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Keith Allen (actor)

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Not to be confused with Keith Allan (actor).

Keith Allen
Allen in 2012
Born
Keith Howell Charles Allen[1]

(1953-09-02) 2 September 1953 (age 71)
Llanelli, Carmarthenshire, Wales
NationalityBritish
Occupation(s)Actor, author, broadcaster, comedian, musician, singer
Years active1979–present
Spouses
​
​
(m. 1984; div. 1989)​
​
​
(m. 1997, divorced)​
PartnerTamzin Malleson
Children6, including Lily and Alfie Allen
RelativesKevin Allen (brother)

Keith Howell Charles Allen (born 2 September 1953) is a Welsh actor,[2] pantomime star, and television presenter.[3][4] He is the father of singer Lily Allen and actor Alfie Allen, and brother of actor and director Kevin Allen.

Early life and education

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Keith Howell Charles Allen was born on 2 September 1953[1] in Gorseinon, Wales.[5][a] His father was Edward Charles Owen, a Royal Navy petty officer submariner,[7] and his mother a Welsh waitress.[5] His younger brother is actor Kevin Allen.[7] He spent his early years near Swansea and in Malta, and most of his childhood in Gosport, Hampshire, while his father served in Portsmouth[8] or away at sea. Although he spent much of his life in England, he regards himself as Welsh.[5]

At the age of 11, when his father was posted to Singapore, he was sent to boarding school[9] at Sir Anthony Browns Brentwood,[1] a public school in Essex.[9] He was expelled from the school at the age of 13 after meddling with organ pipes, causing trouble at morning assembly. This led to a period in borstal.,[5] before attending Brune Park Community School in Gosport.[1] He has said that he went to a comprehensive school in Swansea (where he was in 1966), a public school, a borstal, and a detention centre, all within five years,. He earned six O-levels, leading to entry to the Welsh College of Music and Drama. Parking in the principal’s carpark and an ensuing row led to his expulsion from the college.[5]

Career

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Early work

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After having several jobs during the 1970s, including a job as a stagehand from which he was sacked after joining Max Bygraves' chorus line on stage naked, Allen worked as a stand-up comedian and vocalist, opening for punk bands such as The Clash.[10]

Acting career

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He appeared in a number of films in the series The Comic Strip Presents... on Channel 4 in the 1980s after becoming one of the breakthrough acts of the Comedy Store in 1979. Notable episodes featuring Allen include The Bullshitters (a parody of The Professionals), and The Yob (a parody of The Fly), which he also co-wrote. Allen would also appear alongside fellow Comic Strip alumni as Pestilence in The Young Ones episode "Interesting." Allen has performed both straight and comedy acting. In 1985 The Comic Strip hit the big screen with The Supergrass starring Allen, Adrian Edmondson, Peter Richardson, Jennifer Saunders and Robbie Coltrane, directed by Comic Strip actor Peter Richardson.

In 1986, he appeared in Comrades, a film about the Tolpuddle Martyrs.

During the brief period of British Satellite Broadcasting as an alternative satellite broadcaster to Sky, he had a regular comedy show of his own I Love Keith Allen on the Galaxy channel, a mix of stand-up and sketches. He appeared in the final Carry On film Carry On Columbus (1992) playing Pepi The Poisoner. It was directed by Gerald Thomas and produced by Peter Rogers.

Allen made a cameo appearance in the black comedy Twin Town, directed by his brother Kevin, and the Channel 4 adaptation of A Very British Coup. He played the lodger who dies at the beginning of Danny Boyle's thriller Shallow Grave (1994). In the same year, he played Jonas Chuzzlewit in a BBC adaptation of Dickens' Martin Chuzzlewit. He was used again by Boyle to play a drug dealer in Trainspotting (1996). Danny Boyle has said that Allen's character from Trainspotting is the same one that moves into the shared flat in Shallow Grave – he wears the same clothes. He also appeared disguised as a fictional hip-hop star "Keithski" to present Top of the Pops on 2 March 1995.[11]

