Owen Money | |
---|---|
Born | Lynn Mittell 16 May 1947 |
Nationality | British |
Other names | Gerry Braden |
Education | Quakers Yard Grammar School |
Occupations |
|
Years active | 1962–present |
Children | 2 |
Father | James Lyons Mittell |
Website | www.owen-money.com |
Lynn Mittell [1] MBE (born 16 May 1947), better known by the stage name Owen Money, is a British musician, actor, comedian, and radio presenter from Merthyr Tydfil, Wales.
Mittell was born in Merthyr Tydfil at the Royal Oak pub, where his mother, Tydfil, and father, James Lyons, were publicans. The family would later run the Bee Hive pub in Merthyr. [2] Mittell would later follow his parents into the publican business, owning the Silver Slipper pub on Pant Road in Merthyr. Mittell later owned The LA (formerly the Hafod Inn) in Swansea, in response to why the name was changed, Mittell quipped that LA stood for "Lower 'Afod". By 1989, Mittell owned The Whittington Arms in Tonna, which he continued to run alongside his entertainment career.
Mittell was bassist of Merthyr Tydfil-based band The Crescendos, who amalgamated with another Merthyr band, The Rebels, to form The Bystanders in 1962. Mittell changed his name to Gerry Braden, and became lead singer in a line-up with Micky Jones (guitar and vocals), Clive John (guitar, keyboards and vocals), Ray Williams (bass), and Jeff Jones (drums). The Bystanders signed to Pylot Records in 1963, with the initial release "That's the End" (with "This Time" as the B-side) in 1965. After moving to Piccadilly Records, the band achieved their greatest success in February 1967, when the double-sided cover single "98.6" (with a Marvin Gaye's "Stubborn Kind of Fellow" as the B-side) peaked at number 45 in the UK Singles Chart. [3] Gerry Braden left The Bystanders in 1967, to be replaced by Vic Oakley from The Meteorites, who was, in turn, replaced by Deke Leonard, when The Bystanders became Man. Owen Money reformed the Bystanders in 1998 for a one-off performance at Maesteg Town Hall.
Mittell formed comedy entertainment act Tomfoolery in 1974, [4] which rapidly became a successful comedy show band, topping the bill at South Pier, Blackpool in 1979. Mittell originally performed under his real name, but, as he always had an overdraft, he changed his name to Owen Money. [5] In 1980, Mittell left Tomfoolery, transitioning to a full-time run as a comedian, starting a tradition where members of the band would come and go, which would later include ex-lead singer, Brian Conley.
Owen Money toured the club circuit as a comedian, winning the Club Land "Comedian of the Year" award, performing alongside Shirley Bassey and Tom Jones.
In 1987, Money joined BBC Radio Wales with weekly programme Money for Nothing, which increased in popularity through 1997 to win two gold Sony Radio Awards: one for "Regional Broadcaster of the Year", and the other for "Best Music Sequence Programme of Year". Money for Nothing is presently broadcast every Saturday morning.
Money regularly appears with his band the Travelling Wrinklies, and takes the "Owen Money Laughter Show" to venues around Wales and South West England.
Money was formerly a director and chairman of Merthyr Tydfil FC, and was instrumental in trying to bring Paul Gascoigne to the club. [6] The Owen Money Theatre Company was created in 2000, with the aim of taking family friendly pantomimes around the theatres of Wales from November to February.
Money lives in Porthcawl, and hasv two children: a son and a daughter. In his spare time, Money is an avid golfer.
In March 2006, he suffered a minor stroke while at his holiday home in Thailand. He flew back home, and was admitted to Swansea's Morriston Hospital. [7]
Under his given name of Lynn Mittell, Owen Money was awarded an MBE in the Queen's 2007 New Year Honours. The citation reads: "Radio Presenter and Comedy Music Performer. For services to entertainment in Wales". [8]
Cliffs Pavilion is a theatre, sports, exhibition and concert venue located on Station Road in Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex, England, a suburb within the city of Southend-on-Sea. It is the largest purpose-built arts venue in Essex, and the largest capacity of any theatre in the East of England. In 2006, the operation of Cliffs Pavilion, along with the Palace Theatre, were handed to HQ Theatres by Southend-on-Sea Borough Council. HQ Theatres merged with Trafalgar Entertainment in 2021. In February 2022, the Cliffs played host to He Built This City concert, a tribute to the murdered MP for Southend West Sir David Amess.
A pantomime dame is a traditional role in British pantomime. It is part of the theatrical tradition of travesti portrayal of female characters by male actors in drag. Dame characters are often played either in an extremely camp style, or else by men acting butch in women's clothing. They usually wear heavy make up and big hair, have exaggerated physical features, and perform in an over-the-top style.
Brian Paul Conley is an English actor, comedian, singer and television presenter. Conley has been the host of The Brian Conley Show, as well as presenting the Royal Variety Performance on eight occasions. In his 40-year television career, he has starred in multiple award-winning television sitcoms including Time After Time and The Grimleys.
