Favourite Comedians
by rmismine | created - 27 Nov 2013 | updated - 17 Sep 2021 | PublicThey wouldn't let me add Henning Vane
1. Billy Connolly
Actor | Brave
Billy Connolly was born and raised in Glasgow, Scotland. He left school to work in the shipyards, becoming a welder, and joined the Territorial Army (in the parachute regiment) at around the same time. He developed an interest in folk music, eventually being an accomplished banjo player and a ...
2. Dawn French
Actress | French and Saunders
Dawn was educated at a weekly boarding school in Plymouth and spent the weekends with her grandparents who lived nearby She never felt at home at the school as it was too posh. She met Jennifer Saunders while training to be a teacher at the Central School of Speech and Drama and became flat mates ...
3. Lee Mack
Actor | Not Going Out
Lee Mack was born on August 4, 1968 in Southport, Lancashire, England, UK. He is an actor and writer, known for Not Going Out (2006), The Sketch Show (2001) and Kelsey Grammer Presents: The Sketch Show (2005). He has been married to Tara since 2005. They have three children.
4. Jack Whitehall
Actor | Jungle Cruise
Jack Whitehall was a child actor in various television dramas, but decided to pursue stand-up comedy after leaving school. He was a finalist in the So You Think You're Funny talent hunt at last year's Edinburgh Fringe, and was nominated for best newcomer at this year's Chortle Awards. In December ...
5. David Mitchell
Writer | That Mitchell and Webb Look
David Mitchell was born on 14th July 1974 in Salisbury, England. His parents, Ian and Kathy Mitchell, worked as hotel managers in Salisbury. David also has a brother. In 1977 the family moved to Oxford, where his parents taught a course in hotel management at Oxford Brookes University. David was ...
6. Rob Brydon
Actor | The Huntsman: Winter's War
Rob Brydon was born on May 3, 1965 in Swansea, Wales, UK. He is an actor and writer, known for The Huntsman: Winter's War (2016), Marion & Geoff (2000) and The Trip (2010). He has been married to Claire Holland since October 6, 2006. They have two children. He was previously married to Martina ...
7. Ricky Gervais
Writer | The Office
Ricky Dene Gervais was born in a suburb of Reading, Berkshire, to Eva Sophia (House) and Lawrence Raymond Gervais, who was a hod carrier and labourer. His father was born in Ontario, Canada, of French-Canadian descent, and his mother was English. He was educated at Ashmead Comprehensive School and ...
8. Graham Norton
Actor | Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga
Graham Norton was born on April 4, 1963 in County Cork, Ireland. He is an actor and writer, known for Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga (2020), So Graham Norton (1998) and Soul (2020). He has been married to Jono McLeod since July 10, 2022.
9. Rhod Gilbert
Writer | Rhod Gilbert's Work Experience
Rhod Gilbert was born on October 18, 1968 in Carmarthen, Wales, UK. He is a writer and producer, known for Rhod Gilbert's Work Experience (2010), NeckFace (2018) and Save the Cinema (2022). He has been married to Sian Harries since August 16, 2013.
He has a potato tattooed on his shoulder.
10. Joan Rivers
Actress | Spaceballs
Joan Rivers is an American talk show host, comedian, writer and actress from Brooklyn, New York. She voiced Dot Matrix from Mel Brooks' Spaceballs. She has portrayed in several films and shows such as Shrek 2, Look Who's Talking, The Smurfs and Iron Man 3. She passed away in September 2014 at ...
11. Robin Williams
Actor | Mrs. Doubtfire
Robin McLaurin Williams was born on Saturday, July 21st, 1951, in Chicago, Illinois, a great-great-grandson of Mississippi Governor and Senator, Anselm J. McLaurin. His mother, Laurie McLaurin (née Janin), was a former model from Mississippi, and his father, Robert Fitzgerald Williams, was a Ford ...
12. Eddie Murphy
Actor | The Nutty Professor
Edward Regan Murphy was born April 3, 1961 in Brooklyn, New York, to Lillian Lynch (born: Lillian Laney), a telephone operator, and Charles Edward Murphy, a transit police officer who was also an amateur comedian and actor. After his father died, his mother married Vernon Lynch, a foreman at a ...
13. Seth MacFarlane
Writer | Family Guy
Seth Woodbury MacFarlane was born in the small New England town of Kent, Connecticut, where he lived with his mother, Ann Perry (Sager), an admissions office worker, his father, Ronald Milton MacFarlane, a prep school teacher, and his sister, Rachael MacFarlane, now a voice actress and singer. He ...
14. Bill Cosby
Actor | The Cosby Show
Bill Cosby is one of the world's most well-known entertainers and comedians. William Henry Cosby, Jr. was born on July 12, 1937, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to Anna Pearl (Hite), a maid and William Henry Cosby, Sr., a U.S. Navy sailor. After 10th grade, Cosby joined the Navy and completed high ...
