Tim Minchin
AM
Timothy David Minchin
7 October 1975
Northampton, England
1998–present
2
- Vocals
- piano
- guitar
Born to Australian parents in Northampton, United Kingdom, and raised in Perth, Minchin attended the University of Western Australia (UWA) and the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts (WAAPA), before moving to Melbourne in 2002. He is best known for his musical comedy. He has released six CDs, five DVDs, and live comedy shows that he has performed internationally. He has appeared on television in Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States. His show Darkside launched him into the public eye, achieving critical success at the 2005 Melbourne International Comedy Festival and the 2005 Edinburgh Festival Fringe.
Minchin has a background in theatre and has appeared in various stage productions, in addition to small acting roles on Australian television. A documentary film about Minchin, Rock N Roll Nerd (directed by Rhian Skirving), was released theatrically in 2008 and broadcast by ABC1 in 2009. He is the composer and lyricist of the Olivier Award-winning, Tony Award-winning and Grammy Award-nominated show Matilda the Musical and the Olivier Award-winning and Tony Award-nominated show Groundhog Day The Musical. In 2013, he played rock star Atticus Fetch on Californication and in 2019 he co-wrote and starred as Lucky Flynn in the TV series Upright.
In 2013, the University of Western Australia awarded Minchin an honorary Doctor of Letters degree for his contribution to the arts. In 2015, he was awarded a second honorary Doctor of Letters degree from the Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts. He was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia in the 2020 Australia Day Honours "for significant service to the performing arts, and to the community".[3]
Early life[edit]
Timothy David Minchin was born in Northampton on 7 October 1975, the son of Australian parents Ros and David Ellison Minchin.[4][5][6] He holds both Australian and British citizenship, as everyone born in the UK before 1983 was automatically a citizen of the country. His father and grandfather were both surgeons in Perth. He is also descended from R. E. Minchin, founding director of Adelaide Zoo.[7] Minchin returned to Australia with his parents and was raised in Perth,[8][9] alongside his elder brother, Dan, and two younger sisters, Katie and Nel.[10][6]
Minchin started learning to play the piano at the age of eight, but gave it up after three years because he did not enjoy the discipline. He developed a renewed interest in the instrument after he started writing music with his brother Dan, a guitarist, but still describes himself as a "hack pianist ... a 'more you practise, the better you get' kind of guy".[11] He was educated at Christ Church Grammar School,[11] an independent school in Perth. He graduated from the University of Western Australia (UWA) in 1996 with a BA in English and theatre, and from the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts in 1998 with an Advanced Diploma in contemporary music.[12]
Television and radio[edit]
Minchin has made appearances on Australian TV shows, including the ABC's Spicks and Specks[44] and The Sideshow.[45] He has also made appearances on Network Ten's panel shows Good News Week (February 2010)[46] and Talkin' 'Bout Your Generation (March 2010).[47]
Minchin has appeared on several British radio and television shows, including the BBC's Never Mind the Buzzcocks (four times, once as guest host),[48] BBC Radio 4's Mark Watson Makes the World Substantially Better,[49] and two specials on BBC Radio 2. He often performs on his TV appearances, such as his spots on Friday Night with Jonathan Ross in October 2009 and July 2010.[50] He performed a specially-written song entitled "Five Poofs and Two Pianos", a parody of the show's house band, 4 Poofs and a Piano. Minchin also appeared as a special guest on the 2009 edition of The Big Fat Quiz of the Year, performing a song written for the show ("It's Like 1984") in reference to a question regarding Google Street View. On Saturday 13 August 2011, Minchin hosted Prom 40, the first BBC Comedy Promenade Concert at the Royal Albert Hall. He appeared on Desert Island Discs on 6 May 2012.[51]
A heavily cut-down version of the show released on DVD as So F**king Rock Live has aired several times on British TV channel E4, first on 23 July 2009. It aired at the start of 2011, forming E4's New Year's coverage.[52]
On 8 May 2010, Minchin's musical sitcom pilot Strings was broadcast on BBC Radio 2; it was well received, but he decided against creating a full series.[53]
In December 2011, Minchin performed a specially written song called "Woody Allen Jesus"[54] on The Jonathan Ross Show. However, despite the show's producers and ITV's lawyers approving the composition for broadcast, it was removed at the last minute. Responding on his blog, Minchin stated:[55] "Someone got nervous and sent the tape to ITV's director of television, Peter Fincham. And Peter Fincham demanded that I be cut from the show. He did this because he's scared of the ranty, shit-stirring, right-wing press, and of the small minority of Brits who believe they have a right to go through life protected from anything that challenges them in any way."[56]
In August 2012, Minchin appeared on Chain Reaction, first being interviewed by Derren Brown, and later interviewing Caitlin Moran.[57]
In 2013, Minchin played rock star Atticus Fetch in Californication.[58]
In 2015, Minchin guest starred in the Australian comedy television series, No Activity.[59]
In 2018, Minchin acted in Squinters, an ABC comedy.
