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List of former Footlights members

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is a list of former Footlights sketch comedy troupe members who have achieved notability after graduating from the University of Cambridge. The careers of many prominent figures in the world of entertainment began in Footlights, while prominent figures in other industries also took part in the troupe. They include:

Name[1] Birth Career
Douglas Adams
1952
Comedy writer, known for The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
Ken Cheng
1988
Poker player, comedian
Ania Magliano
1998
Comedian, writer
Sam Grabiner
1994
Writer, playwright
Alex Mackeith
1991
Comedian, writer, playwright and musical comedian
Ellen Robertson
1992
Actress, comedian, member of Britney comedy-duo
Clive Anderson
1952
Comedian, television presenter, barrister
David Armand
1977
Comedian, actor, member of The Hollow Men
Alexander Armstrong
1970
Comedian, television presenter, singer, half of Armstrong and Miller
Pete Atkin
1945
Singer-songwriter, radio producer, known for This Sceptred Isle
Richard Ayoade
1977
Comedian, actor, director, co-creator of Garth Marenghi
Emma Sidi
1991
Comedian, actress, writer
Adrian Gray
1993
Comedian, writer, creator of the Forgotten History series on Youtube
Harry Michell
1991
Writer, director
Ahir Shah
1990
Comedian
James Bachman
1972
Comedian, actor, writer
David Baddiel
1964
Comedian, novelist, television presenter, half of Newman and Baddiel
Morwenna Banks
1961
Comedian, actress
Humphrey Barclay
1941
Comedy executive, producer of I'm Sorry, I'll Read That Again
Brian Barder
1934
Diplomat, popular blogger
Tom Basden
1981
Comedy writer and performer, singer-songwriter, member of Cowards
Robert Bathurst
1957
Actor
Cecil Beaton
1904
Photographer, interior designer, stage and costume designer
Tom Bell
1981
Actor, comedian, writer
Peter Bennett-Jones
1956
Television producer and agent, co-founder of Tiger Aspect and Comic Relief
Martin Bergman
1957
Producer, writer, director
John Bird
1936
Comedian, actor, satirist, member of Bremner, Bird and Fortune
Simon Bird
1984
Comedian, actor, known for The Inbetweeners
Timothy Birdsall
1936
Cartoonist
Mark Bittlestone
1993
Comedian
Christopher Booker
1937
Journalist, author, founding editor of Private Eye
Leslie Bricusse
1931
Lyricist, composer, playwright, known for Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory
Eleanor Bron
1938
Actress, writer
Tim Brooke-Taylor
1940
Comedy writer and performer, member of The Goodies
Gus Brown
1974
Comedian, actor, half of Laurence and Gus
Spencer Brown
1978
Comedian
Robert Buckman
1948
Comedian, writer, television presenter, columnist, physician
Tony Buffery
1939
Psychologist, actor, comedian, writer, known for Twice a Fortnight
John Cameron
1944
Composer, arranger, conductor, musician
Jon Canter
1953
Comedy scriptwriter, principal writer for Lenny Henry
Graham Chapman
1941
Comedian, actor, writer, member of Monty Python
Charles III[2]
1948
King of the United Kingdom and 14 other Commonwealth realms
John Cleese
1939
Comedian, actor, writer, member of Monty Python
Olivia Colman
1974
Actress, comedian
Peter Cook
1937
Comedy writer and performer, proprietor of Private Eye, member of Beyond the Fringe
Joe Craig
1980
Novelist, musician, known for the Jimmy Coates series
Russell Davies
1946
Journalist, broadcaster, presenter of Brain of Britain
Hugh Dennis
1962
Comedian, actor, writer, satirist, voice-over artist, half of Punt and Dennis
Penny Dwyer
1953
Comedian, actor, writer, metallurgist
Jimmy Edwards
1920
Comedy actor, writer, star of Take It from Here and Whack-O!
