Sony Silver Award.[40]
Their first film, Magicians, was released on 18 May 2007. It was directed by Andrew O'Connor and written by Jesse Armstrong and Sam Bain.[41] Mitchell played the role of a magician named Harry.[33] Later in 2007, the pair recorded a pilot BBC Radio 2 sitcom entitled Daydream Believers, in which Mitchell played Ray, a science-fiction writer.[42] The show was previously a one-off television pilot from Channel 4's Comedy Lab, and also starred Mitchell and Webb.[43]
Mitchell and Webb's first comedy book, This Mitchell and Webb Book, was published in 2009.[44] A second book was planned for 2010.[45] They also wrote and filmed Playing Shop, a comedy television pilot for BBC2 about two men who operate a business out of their shed.[46] Although the BBC commissioners were happy with it, Mitchell and Webb scrapped it themselves, as they felt it was too similar to Peep Show. A new pilot had been commissioned,[47] but the plan was later shelved.[48] Mitchell and Webb voiced a robotic duo in the Doctor Who episode "Dinosaurs on a Spaceship" in 2012.[49]
In 2007 the duo fronted the UK version of Apple Inc.'s "Get a Mac" adverts, with Mitchell playing PC.[50] The adverts received much criticism. Writing in The Guardian, Charlie Brooker claimed that the use of Mitchell and Webb in the adverts was a curious choice. He compared the characters of PC and Mac in the adverts to those of Mark and Jeremy in Peep Show, stating that "when you see the ads, you think, 'PCs are a bit rubbish yet ultimately lovable, whereas Macs are just smug, preening tossers.'"[51]The British Sitcom Guide also criticised the pair for "selling their souls".[34] One journalist called the adverts "worse than not funny", and accused Mitchell and Webb of "an act of grave betrayal" for taking corporate work.[52] In an interview with The Telegraph, Robert Webb responded to the duo's critics, stating that "when someone asks, 'Do you want to do some funny ads for not many days in the year and be paid more than you would be for an entire series of Peep Show?' the answer, obviously, is, 'Yeah, that's fine.'"[52] In the same interview, Mitchell also said: "I don't see what is morally inconsistent with a comedian doing an advert. It's all right to sell computers, isn't it? Unless you think that capitalism is evil– which I don't. It's not like we're helping to flog a baby-killing machine."[52]
As well as his work alongside Webb, Mitchell has appeared on his own in several shows. He played technical expert Owen in the Radio 4 sitcom Think the Unthinkable in 2001.[12] He played the surgeon Dr Toby Stephens in the BBC One sitcom Doctors and Nurses.[12] In 2005 he played Kate's hapless secretary Tim in the BBC's updating of The Taming of The Shrew in its ShakespeaRe-Told series.[55] Mitchell appeared as various roles on the Channel 4 sketch programme Blunder. The show was not well received, with the British Sitcom Guide naming it as the worst thing that Mitchell did in all of 2006 in their "British Sitcom Awards" of that year.[34] He portrayed the recurring character of Dr. James Vine in the BBC sitcom Jam and Jerusalem.[56] Mitchell had a small part in the film I Could Never Be Your Woman, playing an English writer, also named David.[23] While in Los Angeles to record the part he decided that he did not like the area much, and preferred filming in Britain.[7]
He wrote series five of the BBC Two impressionist sketch show Dead Ringers,[57] and voiced Mitch in the Disney animated series Phineas and Ferb.[58] He also narrated the reality show Beauty and the Geek.[12] Following the success of Channel 4's Alternative Election Night in 2010, which Mitchell hosted with Jimmy Carr, Charlie Brooker and Lauren Laverne, the four presented 10 O'Clock Live, a series of live shows looking at the week's affairs. Mitchell has a solo segment entitled Listen to Mitchell. The show ran for three series.[59]
Mitchell has presented four series of the online video show David Mitchell's Soapbox, a series of short monologues co-written with John Finnemore for ChannelFlip. In these monologues Mitchell has criticised a variety of subjects, including the BBC show Doctor Who[60] and 3D television.[61] Matt Warman of The Daily Telegraph suggested that the series could be a sign that new comedy will increasingly become available online, rather than on television.[62] The series has been released on DVD.[63]
Mitchell plays William Shakespeare in all three series of the sitcom Upstart Crow, the first series of which was broadcast in 2016 as part of the celebrations of the 400th anniversary of the playwright's death.[71]
In September 2023, Mitchell published Unruly: A History of England's Kings and Queens, a non-fiction book about the history of the English monarchy up until Queen Elizabeth I.[72] The book was praised by critics;[73][74]The Daily Telegraph rated Unruly 4/5 stars;[75] In October 2023, Mitchell went on a national book tour.[76][77][78]
In January 2024, Mitchell began filming on the new BBC One comedy detective drama series Ludwig. Mitchell plays the titular character of John ‘Ludwig’ Taylor, a man who assumes the identity of his missing identical twin brother as he tracks him down.[79][80] The series premiered on BBC One and the BBC iPlayer on 25 September 2024.[81] Early reviews of the detective drama were positive with one reviewer stating "Just Give Him (Mitchell) the Bafta Now".[82]
Stage
Mitchell in 2019
Mitchell made his stage debut in Ben Elton's The Upstart Crow which premiered in London in February 2020 at the Gielgud Theatre. He played the part of William Shakespeare as in the television series Upstart Crow which inspired the play.[83] The play was forced to close in mid-March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, it re-opened in September 2022 at the Apollo Theatre, and played for a 10-week run until 3 December 2022.
