Jim Piddock
Encyclopedia
James Anthony "Jim" Piddock (born 8 April 1956) is an English
actor, writer, and producer who began his career on the stage in England, before emigrating to the U.S. in 1981.
O'Callaghan) and Charles Frederick Piddock. He made his theatrical debut in the U.S. in The Boy's Own Story, a one-man show about a soccer goalkeeper, at the Julian Theatre in San Francisco. The show won Piddock the Bay Area Critics' Best Actor Award. The show was then produced Off-Broadway. That same year (1982), he was cast in Noel Coward
's Present Laughter
, and other Broadway and Off-Broadway shows followed, including the original US production of Noises Off
, The Knack at the Roundabout Theatre, Make and Break, and Design For Living.
Piddock then moved to Los Angeles and began to appear in TV shows, including The Tracey Ullman Show
, Coach, Max Headroom
, The Twilight Zone
, Murder She Wrote, Mad About You
, Angel, Yes Dear, ER
, Friends
, The Geena Davis Show
, Crossing Jordan
, The Drew Carey Show
, Lost, Monk
, "Without A Trace", "Dollhouse", "Party Down", "Children's Hospital", and "Castle". He also starred in several TV movies and mini-series, including From The Earth To The Moon
, 'A Mom For Christmas, She Creature
on HBO, and The Women Of Windsor.
He appeared in his first movie in 1989, Lethal Weapon 2
as the South African consulate. Other film roles soon followed, including Independence Day
, Traces Of Red, Multiplicity
, Burn Hollywood Burn, Austin Powers 3, A Different Loyalty
, Love For Rent, See This Movie
, The Prestige
, Epic Movie
, Who's Your Caddy?, and The Seeker: The Dark Is Rising. He has also appeared in the Christopher Guest
comedies Best In Show
(as the Dog Show commentator with Fred Willard), A Mighty Wind
, and For Your Consideration
.
As a voice actor, he provided the voice of Major Zero in the English version of the video game Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater
as well as Agent One in Return to Castle Wolfenstein
for Xbox
and PlayStation 2
. Regarding movies he provided the voice of Bolero the Bull in the movie Garfield 2, and the fictional artistic director of Forever Young Films, Kenneth Loring, doing the commentary in the directors' cut of the Coen Brothers
' Blood Simple
. In The Disney games the voice of Zazu in Timon & Pumbaa's Jungle Games
and The Lion King: Simba's Mighty Adventure
. In the DC Comics animated movie Batman: Under the Red Hood
, he voiced the part of Batman's butler, Alfred Pennyworth
.
In November 2007, he was seen onstage at the Ricardo Montalbán Theatre in Hollywood, starring in What About Dick? alongside an all British expat
cast, including Billy Connolly
, Tim Curry
, Eric Idle
, Eddie Izzard
, Jane Leeves
, Emily Mortimer
, and Tracey Ullman
. He then appeared in 2009 at the Montalban theatre and on Broadway in "An Evening Without Monty Python"
He has also produced or written a number of films, including Traces Of Red, One Good Turn, A Different Loyalty, The Man, and Tooth Fairy. He also created, wrote and produced the BBC series Too Much Sun.
He voiced as "Chic" for the animated science fiction movie Dead Space: Downfall (2008)
base on the Video Game Dead Space
.
Jim Piddock is currently (2011) shooting "Five Year Engagement", starring Jason Segel and Emily Blunt, playing Blunt's father.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
actor, writer, and producer who began his career on the stage in England, before emigrating to the U.S. in 1981.
Life and career
Piddock was born in Rochester, Kent, the son of Celia Mary (néeMarried and maiden names
A married name is the family name adopted by a person upon marriage. When a person assumes the family name of her spouse, the new name replaces the maiden name....
O'Callaghan) and Charles Frederick Piddock. He made his theatrical debut in the U.S. in The Boy's Own Story, a one-man show about a soccer goalkeeper, at the Julian Theatre in San Francisco. The show won Piddock the Bay Area Critics' Best Actor Award. The show was then produced Off-Broadway. That same year (1982), he was cast in Noel Coward
Noël Coward
Sir Noël Peirce Coward was an English playwright, composer, director, actor and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what Time magazine called "a sense of personal style, a combination of cheek and chic, pose and poise".Born in Teddington, a suburb of London, Coward attended a dance academy...