In 2000, Allen appeared in two Harold Pinter plays at the Almeida Theatre, playing Lambert in Celebration and Mr Sands in The Room. These were performed again at The Lincoln Center Festival in July 2001.[12]

In 2001, he played the character of "problem-solver" Jim Napeworth in an episode of Murder in Mind, and in 2004 cameoed in Black Books as poker-player Dave 'Mouse Ears' Smith. In 2002 he played the London Records executive Roger Ames in 24 Hour Party People, a film about Factory Records and the Manchester music scene. Allen cameoed in the Channel 4 sitcom Spaced in a short homage to the Stanley Kubrick film, The Shining. He appeared as the villain in the sequel to 2004's Agent Cody Banks, Agent Cody Banks 2: Destination London, opposite Frankie Muniz. He appeared in the hospital drama, Bodies, as Mr Tony Whitman, a sarcastic but somehow likeable consultant obstetrician with an enormous ego. In 2005 he appeared in the Endemol-produced BBC Two television programme Art School alongside Ulrika Jonsson, John Humphrys and Clarissa Dickson Wright where he discovered a passion for painting. From 2006 to 2009, Allen appeared in the BBC's Robin Hood drama series, as the Sheriff of Nottingham.

Allen has also starred in pantomimes, such as an adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson's Treasure Island in 2008, written by Ken Ludwig and directed by Sean Holmes; he took the role of a gritty Long John Silver in the Theatre Royal Haymarket.[13][14]

In September 2011, he appeared in the BBC six-part drama series The Body Farm as DI Hale. 2012 (2013 in the UK) saw the release of the Sara Sugarman comedy film Vinyl in which Keith played an ageing rock star who finds himself back in the public eye after his band member fools the music industry into giving them a record deal. In 2013, he played Darren the farmer in episode 1.5 of the comedy drama series Great Night Out.

In April 2013, Allen starred in a revival of Richard Bean's black comedy Smack Family Robinson at The Rose Theatre, Kingston upon Thames.

In January 2021, Allen played serial killer and rapist John Cooper in the ITV 3-part drama, The Pembrokeshire Murders. In 2023, Allen appeared as Dai Williams in the BBC crime drama Steeltown Murders.[15][16]

TV presenter

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Allen presented the TV show Whatever You Want in 1982, during the early days of Channel Four and has presented television documentaries for Victor Lewis-Smith's Associated-Rediffusion Television Productions: Little Lady Fauntleroy (2004), which saw Allen interview Lauren Harries and her family,[17] You're Fayed (2005) and on Michael Carroll – King of Chavs (2006). In 2007 his documentary Tourette De France appeared on Channel 4, in which he travelled with a group of Scottish people with Tourette syndrome, including John Davidson, on an AEC Routemaster bus from London to the Parisian hospital where this condition was described by Georges Gilles de la Tourette in 1884. He also presented the British erotic direct-to-video series Red Tape.

Keith Allen Will Burn in Hell appeared on Channel 4 in June 2007, and showed Allen profiling the controversial Westboro Baptist Church, led by Fred Phelps, and speaking to members of the church and Phelps's family.

Allen presented the Manchester Passion, a contemporary retelling of the last few hours in the life of Jesus on Good Friday, 14 April 2006.

Keith Meets Keith, screened on 14 September 2009 on Channel 4, in which Allen tracked down TV chef Keith Floyd. The show contained what turned out to be Floyd's final interview for television, as he died of a heart attack on the evening the documentary was screened.

Allen's documentary film about the death of Diana, Princess of Wales, Unlawful Killing was intended for release in 2011. Mohamed Al-Fayed, the film's only financial backer, contributed the film's £2.5 million budget.[18][19] Allen argued in The Guardian that it detailed a "provable conspiracy after the crash".[20] It accuses Queen Elizabeth and Princess Margaret of being "gangsters in tiaras" and Prince Philip of being a "psychopath".[18][19] Allen said he refused to make 87 cuts asked for by lawyers to enable the film to be shown in Britain.[18] His film was permanently shelved in 2012 after it became known it could not be screened in the United States as it was impossible to insure it against potential litigation.[21]

Music

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Allen was a member of London punk band the Atoms in the 1970s,[22] and later Fat Les, a band which also featured artist Damien Hirst and Blur bassist Alex James.

