James Joseph TarbuckOBE (born 6 February 1940) is an English comedian, singer, actor, entertainer and game show host.
Tarbuck was a host of Sunday Night at the London Palladium in the mid-1960s, and hosted numerous game shows and quiz shows on ITV during the 1970s, 1980s and early 1990s. He is also known for leading ITV's Live from Her Majesty's and its subsequent incarnations during the 1980s.
Tarbuck was born in Wavertree, Liverpool, on 6 February 1940,[1] son of bookmaker Joseph Frederick Tarbuck and Ada McLoughlin. Joseph Tarbuck had been at school with Ted Ray. Jimmy had a brother, Kenneth, and a sister, Norma (another elder brother died aged 18 months), and was a friend of Dave Morris.[2] He attended Dovedale Primary School in Liverpool, where he was a schoolmate of John Lennon.[3][4]
In April 1960, at the age of 20, he was convicted of stealing a diamond-encrusted cigarette holder from the dressing room of comedian Terry-Thomas, and was placed on probation for two years.[5][6] For a period, he worked in a ladies' hairdresser with Mike McCartney (brother of Paul) and Lewis Collins.[7]
Tarbuck made a Comedy Playhouse pilot for the BBC in 1967, acting in Johnny Speight's To Lucifer, A Son alongside John Le Mesurier and Pat Coombs, but a series was not commissioned.[11] His only other acting credit was in a 1993 episode of police comedy The Detectives, playing the straight role of Johnny McKenna, an international arms dealer who liked to conduct his business on the golf course.[citation needed]
In October 2015, Tarbuck and Des O'Connor starred in their own one-off show at the London Palladium to raise money for the new Royal Variety Charity. During the following two years they toured clubs and theatres around the UK with his comedy show, and sometimes as a double act with Kenny Lynch.[citation needed]
Personal life
Tarbuck married Pauline (née Carfoot) in 1959. His best man was footballer Bobby Campbell.[12] The couple live in Coombe, Kingston upon Thames, London, and have three children: Cheryl (born in 1960), Liza (born in 1964), and James (born in 1968).
Tarbuck has often been nicknamed 'Tarby'. He is a Conservative Party supporter,[13] and at the height of his celebrity was a prominent supporter of Margaret Thatcher and her policies, baking her a cake to celebrate her 60th birthday in October 1985.[citation needed]
Tarbuck is well known as a keen player of golf, and was prominent as a competitor in pro-celebrity golf matches when these were televised.[14] He is also a devoted supporter of Liverpool Football Club
In February 2020, Tarbuck revealed that, the day after his 80th birthday, he had been diagnosed with prostate cancer.[15]
On 15 May 2023 Tarbuck committed a series of driving offences, causing damage to vehicles while driving in Coombe Gardens, Kingston upon Thames, near his home, reported to have occurred a few days after his sister's funeral. According to court documents, he pleaded guilty to a series of offences, including driving a mechanically propelled vehicle without due care and attention, failing to stop and give his name and address following a road accident, and failing to report an accident.[16]