Panel shows
Mitchell has become a regular participant on many panel shows, leading The Independent's James Rampton to christen him "if not king, then certainly prince regent of the panel games."[23] Mitchell is a team captain on the BBC panel show Would I Lie To You?, opposite Lee Mack. The show has run since 2007.[84] Since 2007, he has hosted 30 series of The Unbelievable Truth, a panel game on BBC Radio 4.[85] The inaugural episode of Was It Something I Said?, a panel comedy show that Mitchell hosts, was broadcast on Channel 4 in October 2013.[86]
There was a quote from Catherine Zeta-Jones about playing golf with her husband Michael Douglas. We essentially all started to imagine the scene of the two of them playing golf and that was very enjoyable and turned into a really fun bit of TV. It is moments like that which, for me, justify the existence of panel shows because no-one would ever have written those words. It purely came out of that combination of people which proves panel shows can produce funny TV in a way you could never write into a sitcom or a sketch show and thereby justifies its place on screen. I think it is a great form of entertainment and we shouldn't lose sight of that.[86]
The Radio Times named him "The Best Comedy Panel Show Guest" in the world, stating that "he's incredibly, disgustingly witty" and "even starting to make Paul Merton look slow on the uptake".[95]
Following his BAFTA win, Mitchell was ranked at No. 53 in the 2009 MediaGuardian 100, an annual ranking of media people in The Guardian. In reference to his ubiquitous presence in broadcast and print media, The Guardian's writer called him "the go-to funnyman of the moment".[18] In their entry for Peep Show on their list of "The top 50 TV shows of the Noughties", The Times labelled Mitchell "a national institution".[96]
Mitchell has often joked about his personal life in interviews. In 2005, he stated, "I've been in so many situations when I've just said nothing to someone I've fancied."[9] He later added, "I'm sort of all right on my own. I don't want it to be forever, but the fundamental thing is I'm all right alone."[7] For many years, he lived in Kilburn, London as the flatmate of novelist Robert Hudson.[99] In 2006, he was the best man at his comedy partner Robert Webb's wedding.[100][7]
Mitchell met broadcaster Victoria Coren at Jonathan Ross' 2007 Halloween party and was "completely smitten". She decided to pursue someone else at the time and he later admitted to pining for her, but they had begun dating by December2010.[101][102] They were married on 17 November 2012, with Robert Webb as his best man.[103][104] Their first daughter was born in May 2015.[105] On 1 November 2023, they announced the birth of their second daughter.[106] They currently live in Belsize Park, North London.[107]
Mitchell remains interested in world history and said in a 2006 interview with The Observer, "I can see myself in a few years' time joining the National Trust and going round the odd castle. I think I might find that restful as the anger of middle age sets in."[108] In his 2007 interview on Parkinson, he said that if he could go back in time to do one thing, he would choose to attend the construction of Stonehenge to ask them "why they were bothering".[109]
Mitchell takes an hour-long walk every day to alleviate a bad back, and has lost weight as a result but admits that he "probably [has] quite a bad diet" and "probably drinks too much".[114] He describes himself as a "worrier".[115][116]
Mitchell, who has Scottish ancestry, was one of 200 public figures who signed an open letter to The Guardian in August 2014 expressing their hope that Scotland would vote to remain part of the United Kingdom in September's referendum on that issue.[119] His participation followed a May2011 column in The Observer in which he wrote, "If Scotland ever goes it alone [...] the British will have lost their country."[120]
Longest running role; Won – British Comedy Award for Best TV Comedy Actor in 2007 Nominated – BAFTA for Best Comedy Performance in 2008 Won – BAFTA for Best Comedy Performance in 2009[121] Nominated – BAFTA for Male Performance in a Comedy Role in 2010, 2011
Peter Hugh Dennis is an English comedian, presenter, actor, impressionist and writer. He was a panellist in every episode of the comedy show Mock the Week (2005–2022).