In 1980 he starred as the Devil in a short movie called Meteor Madness which featured London psychobilly band The Meteors. The film played in cinemas as the opening to the Two-Tone film Dance Craze which was released in February 1981. That was the only time Meteor Madness was shown, and it has never been released on video or DVD.

He was also closely associated with the band New Order, directing the video for their 1993 song "Ruined in a Day", which depicts Allen and the band members immersed in a bizarre game of charades with a group of Buddhist monks. He co-wrote their only UK number one single, "World in Motion", and occasionally performed with them live, including their headline show at the Reading Festival in 1998. He also appeared in the band's DVD New Order Story, where he played host to a fictional New Order game show.

Allen appeared as the businessman in the music video to Blur's 1995 hit "Country House".[citation needed]

He has been involved in several other football-related records, including "England's Irie" by Black Grape and wrote the lyrics for "Vindaloo" by Fat Les. He also contributed the song "On Me Head, Son" to the film Mike Bassett: England Manager, credited on the soundtrack album to Sporting Les.[citation needed]

Personal life

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As a guest on Top Gear on 9 December 2007, Allen said that claims he had eight children were not true and that he actually has six children by four women. His children include pop singer Lily Allen and actor Alfie Allen with his first wife Alison Owen. He married his second wife, Nira Park, in 1997. After his divorce from Park, Allen became the partner of actress Tamzin Malleson (who starred alongside him in Bodies), and the couple had a daughter, Teddie Allen, in 2006.[23][24] They live in Stroud, Gloucestershire.[25][26] In 2017, Allen and Malleson opened a diner in Stroud, built with the diner set of Kingsman: The Golden Circle which Allen recovered after shooting the film.[27]

In the mid-1980s Allen served a 21-day jail sentence in Pentonville Prison after being found guilty of criminal damage at the Zanzibar club in Covent Garden.[28][29]

Although a staunch socialist, whose political philosophy was influenced by the Workers' Revolutionary Party, Allen has expressed grudging admiration for Conservative Party politicians David Cameron and William Hague.[30][31]

Allen has on his shoulder a tattoo of Rinka the dog, owned by Norman Scott, which was shot dead during the Jeremy Thorpe scandal. He has explained that: "I had the tattoo placed on my arm lest I forget, so I have a history of having suspicions about the establishment and the government and court cases".[32]

He is a supporter of Fulham Football Club.[33]

Selected filmography

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Film

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Year Title Role Notes
1985 The Supergrass Wong
Loose Connections Keith
1986 Comrades James Hammett
1988 The Yob Patrick Church
1989 Scandal Kevin
1990 Chicago Joe and the Showgirl Lenny Bexley
1992 Carry On Columbus Pepi The Poisoner
1993 The Young Americans Jack Doyle
1994 Shallow Grave Hugo
Beyond Bedlam Marc Gilmour
Captives Lenny
1995 Blue Juice Mike
1996 Loch Ness Gordon Shoals
Trainspotting The Dealer
1997 Twin Town Emrys
2000 Rancid Aluminium Dr Jones
2001 The Others Mr. Marlish
My Wife Is an Actress Dave, The Film Director
Mike Bassett: England Manager Himself
2004 Agent Cody Banks 2: Destination London Victor Diaz
De-Lovely Irving Berlin
2008 A Film with Me in It Jack
2011 Unlawful Killing Narrator Also director
2013 Vinyl Minto, band member
2015 Hector Jimbo
2016 Eddie the Eagle Terry, Father
2017 Kingsman: The Golden Circle Charles
2021 La Cha Cha Paulie
Rise of the Footsoldier: Origins Dave Simms
2023 The Buckingham Murders Miller