In 2019, Minchin starred as Lucky opposite Milly Alcock as Meg and wrote Upright, a television series appearing on Fox Showcase in Australia and Sky Atlantic in the UK.[60] In 2022, the second season was released.[61]
In 2020, Minchin performed the opening and closing songs for the BAFTA awards ceremony, which took place behind closed doors. The opening number was written specifically for the event. The latter was a version of his song "Carry You". The BBC received widespread condemnation for cutting the final song, which had been prerecorded, short for timing purposes.
In an interview with Forbes in August 2020, Minchin revealed that while living and working in Los Angeles, he had been pitched a semi-autobiographical sitcom. "There was a project that a writer pitched to Warner Bros., which was a vehicle for me along the lines of a Seinfeld, where there was a character called Tim, who was a musical comedian had moved to LA from London. He was a big star in London, but no one cared about him in LA."[62]
In 2023, Minchin portrayed Darius Cracksworth in the Australian series The Artful Dodger.[63] The series is a sequel to the Charles Dickens novel Oliver Twist (1838).[64]
Theatre[edit]
Early acting roles[edit]
Minchin's background is in theatre and he has appeared in various stage productions. He played the title role in the 2006 Perth Theatre Company production of Amadeus, a fictional play about the downfall of Mozart at the hands of the reigning court composer, a character based on and named after Antonio Salieri.[20] His other stage acting roles have included the title role in the 2004 Perth Theatre Company / Hoopla production of Hamlet, and The Writer in the original PTC production of Reg Cribb's The Return. He has also acted for the Australian Shakespeare Company (Twelfth Night), the Black Swan Theatre Company (Così, One Destiny), and in various other plays, short films, and television commercials. Roles from his days in musical theatre include Don Quixote in Man of La Mancha and Pontius Pilate (and understudying Judas Iscariot twice) in Jesus Christ Superstar. He has also appeared playing small parts on the ABC telemovie Loot and on the show Comedy Inc..[65]
Later acting roles[edit]
Minchin was cast in the role of Judas in the 2012 UK and Ireland arena tour of the Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber rock opera Jesus Christ Superstar.[66] The tour extended into various other countries due to popular demand, with Minchin reprising the role in the world, with a filmed version being released in Autumn 2012. The filmed version, much to Minchin's annoyance, had his voice autotuned.[67] The production toured Australia from May to July 2013, before returning to the UK and Ireland in Autumn 2013.
Minchin made his Sydney Theatre Company debut in 2013 in Tom Stoppard's Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead alongside Toby Schmitz.
On 23 April 2016, Minchin appeared in Shakespeare Live! From The RSC at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon (which was also broadcast live on BBC Two) celebrating the birthday and 400 years since the death of William Shakespeare. He appeared as himself in the 'To be, or not to be' sketch alongside Paapa Essiedu, Benedict Cumberbatch, Harriet Walter, David Tennant (who also hosted the event with Catherine Tate), Rory Kinnear, Ian McKellen, Judi Dench and Charles, Prince of Wales (who was in attendance with Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall).