Robert Patrick Webb is an English comedian, actor and writer. He rose to prominence alongside David Mitchell as the comedy duo Mitchell and Webb.
Peep Show is a British television sitcom starring David Mitchell and Robert Webb, and created by Andrew O'Connor, Jesse Armstrong and Sam Bain. The series was written by Armstrong and Bain, with additional material by Mitchell and Webb, among others. It was broadcast on Channel 4 from 19 September 2003 to 16 December 2015. In 2010, it became the longest-running comedy in Channel 4 history in terms of years on air.
Mitchell and Webb are a British comedy double act composed of David Mitchell and Robert Webb. They are best known for starring in the Channel 4 sitcom Peep Show and their radio and TV sketch shows That Mitchell and Webb Sound and That Mitchell and Webb Look. The duo first met at the Footlights in 1993 and collaborated on the 1995 revue while at Cambridge.
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Sam Bain is a British comedy writer, best known for the Channel 4 sitcom Peep Show. He attended St Paul's School in London before graduating from the University of Manchester, where he met his writing partner Jesse Armstrong.
That Mitchell and Webb Look is a British sketch comedy television series starring David Mitchell and Robert Webb that ran from 2006 to 2010. Many of its characters and sketches were first featured in the duo's radio show That Mitchell and Webb Sound.
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Would I Lie to You? is a British comedy panel show aired on BBC One, made by Zeppotron for the BBC. It was first broadcast on 16 June 2007, starring David Mitchell and Lee Mack as team captains. The show was originally presented by Angus Deayton, and since 2009 has been hosted by Rob Brydon.
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John David Finnemore is a British comedy writer and actor. He wrote and performed in the radio series Cabin Pressure, John Finnemore's Souvenir Programme, and John Finnemore's Double Acts, and frequently features in other BBC Radio 4 comedy shows such as The Now Show. Finnemore has won more Comedy.co.uk awards than any other writer, and two of his shows appear in the top ten of the Radio Times' list of greatest ever radio comedies.
Philip Brian Clarke is a British television comedy producer and executive. He has produced or executive produced many popular British TV comedy programmes including Peep Show, Brass Eye, Never Mind the Buzzcocks and Big Train. In 2012 Clarke became Head of Comedy at Channel 4. In 2017 he founded the independent television production company Various Artists Ltd (VAL), along with co-directors Jesse Armstrong, Sam Bain and Roberto Troni. Since founding VAL, Clarke has produced and/or executive produced the BAFTA-award winning Sally4Ever,Such Brave Girls, and the multi-BAFTA and Emmy-winning I May Destroy You.
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↑ Mitchell, David (2 November 2007). The Big Fat Anniversary Quiz (Television production). Channel 4.
↑ Ken Plume (26 June 2012). "A Bit of a Chat With Ken Plume & David Mitchell 3". FRED Entertainment (Podcast). Event occurs at 1:23:23. Archived from the original on 30 April 2013. Retrieved 8 August 2013. 'Innocent Millions Dead or Dying' ... which wasn't actually about the first world war, that's what they put on Wikipedia ... it was about a nuclear apocalypse.
1 2 3 Staff (13 July 2009). "53: David Mitchell". London: MediaGuardian.co.uk (Guardian News & Media). Archived from the original on 25 March 2014. Retrieved 13 July 2009.
↑ Lewisohn, Mark. "Bruiser". BBC. Archived from the original on 14 February 2007. Retrieved 4 April 2007.
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