Christopher Biggins is an English actor and television personality. He became widely known for his roles in television series such as Porridge, Poldark and I, Claudius in the 1970s. He later became known for making frequent appearances as a celebrity on television, which included winning the 2007 series of I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!, and has performed frequently in pantomime.
Martin Christopher Jarvis is an English actor, presenter and writer who has appeared mainly on children's television for the BBC since 1992, apart from 2000 to 2002 when he was working with ITV and Channel 4. In 2019, he started a radio station for children called Little Radio.
First Family Entertainment was an entertainment group specialising in pantomime and other family theatre entertainment, formed in January 2005 as a joint venture between the producers David Ian for Live Nation and Howard Panter for the Ambassador Theatre Group.
Andrew William Agnew is a Scottish actor, singer and director. He is best known for playing the role of PC Plum in the BAFTA award-winning CBeebies programme Balamory, Tam in CBeebies Woolly & Tig and Walter in Scots Squad.
The Geneva Amateur Operatic Society is an English-speaking musical theatre and light opera group. Based in Geneva, GAOS was founded in 1971 by a small group of theatre enthusiasts. They produce three productions per season, including their traditional English pantomime in the winter. GAOS is a nonprofit organization, its members receive no payment and the society makes a point of giving a substantial donations to various charities around Geneva.
New Theatre Oxford is the main commercial theatre in Oxford, England. It has a capacity of 1,785 people; is on George Street, in the centre of the city; and puts on a wide variety of shows, including musical theatre, stand-up comedy, and concerts.
The King's Theatre is located in Glasgow, Scotland. It was built for Howard & Wyndham Ltd under its chairman Baillie Michael Simons as a sister theatre of their Theatre Royal in the city and was designed by Frank Matcham, opening in 1904. The theatre is primarily a receiving house for touring musicals, dance, comedy and circus-type performances. The theatre also provides a prominent stage for local amateur productions. The King's Theatre also stages an annual pantomime, produced by First Family Entertainment. The theatre is currently operated by ATG Entertainment, under a lease from Glasgow City Council who own the building.
The Princes Hall in Aldershot, England is a 600-seat theatre / receiving house which presents a varied programme of music, ballet, comedy, pantomime.
Ieuan Rhys is a Welsh actor. His television work has included thirteen years in the BBC Cymru soap opera Pobol y Cwm, Seargent Tom Swann in the last series of A Mind to Kill and six series of the Welsh-language version of Mr & Mrs – Sion a Sian for HTV. For the last four series he portrayed Eurig Bell, the "not to be messed with" Deputy Headmaster in S4C's Gwaith/Cartref.
Grant Stott is a Scottish broadcaster, radio DJ, television presenter, Scottish cultural commentator, master of ceremonies, events host, actor, and part-time pantomime villain from Edinburgh. He formerly worked as a DJ on Edinburgh radio station Forth 1 until January 2017. He then joined BBC Radio Scotland and now appears on the television soap opera River City. Stott is the brother of television presenter John Leslie.
John Joseph Linehan, MBE is an Irish entertainer, most known for his drag queen character May McFettridge. Linehan has, in character, been a long-running feature on local radio and television, as well as a regular pantomime dame.
The Wyvern Theatre is a 635-seat indoor auditorium in Swindon, England, opened in September 1971. It is owned by Swindon Borough Council and operated by Trafalgar Entertainment.
Eastbourne Theatres is a council-owned theatre group responsible for three theatres in Eastbourne, England. The group is responsible for the Congress Theatre, Devonshire Park Theatre and the Winter Garden. The theatres together have a combined capacity of more than 4500 and show a variety of touring productions. The group also produces a variety of productions in-house under a separate arm known as Eastbourne Theatres Productions, some of which have gone on to tour both nationally and internationally.
Joe Tracini is an English actor, presenter and author. He appeared in the role of Dennis Savage in the Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks. His previous TV acting credits have included the BBC Three comedy series Coming of Age and the Boomerang children's sitcom My Spy Family. His theatre credits include Spamalot, starring in the role of Patsy during a touring version of the production in 2015. In 2022, he published his first book, Ten Things I Hate About Me.
Phil Gallagher is a British children's television presenter who is best known for playing the title character in the CBeebies children's television show Mister Maker.
Paul Burling is a British impressionist. A veteran of show business for 25 years, having worked in voiceover, radio and pantomime, he rose to national attention as a finalist of the fourth series of Britain's Got Talent. His debut television show in 2010, It's Paul Burling! attracted a television audience of 3.7 million.
Merthyr Tydfil County Borough is a county borough in the south-east of Wales. In 2022, it had an estimated population of 58,883, making it the smallest local authority in Wales by population. It is located in the historic county of Glamorgan and takes its name from the town with the same name. The county borough consists of the northern part of the Taff Valley and the smaller neighbouring Taff Bargoed Valley. It borders the counties of Rhondda Cynon Taf to the west, Caerphilly County Borough to the east, and Powys to the north.