Milo Edwards
1993
Comedian, podcaster, writer
Mark Evans
1970
Comedian, actor, writer
Julian Fellowes
1949
Screenwriter, director, actor, novelist, known for Gosford Park and Downton Abbey
Paul Fincham
1959
Composer
Peter Fincham
1956
Television producer and executive, Director of Television at ITV
John Finnemore
1977
Comedy writer and performer
Jason Forbes
1990
Actor, comedian
John Fortune
1939
Comedian, actor, satirist, member of Bremner, Bird and Fortune
Michael Frayn
1933
Playwright, novelist, known for Noises Off and Copenhagen
Robin French
1978
Playwright, scriptwriter, songwriter
David Frost
1939
Television presenter, interviewer, satirist, star of The Frost Report
Stephen Fry
1957
Comedian, writer, actor, novelist, half of Fry and Laurie, Jeeves in Jeeves and Wooster and presenter of QI
Graeme Garden
1943
Comedy writer and performer, illustrator, member of The Goodies
Bamber Gascoigne
1935
Television presenter, author, known for hosting University Challenge
Mel Giedroyc
1968
Actress, writer, television presenter, half of Mel and Sue
Stefan Golaszewski
1980
Comedian, writer, director, member of Cowards
Murray Gold
1969
Composer for stage, film and television, known for Doctor Who
Lizbeth Goodman
1964
Chair of Creative Technology Innovation/Full Professor/Director SMARTlab/author, broadcaster-television & virtual reality
Matt Green
1979
Comedian, writer, actor
Germaine Greer
1939
Writer, broadcaster, academic
John Grillo
1942
Actor, playwright
Lawrence Grossmith
1877
Actor
Nick Hancock
1962
Comedian, actor, television presenter, known for Room 101
Norman Hartnell
1901
Fashion designer
David Hatch
1939
Broadcasting manager, producer of Just a Minute and I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue
Natalie Haynes
1974
Comedian, writer
Archie Henderson
1994
Comedian, musician[3] known as Jazz Emu
Tony Hendra
1941
Satirist, writer, creator of Spitting Image
Kit Hesketh-Harvey
1957
Comedy writer and performer, half of Kit and The Widow
Tom Hollander
1967
Actor, co-creator and star of Rev.
Matthew Holness
1975
Comedian, co-creator of Garth Marenghi
Alex Horne
1978
Comedian, creator and co-host of Taskmaster
Kenneth Horne
1907
Comedian, businessman, star of Round the Horne
Claude Hulbert
1900
Comic actor
Jack Hulbert
1892
Actor
Tristram Hunt
1974
Politician, historian, broadcaster, newspaper columnist
Nicholas Hytner
1956
Film and theatre producer, Director of the National Theatre
Eric Idle
1943
Comedian, actor, writer, songwriter, member of Monty Python
Clive James
1939
Writer, poet, critic
Jonathan James-Moore
1946
Comedy producer, theatre manager
Peter Jeffrey
1929
Actor
Rufus Jones
1976
Comedy writer and performer, member of Dutch Elm Conservatoire
Simon Jones
1950
Actor
Jo Kendall
1938
Actress
Tim Key
1976
Comedian, actor, poet, member of Cowards
Paul King
1978
Comedy director, known for The Mighty Boosh
Matt Kirshen
1980
Comedian
Ian Lang
1940
Politician, business executive
Hugh Latimer
1913
Actor, toymaker
Hugh Laurie
1959
Comedian, actor, writer, musician, half of Fry and Laurie, Wooster in Jeeves and Wooster and star of House
John Lloyd
1951
Comedy producer and writer, creator of Have I Got News for You and QI
Nicholas Luard
1937
Satirist, travel writer, owner of Private Eye, co-founder of The Establishment
Jonathan Lynn
1943
Comedy writer, actor, director, creator of Yes Minister
Miriam Margolyes
1941
Actress
Christopher Martin-Jenkins
1945
Cricket broadcaster and writer
Daniel Massey
1933
Actor, singer
Dan Mazer
1971
Comedian, producer, screenwriter, known for work with Sacha Baron Cohen
Simon McBurney
1957
Actor, writer, director, founder of Complicité
Kevin McCloud
1958
Writer, designer, television presenter
Geoffrey McGivern
1952
Comedy actor
Rory McGrath
1956
Comedian, co-founder of Hat Trick Productions
Ben Miller
1966
Comedian, director, actor, half of Armstrong and Miller
Jonathan Miller
1934
Theatre and opera director, humorist, sculptor, member of Beyond the Fringe
David Mitchell
1974
Comedian, actor, writer, half of Mitchell and Webb
Nick Mohammed
1980
Comedian, actor, writer
Lucy Montgomery
1975
Comedian, actress, writer
Neil Mullarkey
1961
Comedian, actor, writer, founding member of The Comedy Store Players
Jimmy Mulville
1955
