Simon Amstell

Simon Amstell
Simon Amstell at One Big Laugh, Bloomsbury Theatre, 2006.
Born	Simon Marc Amstell (1979-11-29) 29 November 1979 (age 37) Gants Hill, Essex, England
Occupation	Stand-up comedian, television presenter, script writer, director, actor
Years active	1993–present
Website	www.simonamstell.co.uk

Simon Marc Amstell (born 29 November 1979) is an English comedian, television presenter, screenwriter, director and actor, best known for his roles as former host of Popworld, former host of Never Mind the Buzzcocks and co-writer and star of the sitcom Grandma's House.

Amstell was born in Gants Hill, Redbridge, east London in 1979, to David and Tina (née Leventhal) Amstell. He was brought up in a Jewish family, and he was the eldest of four children. He was educated at Beal High School, a state comprehensive school in Ilford. His parents' divorce in the early 1990s has been a constant theme throughout his stand-up career, and he says that their decision when he was born to circumcise him had caused him a sense of great emotional as well as physical loss.

Amstell's first television appearance was in 1993 when he appeared as a contestant on the Channel 4 game show GamesMaster. In 1994 he appeared on Good Morning with Anne and Nick performing an impression of Dame Edna Everage. Also that year, he appeared in an episode of Family Catchphrase, describing himself as a budding magician and showing one of his tricks to the show's presenter Andrew O'Connor, himself a magician. Amstell and his family won a television and a video recorder.