15. Steve Martin
Writer | Roxanne
Steve Martin was born on August 14, 1945 in Waco, Texas, USA as Stephen Glenn Martin to Mary Lee (née Stewart; 1913-2002) and Glenn Vernon Martin (1914-1997), a real estate salesman and aspiring actor. He was raised in Inglewood and Garden Grove in California. In 1960, he got a job at the Magic ...
16. Roseanne Barr
Producer | Roseanne
Firebrand Roseanne Barr has long been one of America's funniest and most controversial comedians.
She was born in Salt Lake City, Utah, to Helen (Davis), a cashier and bookkeeper, and Jerome Hershel "Jerry" Barr, a salesman. Her family was Jewish, and had moved to the U.S. from Russia, Lithuania, ...
17. Lucille Ball
Actress | I Love Lucy
The woman who will always be remembered as the crazy, accident-prone, lovable Lucy Ricardo was born Lucille Desiree Ball on August 6, 1911 in Jamestown, New York, the daughter of Desiree Evelyn "DeDe" (Hunt) and Henry Durrell "Had" Ball. Her father died before she was four, and her mother worked ...
18. Betty White
Actress | The Proposal
Betty White was born in Oak Park, Illinois, to Christine Tess (Cachikis), a homemaker, and Horace Logan White, a lighting company executive for the Crouse-Hinds Electric Company. She was of Danish, Greek, English, and Welsh descent.
Although she was best known as the devious Sue Ann Nivens on the ...
19. Gallagher
Writer | Gallagher: The Maddest
Gallagher was born on July 24, 1946 in Fort Bragg, North Carolina, USA. He was a writer and actor, known for Gallagher: The Maddest (1983), Gallagher: Over Your Head (1984) and Gallagher: Overboard (1987). He was married to Geralyn Ann Hines and Deedra Kay Higgins. He died on November 11, 2022 in ...
20. Bill Murray
Actor | Lost in Translation
Bill Murray is an American actor, comedian, and writer. The fifth of nine children, he was born William James Murray in Wilmette, Illinois, to Lucille (Collins), a mailroom clerk, and Edward Joseph Murray II, who sold lumber. He is of Irish descent. Among his siblings are actors Brian Doyle-Murray, ...
21. Carol Burnett
Soundtrack | The Carol Burnett Show
The entertainment world has enjoyed a six-decade love affair with comedienne/singer Carol Burnett. A peerless sketch performer and delightful, self-effacing personality who rightfully succeeded Lucille Ball as the carrot-topped "Queen of Television Comedy," it was Burnett's traumatic childhood that...
22. Dan Aykroyd
Writer | Ghostbusters
Daniel Edward Aykroyd was born on July 1, 1952 in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, to Lorraine Hélène (Gougeon), a secretary from a French-Canadian family, and Samuel Cuthbert Peter Hugh Aykroyd, a civil engineer who advised prime minister Pierre Trudeau. Aykroyd attended Carleton University in 1969, where...
23. Rick Moranis
Actor | Parenthood
Rick began his career as a radio DJ while he was still at high school which led to him writing, producing and being on air in his own show. He joined the Canadian TV series, SCTV (1976), winning an Emmy for writing and portraying the character, Bob McKenzie, which became the basis for the film, ...
24. Larry the Cable Guy
Actor | Cars
Larry the Cable Guy was born in Pawnee City, Nebraska, as Daniel Lawrence Whitney. He is an actor and producer, known for Cars (2006), Cars 2 (2011) and Cars 3 (2017). He is also an original member of the Blue Collar Comedy Tour. He has been married to Cara Whitney since July 3, 2005. They have two...
25. Bill Engvall
Actor | Delta Farce
Bill Engvall was born on July 27, 1957 in Galveston, Texas, USA as William Ray Engvall Jr. He is an actor and writer, known for Delta Farce (2007), Catching Faith (2015) and Last Man Standing (2011). He has been married to Mary Gail Watson since December 18, 1982. They have two children, Emily and ...
26. Martin Short
Actor | Innerspace
Martin Hayter Short OC is a Canadian-American actor, comedian, singer, and writer. He has received various awards including two Primetime Emmy Awards, and a Tony Award. In 2019 Short became an Officer of the Order of Canada, and has received Medals from Queen Elizabeth II, including in 2002 the ...
27. Leslie Nielsen
Actor | Airplane!
Leslie William Nielsen was born in Regina, Saskatchewan, and raised in Tulita (formerly Fort Norman), Northwest Territories. His mother, Mabel Elizabeth (Davies), was Welsh. His father, Ingvard Eversen Nielsen, was a Danish-born Mountie and a strict disciplinarian. Leslie studied at the Academy of ...
28. Mike Myers
Actor | Austin Powers in Goldmember
Michael John Myers was born in 1963 in Scarborough, Ontario, to Alice E. (Hind), an officer supervisor, and Eric Myers, an insurance agent. His parents were both English, and had served in the Royal Air Force and British Army, respectively.