Comedian, writer, television presenter, co-founder of Hat Trick Productions
Simon Munnery
1967
Comedian
Richard Murdoch
1907
Comic actor
Jon Naismith
1965
Comedy producer, creator of The Unbelievable Truth, producer of I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue
Henry Naylor
1968
Comedy writer and performer, half of Parsons and Naylor
David Nobbs
1935
Comedy writer, creator of the Reggie Perrin series
Pierre Novellie
1991
Comedian, actor, writer
Trevor Nunn
1940
Theatre and film producer, Director of the National Theatre
Des O'Connor
1972
Television presenter, burlesque performer, musician, lyricist
Bill Oddie
1941
Comedian, actor, musician, naturalist, television presenter, member of The Goodies
Michael O'Donnell
1928
Journalist, author, broadcaster, physician
John Oliver
1977
Comedian, host of Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, former correspondent of The Daily Show
Richard Osman
1970
Producer, Creative Director of Endemol UK, co-presenter of Pointless, writer
Andy Parsons
1967
Comedian, comedy writer, half of Parsons and Naylor
Sue Perkins
1969
Comedian, actress, writer, television presenter, half of Mel and Sue
Steve Punt
1962
Comedian, actor, writer, half of Punt and Dennis
Jan Ravens
1958
Actress, impressionist
Griff Rhys Jones
1953
Comedian, actor, writer, co-founder of Talkback, half of Alas Smith and Jones
Blake Ritson
1980
Actor, director, writer
John-Luke Roberts
1985
Comedy writer and performer, known for Spats
Salman Rushdie[4]
1947
Booker Prize-winning novelist
Tanya Seghatchian
1968
Film producer, former Head of the Development Fund at the UK Film Council and British Film Institute
Peter Shaffer
1926
Playwright, known for Equus and Amadeus
Will Sharpe
1986
Actor, director, writer, known for The White Lotus
Charles Shaughnessy
1955
Actor
Paul Shearer
1981
Actor, writer
John Shrapnel
1942
Actor
Richard Sisson
1957
Pianist, composer, half of Kit and The Widow
Julian Slade
1930
Musical theatre composer, known for Salad Days
Tony Slattery
1959
Comedian, actor
Ali Smith
1962
Novelist, short story writer, journalist, known for Hotel World
Michael Marshall Smith
1965
Novelist, screenwriter, short story writer
Gregory Snegoff
1955
Voice-over artist, writer, director
Sarah Solemani
1982
Writer, actress
Dan Stevens
1982
Actor
Richard Stilgoe
1943
Songwriter, lyricist, musician
William Sutcliffe
1971
Novelist
Jonny Sweet
1985
Comedian, writer
Edward Taylor
1931
Comedy writer, radio producer, creator of The Men from the Ministry
Joe Thomas
1983
Comedian, actor, writer, known for The Inbetweeners
Emma Thompson
1959
Comedian, actress, screenwriter
Sandi Toksvig
1958
Comedian, writer, former presenter of The News Quiz, presenter of QI
Peter Tranchell
1922
composer, Precentor of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge and Lecturer in Music, University of Cambridge
David Tyler
1961
TV and radio producer (aka David Meek)
Richard Vranch
1959
Comedian, actor, musician, founding member of The Comedy Store Players
Nicola Walker
1970
Actress, known for Spooks and Unforgotten
Ian Wallace
1919
Opera singer, actor, broadcaster
Mark Watson
1980
Comedian, novelist, radio presenter
Phil Wang
1990
Comedian
Robert Webb
1972
Comedian, actor, writer, half of Mitchell and Webb
Ed Weeks
1980
Comedian, actor, writer
Liam Williams
1988
Comedian, actor, writer, director
Christopher Winchester
1972
Actor, writer, musical comedian
Mark Wing-Davey
1948
Actor, director
Sophie Winkleman
1980
Actress
David Wolstencroft
1969
Scriptwriter, creator of Spooks
Richard Wordsworth
1915
Character actor
Maury Yeston
1945
Broadway and Film Composer/lyricist, musicologist, known for Nine, Titanic, Grand Hotel
Martin Young
1947
Television reporter, interviewer, co-creator of Rough Justice

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Alumni". Cambridge Footlights. Archived from the original on 21 October 2014.
  2. ^ "Prince Charles Could Become Actor King". The Deseret News. 17 September 1968. p. 18.
  3. ^ Veronia Lee (14 June 2024). "Jazz Emu, Soho Theatre review – delightfully daft musical spoof". theartsdesk.com. Retrieved 8 August 2024.
  4. ^ "Desert Island Discs – Castaway : Salman Rushdie". BBC. 18 September 1988. Retrieved 26 August 2013.
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