Television

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Year Title Role Notes
1982 The Young Ones Pestilence Episode: "Interesting"
1988 A Very British Coup Thompson 3 episodes
1989–1991 Making Out Rex Buckley 12 episodes
1993 Inspector Morse John Peter Barrie Episode: "The Day of the Devil"
1994 Faith Jeff Wagland 4 episodes
Martin Chuzzlewit Jonas Chuzzlewit 6 episodes
1996 Sharman Brady Episode: "Hearts of Stone"
1997 Born to Run Byron Flitch 6 episodes
1998 The Life and Crimes of William Palmer Dr. William Palmer 2 episodes
1999 Jack of Hearts Jack Denby 6 episodes
2000–2001 Bob Martin Vinnie 11 episodes
2004 Black Books Dave "Mouse Ears" Smith Episode: "A Little Flutter"
Little Lady Fauntleroy Presenter Channel 4 documentary
2004–2006 Bodies Dr. Tony Whitman 17 episodes
2005–2011 New Tricks Roger McHugh 2 episodes
2006–2009 Robin Hood Vaisey, Sheriff of Nottingham 34 episodes
2007 Mobile Sir James Corson 3 episodes
2009 Keith Meets Keith himself Television film; also director
2010–2011 The Runaway Danny Dixon 6 episodes
2011 Case Histories Richard Moat 2 episodes
The Body Farm D.I. Hale 6 episodes
2013 Great Night Out Darren, the farmer Episode: #1.5
By Any Means Nicholas Mason Episode: #1.1
2014–2015 My Mad Fat Diary Victor 3 episodes
2015 Uncle Uncle Frank Episode: #2.5
2016 We're Doomed! The Dad's Army Story Paul Fox Television film
Time Crashers Himself
Death in Paradise Neil Jenkins Episode: "Lost Identity"
2018 Marcella Alan Summers 6 episodes
2021 The Pembrokeshire Murders John Cooper 3 episodes
Midsomer Murders Harry Marx Episode: "The Stitcher Society"
2022 Agatha Raisin Rev. Arthur Chance Episode: "A Spoonful of Poison"
2023 Steeltown Murders Dai Williams 4 episodes

Music videos

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Year Title Role
1990 ENGLANDneworder: "World in Motion" Himself
1995 Blur: "Country House" Successful Fella
1998 Fat Les: "Vindaloo" Narrator

Books

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  • Allen, Keith (June 2007). Grow Up. Ebury Press. ISBN 978-0-09-191070-9.

