Michael Ciaran Parker born 4 May , [ 3 ] [ 4 ] known by his stage name Michael Barrymore , is an English comedian, influencer and television presenter of game shows and light entertainment programmes on British television in the s, s and s. In , he headlined the Royal Variety Performance.
At his peak, Barrymore was voted the UK's favourite television star several times, and he became one of the highest-paid stars on television from the mids to the late s. He starred in Bob Martin from to , a comedy drama in which he played the title role of a failing television game-show host. Barrymore's television career effectively ended after the death of Stuart Lubbock in following a party at Barrymore's house in Essex. Barrymore was the subject of police investigations and legal action around the case over several years.
Born Michael Ciaran Parker in Bermondsey , on Sunday, 4 May , he lived on the Dickens estate for the first 18 years of his life with his two elder siblings. Barrymore and his siblings were raised in the Roman Catholic faith of their Irish mother, Margaret. Barrymore spent his early career working as a Redcoat at Butlins holiday camps and then in the West End theatre shows of London, where he met dancer Cheryl Cocklin in They married in He became the host of ITV gameshow Strike It Lucky which later became Strike It Rich in and it grew in popularity over the years, watched by 18 million viewers at its peak.
This was Barrymore's first successful presenting role Get Set Go! However, before that he had his own show between and , produced for the BBC entitled Michael Barrymore's Saturday Night Out ; [ 11 ] it was set in Jersey and the theme tune, "Doin' the Crab" had been released as a single in In , Barrymore was given his own show entitled Barrymore where he interviewed guests, performed his comedy routines and joined in with other performers on the show.
The show lasted throughout the s right up to , and was consistently nominated for awards over the years in the UK.