's Present Laughter
Present Laughter
Present Laughter is a comic play written by Noël Coward in 1939 and first staged in 1942 on tour, alternating with his lower middle-class domestic drama This Happy Breed...
, and other Broadway and Off-Broadway shows followed, including the original US production of Noises Off
Noises Off
Noises Off is a 1982 play by English playwright Michael Frayn. The idea for it was born in 1970, when Frayn was standing in the wings watching a performance of Chinamen, a farce that he had written for Lynn Redgrave...
, The Knack at the Roundabout Theatre, Make and Break, and Design For Living.
Piddock then moved to Los Angeles and began to appear in TV shows, including The Tracey Ullman Show
The Tracey Ullman Show
The Tracey Ullman Show was an American television variety show, hosted by British comedian and onetime pop singer Tracey Ullman. It debuted on April 5, 1987 as the Fox network's second primetime series after Married... with Children, and ran until May 26, 1990. The show blended sketch comedy shorts...
, Coach, Max Headroom
Max Headroom (TV series)
Max Headroom is a British-produced American science fiction television series by Chrysalis/Lakeside Productions that aired in the United States on ABC from March 1987 to May 1988. The series was based on the Channel 4 British TV pilot Max Headroom: 20 Minutes into the Future...
, The Twilight Zone
The Twilight Zone
The Twilight Zone is an American television anthology series created by Rod Serling. Each episode is a mixture of self-contained drama, psychological thriller, fantasy, science fiction, suspense, or horror, often concluding with a macabre or unexpected twist...
, Murder She Wrote, Mad About You
Mad About You
Mad About You is an American sitcom that aired on NBC from September 23, 1992 to May 24, 1999. The show starred Paul Reiser and Helen Hunt as a newly married couple in New York City. Reiser played Paul Buchman, a documentary film maker. Hunt played Jamie Stemple Buchman, a public relations specialist...
, Angel, Yes Dear, ER
ER (TV series)
ER is an American medical drama television series created by novelist Michael Crichton that aired on NBC from September 19, 1994 to April 2, 2009. It was produced by Constant c Productions and Amblin Entertainment, in association with Warner Bros. Television...
, Friends
Friends
Friends is an American sitcom created by David Crane and Marta Kauffman, which aired on NBC from September 22, 1994 to May 6, 2004. The series revolves around a group of friends in Manhattan. The series was produced by Bright/Kauffman/Crane Productions, in association with Warner Bros. Television...
, The Geena Davis Show
The Geena Davis Show
The Geena Davis Show was an American sitcom starring Geena Davis. The show lasted one season on ABC.- Background :Terri Minsky first pitched the idea of a Sex and the City-like character becoming a suburban housewife to ABC in early 2000. Basic plot details were drawn up, and the script eventually...
, Crossing Jordan
Crossing Jordan
Crossing Jordan is an American television crime/drama series that aired on NBC from September 24, 2001 to May 16, 2007. It stars Jill Hennessy as Jordan Cavanaugh, M.D., a crime-solving forensic pathologist employed in the Suffolk County, Massachusetts, Medical Examiner's Office...
, The Drew Carey Show
The Drew Carey Show
The Drew Carey Show is an American sitcom that aired on ABC from 1995 to 2004. The show was set in Cleveland, Ohio, and revolved around the retail office and home life of "everyman" Drew Carey, a fictionalized version of the actor....
, Lost, Monk
Monk (TV series)
Monk is an American comedy-drama detective mystery television series created by Andy Breckman and starring Tony Shalhoub as the titular character, Adrian Monk. It originally ran from 2002 to 2009 and is primarily a mystery series, although it has dark and comic touches.The series debuted on July...
, "Without A Trace", "Dollhouse", "Party Down", "Children's Hospital", and "Castle". He also starred in several TV movies and mini-series, including From The Earth To The Moon
From the Earth to the Moon
From the Earth to the Moon is a humorous science fantasy novel by Jules Verne and is one of the earliest entries in that genre. It tells the story of the president of a post-American Civil War gun club in Baltimore, his rival, a Philadelphia maker of armor, and a Frenchman, who build an enormous...
, 'A Mom For Christmas, She Creature
She Creature
She Creature is a 2001 television film starring Rufus Sewell, Carla Gugino and Rya Kihlstedt and directed by Sebastian Gutierrez . It is the first in a series of films made for Cinemax paying tribute to the films of American International Pictures...
on HBO, and The Women Of Windsor.