References

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  1. ^ a b c d "Keith Allen, Esq" Archived 28 October 2015 at archive.today Debretts People of Today. Retrieved 1 October 2014.
  2. ^ Williams, Kathryn (13 January 2021). "Is The Pembrokeshire Murders actor Keith Allen Welsh?". WalesOnline. Retrieved 29 August 2021. Luckily, during a press panel for The Pembrokeshire Murders the 67-year-old settled the debate over whether he considers himself a Welshman, saying: "I am Welsh," when interview Nina Hossain from ITV wondered whether to label him as such.
  3. ^ Wiegand, Chris (18 November 2008). "What to say about … Treasure Island with Keith Allen". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 12 June 2020.
  4. ^ Turner, Graeme; Tay, Jinna (27 March 2009). Television Studies After TV: Understanding Television in the Post-Broadcast Era. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-134-02167-3.
  5. ^ a b c d e Turner, Robin (29 May 2007). "Borstal and Swansea comp made me who I am". Wales Online. Retrieved 29 November 2024.
  6. ^ "You ask the questions (Such as: Keith Allen, how do you feel about being every soccer hooligan's favourite pop star?)[dead link‍]", The Independent, 31 May 2000. Retrieved 19 March 2011
  7. ^ a b Barratt, Nick (19 May 2007). "Family detective". The Daily Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on 11 October 2007. Retrieved 7 May 2010.
  8. ^ Maxwell, Dominic (2009) "Keith Allen: confessions of an angry old man[dead link‍]", The Times, 6 October 2009. Retrieved 19 March 2011
  9. ^ a b Billen, Andrew (2006) "I had a great time in borstal[dead link‍]", The Times, 13 October 2006. Retrieved 19 March 2011
  10. ^ Viner, Brian (2001) "Keith Allen: An actor and a character", The Independent, 26 April 2001. Retrieved 19 March 2011 Archived 2 April 2009 at the Wayback Machine
  11. ^ List of Presenters for Top of the Pops. bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 7 September 2007.
  12. ^ Celebration and The Room, by Harold Pinter, The Almeida, 16 March 2000. The Lincoln Center Festival, New York, July 2001. haroldpinter.org
  13. ^ Vlahos, Eros (18 December 2008). "Kids on panto: Treasure Island / Theatre Royal Haymarket, London". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 12 June 2020.
  14. ^ "Arrgh! What's this? Long John Silver with no stump". Evening Standard. 13 November 2008. Retrieved 12 June 2020.
  15. ^ Craig, David (15 May 2023). "Meet the cast of Steeltown Murders". Radio Times. Retrieved 22 May 2023.
  16. ^ Gilbert, Gerard (15 May 2023). "Steeltown Murders, BBC One, review: A more thoughtful class of true crime drama". iNewspaper. Retrieved 22 May 2023.
  17. ^ "Little Lady Fauntleroy". Radio Times. Retrieved 15 March 2023.
  18. ^ a b c Higgins, Charlotte (14 May 2011). "Not for British eyes: Keith Allen's Diana film seeks headlines in Cannes". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 14 May 2011.
  19. ^ a b Singh, Anita; Rayner, Gordon (13 May 2011). "Unlawful Killing: film about the death of Diana likens Prince Philip to Fred West". The Daily Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on 29 December 2012.
  20. ^ Allen, Keith (7 May 2011). "Unlawful Killing – the film the British won't get to see". The Guardian. Retrieved 4 May 2019.
  21. ^ Child, Ben (5 July 2012). "Princess Diana documentary Unlawful Killing is shelved". The Guardian. Retrieved 4 May 2019.
  22. ^ "Keith Allen: 'Litterers should be shot and killed'". The Independent. 10 March 2013. Retrieved 20 July 2020.
  23. ^ "I can't stand actors", The Observer, Sunday 21 August 2005
  24. ^ Johnson, Sarah (6 December 2006). "Johnson, Sarah; "Actor chooses home birth shock horror"; Birth Wisdom; 6 December 2006". Sarahdoula.blogspot.com. Retrieved 19 July 2014.
  25. ^ Scott, Danny (January 31, 2016). "A Life in the Day: Keith Allen, comedian". The Sunday Times.
  26. ^ "Celebrity 5 Minute Stroudie"[permanent dead link‍]. Gloucestershire Live. May 20, 2009.
  27. ^ Evans, Sam (3 July 2017). "Tamzin Malleson and Keith Allen launch American style diner in former Stroud chip shop". Stroud News & Journal. Retrieved 19 March 2018.
  28. ^ Millard, Rosie (2008) "Keith Allen: 'I get to do what I want'", The Times, 15 November 2008. Retrieved 19 March 2011
  29. ^ Kelly, Danny (1985) "Comic With Conviction", NME, 2 February 1985, p. 3
  30. ^ Allen, Keith (2007). Grow Up. London: Ebury Press. p. 191. ISBN 978-0-09-191071-6.
  31. ^ Bryony Gordon (4 April 2008). "Keith Allen: mad, bad and dangerous to know?". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 12 January 2022. Retrieved 10 October 2011. I actually quite like [Cameron]. It's come to something when I think David Cameron is all right!
  32. ^ "My Diana film reveals things that don't add up – Keith Allen". Wales Online. 22 March 2013. Retrieved 4 May 2019.
  33. ^ Bilmes, Alex (17 October 2009). "My sporting life: Lily Allen". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 15 May 2019.
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