Neil Mullarkey
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Neil Mullarkey is a British actor, writer, and comedian.
At Cambridge, Mullarkey was Junior Treasurer to Footlights in the academic year 1981 to 1982 and was president in that ending 1983. Mullarkey formed Hancock & Mullarkey with Nick Hancock at Cambridge, performing their act (which consisted of spoofing television shows' title sequences to that show's accompanying theme music) several times on television. This included Doctor Who, Kojak, and Dad's Army.
In the early 1980s, he teamed up with Mike Myers as 'Mullarkey and Myers'. They would perform sketches based on their shared love of cartoons, B-movies and bad TV. They played around the burgeoning London pub circuit, particularly at the George IV in Chiswick, where they often shared the bill with the young Hugh Grant, then plying his trade in the Jockeys Of Norfolk review. As their fame increased, Mullarkey and Myers toured the UK, ending in a sold-out season at the Edinburgh Festival. Mike eventually returned to Toronto, but Mullarkey would briefly join him to revive the show in Canada. Later still, he appeared in Myers' Austin Powers debut, as the Customs Officer who freaks Austin out with his penis enlarger (he also appeared in Mike's So I Married an Axe Murderer, and again in Goldmember).
Mullarkey has since developed a performance career in theatre, television, cinema and radio.
Mullarkey runs management workshops and hosts conferences for private and public organisations. In the Mullarkey Workshop he uses the techniques of theatre improvisation to inspire business people to embrace their creativity and enhance their communication skills.
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[edit] Theatre
He is a founder member of The Comedy Store Players, and still appears with them regularly at London's Comedy Store.
He has written and performed four one-man shows:
- A Bit of Quiet Fun,
- Memoirs of Lord Naughty,
- All That Mullarkey,
- Don't Be Needy Be Succeedy
'Don't Be Needy Be Succeedy' won the Fringe Report Award for Best Satire of 2002. In it Neil plays L. Vaughan Spencer, Life Coach, Self-Help Guru and Gangsta Motivator.
Mullarkey starred with Eddie Izzard in the sell-out West End run of One Word Improv and has guested with The Groundlings in Los Angeles and The Second City in Toronto.
[edit] Television
On television, his numerous appearances include:
- Whose Line is it Anyway
- The Manageress
- Lovejoy
- Smith and Jones
- Saturday Live
- QI
- Carrott Confidential
- Paul Merton – The Series
- Absolutely
He was a writer on Tony Hawks's show Morris Minor's Marvellous Motors and co-wrote (with Greg Proops) The Amazing Colossal Show for BBC2. He hosted American Freak for America's Comedy Central network.
He also does regular TV advert voiceover work.
[edit] Cinema
Mullarkey has acted in the films:
- Leon the Pig Farmer
- A Fistful of Fingers
- Solitaire for 2 (of which he wrote the novelisation)
- Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery
- Austin Powers in Goldmember
- Comic Act
- Spiceworld
[edit] Radio
Mullarkey hosted Missed Demeanours for BBC Radio 4, was a regular performer on Bits from Last Week's Radio, co-wrote and starred in FAB TV and has appeared on Just a Minute, The News Quiz, Quote...Unquote, I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue, Loose Ends, In Touch and The Unbelievable Truth. He wrote and presented the documentary Ten Years of the Comedy Store Players.
| Preceded by Tony Slattery |
Footlights President 1982–1983 |
Succeeded by Nick Hancock |