Myers' television career really started in 1988, when he ...
29. Pauly Shore
Actor | Encino Man
Stand-up comic Pauly Shore (né Paul Montgomery Shore) tasted super-stardom in 1990 when his precedent-setting MTV show Totally Pauly (1990) hit the airwaves to major fan approval. The show ran for four years, opening the door wide for him for television and film roles. In 1993, he wrote and starred...
30. Louis C.K.
Writer | Louie
Louis C.K. was born on September 12, 1967 in Washington, District of Columbia, USA. He is a writer and producer, known for Louie (2010), American Hustle (2013) and Horace and Pete (2016). He was previously married to Alix Bailey.
31. Chris Rock
Actor | Top Five
Christopher Julius Rock was born in Andrews, South Carolina and raised in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, New York. He is the son of Rosalie (Tingman), a teacher and social worker for the mentally handicapped, and Julius Rock, a truck driver and newspaper deliveryman, whose own father was a preacher.
...
32. George Carlin
Actor | Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure
George Denis Patrick Carlin was born and raised in Manhattan, New York City, to Mary (Bearey), a secretary, and Patrick John Carlin, an advertising manager for The Sun; they had met while working in marketing. His father was from Donegal, Ireland, and his mother was Irish-American. His parents ...
33. Ben Stiller
Producer | Tropic Thunder
Benjamin Edward Meara Stiller was born on November 30, 1965, in New York City, New York, to legendary comedians Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara. His father was of Austrian Jewish and Polish Jewish descent, and his mother was of Irish Catholic descent (she converted to Judaism).
His parents made no real...
34. Tim Allen
Actor | Toy Story
Timothy Allen Dick was born on June 13, 1953, in Denver, Colorado, to Martha Katherine (Fox) and Gerald M. Dick. His father, a real estate salesman, was killed in a collision with a drunk driver while driving his family home from a University of Colorado football game, when Tim was eleven years old...
35. Miles Jupp
Actor | Johnny English Reborn
Miles Jupp was born on September 8, 1979 in London, England, UK. He is an actor and writer, known for Johnny English Reborn (2011), Sherlock Holmes (2009) and The Legend of Tarzan (2016). He is married to Rachel Jupp. They have five children.
36. Josh Widdicombe
Actor | Josh
Joshua Michael Widdicombe was born in Hammersmith, London on 8 April 1983 and has an elder brother Henry, who is a comedy promoter. Brought up in Devon Josh attended South Dartmoor Community College before reading linguistics at Manchester University and going into journalism. In 2008 whilst ...
37. James Acaster
Actor | Cinderella
James Acaster was born on January 9, 1985 in Kettering, Northamptonshire, England, UK. He is a writer and actor, known for Cinderella (2021), The Island (2022) and We the Jury (2016).
38. David O'Doherty
Actor | The Modest Adventures of David O'Doherty
David O'Doherty is known for The Modest Adventures of David O'Doherty (2007), A Film with Me in It (2008) and Along for the Ride with David O'Doherty (2021).
39. Ed Byrne
Actor | Are You Ready for Love?
Ed Byrne was born on April 10, 1972 in Swords, Dublin, Ireland. He is an actor and writer, known for Are You Ready for Love? (2006), Sam's Game (2001) and Doctors (2000). He has been married to Claire Walker since June 5, 2008. They have two children.
40. Sarah Millican
Self | QI
Sarah Millican was born on May 29, 1975 in South Shields, Tyne and Wear, England, UK. She is a writer and actress, known for QI (2003), The Sarah Millican Television Programme (2012) and Mock the Week (2005). She has been married to Gary Delaney since December 2013. She was previously married to ...
41. Bill Burr
Actor | Old Dads
Bill Burr is an American stand-up comedian, writer, actor, and podcaster. He is best known for playing Patrick Kuby in the crime drama series Breaking Bad (2008), and creating and starring in the Netflix animated sitcom F Is for Family (2015).
In 2008, Burr's voice was featured in the game Grand ...
42. Owen Benjamin
Actor | The House Bunny
Owen Benjamin was born in 1980 in Oswego, New York, USA. He is an actor and writer, known for The House Bunny (2008), Gaytown (2008) and Jack and Jill (2011).
43. Stephen Merchant
Producer | Extras
Stephen James Merchant is an English actor, comedian, director, presenter and writer.
Alongside Ricky Gervais, Merchant was the co-writer and co-director of the British TV comedy series The Office (2001-2003), and co-writer, co-director, and co-star of both Extras (2005-2007) and Life's Too Short (...
44. Norm MacDonald
Actor | Dirty Work
Macdonald was born Norman Gene Macdonald in Quebec City, Quebec. He began his career in stand-up comedy. Macdonald's first job was writing for The Dennis Miller Show (1992) and then Roseanne (1988). While writing for Roseanne (1988), he was noticed by Lorne Michaels, who liked Norm's stand up, and ...
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