He appeared in his first movie in 1989, Lethal Weapon 2
Lethal Weapon 2
Lethal Weapon 2 is a 1989 action comedy film directed by Richard Donner, and starring Mel Gibson, Danny Glover, Patsy Kensit, Joe Pesci, Derrick O'Connor and Joss Ackland...
as the South African consulate. Other film roles soon followed, including Independence Day
Independence Day (film)
Independence Day is a 1996 science fiction film about an alien invasion of Earth, focusing on a disparate group of individuals and families as they converge in the Nevada desert and, along with the rest of the human population, participate in a last-chance counterattack on July 4 – the same...
, Traces Of Red, Multiplicity
Multiplicity (film)
Multiplicity is a 1996 comedy film, starring Michael Keaton and Andie MacDowell. The film was co-produced and directed by Harold Ramis. The original music score was composed by George Fenton....
, Burn Hollywood Burn, Austin Powers 3, A Different Loyalty
A Different Loyalty
A Different Loyalty is a 2004 drama film inspired by the story of British traitor Kim Philby's love affair and marriage to Eleanor Brewer in Beirut and his eventual defection to the Soviet Union. The story takes place in the 1960s and stars Sharon Stone and Rupert Everett...
, Love For Rent, See This Movie
See This Movie
See This Movie is a 2005 comedy movie written by David M. Rosenthal and Joseph Matthew Smith, and directed by Rosenthal. The film stars Seth Meyers and John Cho, and also features Jessica Paré, Jim Piddock, and Jessalyn Gilsig, with cameo appearances by Patton Oswalt, Miguel Arteta, and the film's...
, The Prestige
The Prestige
The Prestige is a 1995 novel by British writer Christopher Priest. The novel is epistolary in structure: that is, it purports to be a collection of real diaries that were kept by the protagonists and later collated...
, Epic Movie
Epic Movie
Epic Movie is a 2007 American parody film directed and written by Jason Friedberg and Aaron Seltzer and produced by Paul Schiff. It was made in a similar style to Date Movie, Friedberg and Seltzer's previous film. The film mostly references The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the...
, Who's Your Caddy?, and The Seeker: The Dark Is Rising. He has also appeared in the Christopher Guest
Christopher Guest
Christopher Haden-Guest, 5th Baron Haden-Guest , better known as Christopher Guest, is an American screenwriter, composer, musician, director, actor and comedian. He is most widely known in Hollywood for having written, directed and starred in several improvisational "mockumentary" films that...
comedies Best In Show
Best in Show
Best in Show may refer to:* Best in Show , a 2000 film* Best in Show , a 2005 album by Grinspoon* The Best in Show award or the Best in Show competition in conformation dog shows** Best in Show winners of Crufts...
(as the Dog Show commentator with Fred Willard), A Mighty Wind
A Mighty Wind
A Mighty Wind is a 2003 mockumentary about a folk music reunion concert in which three folk bands must reunite for a television performance for the first time in decades. It was directed by Christopher Guest...
, and For Your Consideration
For Your Consideration (film)
For Your Consideration is a 2006 comedy film directed by Christopher Guest. It was co-written by Guest and Eugene Levy, both also starring in the film....
.
As a voice actor, he provided the voice of Major Zero in the English version of the video game Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater
Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater
is an award-winning stealth action video game directed by Hideo Kojima. Snake Eater was developed by Konami Computer Entertainment Japan and published by Konami for the PlayStation 2, and was released on November 17, 2004 in North America; December 16, 2004 in Japan; March 4, 2005 in Europe; and on...
as well as Agent One in Return to Castle Wolfenstein
Return to Castle Wolfenstein
Return to Castle Wolfenstein is a first person shooter video game published by Activision and originally released on November 19, 2001 for Microsoft Windows. It was made available on Steam on August 3, 2007. The single player game was developed by Gray Matter Interactive and Nerve Software...
for Xbox
Xbox
The Xbox is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Microsoft. It was released on November 15, 2001 in North America, February 22, 2002 in Japan, and March 14, 2002 in Australia and Europe and is the predecessor to the Xbox 360. It was Microsoft's first foray into the gaming console...
and PlayStation 2
PlayStation 2
The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony as part of the PlayStation series. Its development was announced in March 1999 and it was first released on March 4, 2000, in Japan...
. Regarding movies he provided the voice of Bolero the Bull in the movie Garfield 2, and the fictional artistic director of Forever Young Films, Kenneth Loring, doing the commentary in the directors' cut of the Coen Brothers
Coen Brothers
Joel David Coen and Ethan Jesse Coen known together professionally as the Coen brothers, are American filmmakers...