Film[edit]
Minchin played the role of Tom in the contemporary family drama Two Fists, One Heart, released 19 March 2009. He also wrote the song "Drowned" for the film's soundtrack.[79]
In 2013, Minchin moved with his family to Los Angeles so that he could work on Larrikins,[80] a planned Australian-themed animated musical film for DreamWorks Animation, which he wrote the songs for and was set to co-direct with Chris Miller.[81] The film was set to have an all-star Australian voice cast, headed by Hugh Jackman.[81] However, in March 2017, the project was cancelled, possibly in a decision by Comcast, who had bought DreamWorks Animation a year earlier.[81] Minchin called the outcome "unbearable", noting that he had turned down many projects during those four years, and that "there were 120 people working on that film."[81]
Minchin co-starred as Friar Tuck in the 2018 American film Robin Hood.[82]
In 2021 his voiceover work included Busker K. Bushy, Esq. in Peter Rabbit 2: The Runaway and Pretty Boy in Back to the Outback which he also wrote and performed the single "Beautiful Ugly" with Evie Irie.
In 2021, it was announced that a feature film adaptation of Matilda the Musical will be released for Netflix, TriStar Pictures and Working Title Films, with Minchin writing additional music and songs, Dennis Kelly writing the screenplay and will be directed by Matthew Warchus.[83] The film was released on 25 November 2022 in the UK and Ireland and was released on 25 December 2022 on Netflix across the rest of the world.
Protest songs[edit]
"Come Home (Cardinal Pell)"[edit]
In 2016, during the course of Australia's Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse Minchin wrote "Come Home (Cardinal Pell)", which criticised Cardinal George Pell. Launched on Channel Ten's The Project, it received wide publicity but was highly controversial.[86] Immediately after its debut, journalist Steve Price criticised the piece, describing it as "personal abuse" of Pell.[87] Liam Viney described it as being a protest song and analysed its mechanics.[88] Minchin later described it as "the most overt piece of activism I've done".[89]
The royal commission had been called to investigate how institutions like schools, churches, and government organisations have responded to allegations and instances of child sexual abuse.[90] When the royal commissioner granted the 74-year-old George Pell permission to appear as a witness via video link from Rome, rather than attend in person as he had previously done, Minchin wrote the song "Come Home (Cardinal Pell)". In response, a statement from Pell's office said the cardinal had led the battle against child abuse in the church for 20 years.[91] Attorney General George Brandis told ABC TV that giving evidence by video was "not at all unusual".[92]
The song helped fund journeys to Rome for victims of sex abuse so they could watch the cardinal deliver his evidence,[93] with a GoFundMe account set up by The Project hosts Meshel Laurie and Gorgi Coghlan.[94] The ABC 7.30 programme noted on 17 February 2016: "the song's going viral with almost 200,000 YouTube views" but "supporters of Cardinal Pell say it's verbal abuse set to music."[86] Jesuit human rights lawyer Frank Brennan said it risked endangering the integrity of the royal commission.[95] Conservative columnist Andrew Bolt described the song as a "hymn of hatred".[96]
"Come Home (Cardinal Pell)" reached No. 11 on the Australian Singles Chart, for the week of 20 February 2016.[97][98] Later, it was nominated for APRA's Song of the Year,[99] and Kate Miller-Heidke performed the song at the APRA Music Awards ceremony.[100]
"I Still Call Australia Homophobic"[edit]
During the Australian Marriage Law Postal Survey Minchin sang "I Still Call Australia Homophobic"[101] – a re-work of Peter Allen's, "I Still Call Australia Home"[102] – that refers to those supporting the "No" case as homophobic and "bigoted cunts".[103] The Minchin video was shown on the ABC Insiders TV current affairs program.[104] He was criticised by politicians Tony Abbott and Mitch Fifield.[104][105]
Personal life[edit]
Minchin and his wife Sarah, whom he married in 2001 and with whom he has a daughter and a son,[106] returned to Australia from Los Angeles in December 2017.[81] They currently live in Sydney.[107][108]
In 2013, the University of Western Australia awarded Minchin an honorary Doctor of Letters degree for his contribution to the arts, recognising his outstanding achievements and worldwide acclaim as a composer, lyricist, actor, writer, and comedian.[2][109] In 2015, he was awarded a second honorary Doctor of Letters degree from Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts.[110] In 2019, Minchin was awarded a third honorary doctorate for his contribution to the arts by the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts.[111] He was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia in the 2020 Australia Day Honours.[112]
Awards and nominations[edit]
APRA Awards[edit]
The APRA Awards are presented annually from 1982 by the Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA), "honouring composers and songwriters". They commenced in 1982.[147]