Gary Wilmot
| Gary Wilmot | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Harold Owen Wilmot 8 May 1954 Lambeth, London, England |
| Occupation | Singer, actor, comedian |
| Children | Katie Wilmot , Georgia Wilmot |
| Website | garywilmot |
Harold Owen "Gary" Wilmot (born 8 May 1954) is an English singer, actor, and comedian who rose to fame as a contestant on New Faces. As a television presenter, he is best known as the host of So You Want To Be Top and Showstoppers.
Wilmot was born in Lambeth, London, into a mixed-race household; his mother was English, and his Jamaican father Harry was a member of vocal harmony group The Southlanders. Harry died of a brain tumour in 1961, when his sons were still young. Despite these show business roots, Wilmot's upbringing was outside of the limelight; he continued to live on the predominantly white estate while his mother struggled to raise her children on family allowance. Later, he began to work on building sites and in factories, soon realising that manual labour was not a career he wished to pursue.
Wilmot started his career in entertainment after a friend informed an agent of his talent, and soon began to perform as part of the variety circuit. However, his big break came when he featured as part of a comedy double act with Judy McPhee on New Faces; the pair were later finalists. This would lead to numerous television appearances on Copy Cats, Knees Ups, Cue Gary!, and The Keith Harris Show. One of his most notable television roles was with the BBC children's quiz show So You Want To Be Top, which he co-presented with Leni Harper.
In 1994, Wilmot hosted Showstoppers, a programme which featured himself performing songs from musicals alongside special guests. Originally commissioned as a one-off series in which celebrities were given ten days to learn and perform a song, Wilmot was asked to record a further series of six spectaculars due to popular demand. He also starred in and directed a tour of Showstoppers which proved so popular that its original sixty dates were increased to one hundred and sixty.
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