' Blood Simple
Blood Simple
Blood Simple is a 1984 neo-noir crime film. It was the directorial debut of Joel Coen and the first major film of cinematographer Barry Sonnenfeld, who later became a noted director...
. In The Disney games the voice of Zazu in Timon & Pumbaa's Jungle Games
Timon & Pumbaa's Jungle Games
Timon & Pumbaa's Jungle Games is a Super NES and PC game.-Summary:This video game is packed with five games which are Jungle Pinball , Burper , Hippo Hop , Bug Drop and Slingshooter accessible directly...
and The Lion King: Simba's Mighty Adventure
The Lion King: Simba's Mighty Adventure
The Lion King: Simba's Mighty Adventure is a video game based on Disney's animated film The Lion King. The title was published by Activision in 2000, and was released on Game Boy Color and PlayStation...
. In the DC Comics animated movie Batman: Under the Red Hood
Batman: Under the Red Hood
# "A Death in the Family" # "Main Titles" # "Mob Boss Meeting" # "Amazo" # "Batwing" # "Batmobile to Arkham" # "Interrogation" # "Rooftop Chase" # "Flashback" # "Black Mask Strikes Back"...
, he voiced the part of Batman's butler, Alfred Pennyworth
Alfred Pennyworth
Alfred Pennyworth is a fictional character that appears throughout the DC Comics franchise. The character first appears in Batman #16 , and was created by writer Bob Kane and artist Jerry Robinson. Alfred serves as Batman’s tireless butler, assistant, confidant, and surrogate father figure...
.
In November 2007, he was seen onstage at the Ricardo Montalbán Theatre in Hollywood, starring in What About Dick? alongside an all British expat
Expatriate
An expatriate is a person temporarily or permanently residing in a country and culture other than that of the person's upbringing...
cast, including Billy Connolly
Billy Connolly
William "Billy" Connolly, Jr., CBE is a Scottish comedian, musician, presenter and actor. He is sometimes known, especially in his native Scotland, by the nickname The Big Yin...
, Tim Curry
Tim Curry
Timothy James "Tim" Curry is a British actor, singer, composer and voice actor, known for his work in a diverse range of theatre, film and television productions. He currently resides in Los Angeles, California....
, Eric Idle
Eric Idle
Eric Idle is an English comedian, actor, author, singer, writer, and comedic composer. He was as a member of the British comedy group Monty Python, a member of the The Rutles on Saturday Night Live and author of the play, Spamalot....
, Eddie Izzard
Eddie Izzard
Edward John "Eddie" Izzard is a British stand-up comedian and actor. His comedy style takes the form of rambling, whimsical monologue and self-referential pantomime...
, Jane Leeves
Jane Leeves
Jane Leeves is an English film, stage, and television actress, comedienne and dancer.Leeves made her screen debut with a small role in the 1983 popular British comedy television show The Benny Hill Show. Leeves moved to the United States, where she performed in small roles until she secured a...
, Emily Mortimer
Emily Mortimer
Emily Kathleen A. Mortimer is an English actress. She began performing on stage, and has since appeared in several film and television roles, including Scream 3, Match Point, Lars and the Real Girl, and Shutter Island....
, and Tracey Ullman
Tracey Ullman
Tracey Ullman is a British stage and television actress, comedienne, singer, dancer, screenwriter and author ....
. He then appeared in 2009 at the Montalban theatre and on Broadway in "An Evening Without Monty Python"
He has also produced or written a number of films, including Traces Of Red, One Good Turn, A Different Loyalty, The Man, and Tooth Fairy. He also created, wrote and produced the BBC series Too Much Sun.
He voiced as "Chic" for the animated science fiction movie Dead Space: Downfall (2008)
Dead Space: Downfall
Dead Space: Downfall is an animated film, a prequel to the game Dead Space and takes place during the events of Dead Space: Extraction, while the Necromorphs invade the USG Ishimura after it receives the Red Marker...
base on the Video Game Dead Space
Dead Space (video game)
Dead Space is a survival horror third-person shooter video game, developed by EA Redwood Shores for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. The game was made available on Steam on October 20, 2008...
.
Jim Piddock is currently (2011) shooting "Five Year Engagement", starring Jason Segel and Emily Blunt, playing Blunt's father.