Tom Binns
Acting
Biography
Christopher Thomas Binns is a British comedian best known for his character of Hospital Radio DJ Ivan Brackenbury. He appears in the BBC MI5 drama Spooks (Episode 6 Series 6), Series 3 of the IT Crowd on Channel 4, in Knowing Me Knowing Yule with Alan Partridge, and, in character as Ivan Brackenbury, on The Jason Byrne Show. In 2017, he appeared in the comedy movie Eaten by Lions. As Ian D Montfort he had a BBC Radio 2 series called Ian D Montfort is Unbelievable, broadcast in February 2013. Besides writing comedy for television and radio, Binns has appeared on other television shows, such as RI:SE, Bullrun, Oblivion and as a writer on Trigger Happy TV, for which he earned "best comedy moment" and "TV moment of 2001" awards. His first television appearances were Friday Night Armistice (BBC2) and Lee and Herring's Fist of Fun, and has gone on to further appear in the Channel 4-based late night sports talk show Under the Moon, with Danny Kelly where he regularly referenced his love of Sunderland AFC. He has also had stage appearances at the Bloomsbury Theatre and Garrick Theatre. Binns has worked on Radio 1, Virgin, BRMB and GLR, Talksport UK, Hallam FM and Key 103, appearing either as himself or as hospital radio character Ivan Brackenbury. Binns is the co-writer of BBC 1's Hospital People, part of the BBC's Comedy Playhouse, in which he plays the five lead characters Ivan Brackenbury, Ian D Montfort, Susan Mitchell, Terry Boyle and Father Kenny. He has written the book How to Get Famous – A Cynical Guide.
Known For
Tense drama series about the different challenges faced by the British Security Service as they work against the clock to safeguard the nation. The title is a popular colloquialism for spies, and the series follows the work of a group of MI5 officers based at the service's Thames House headquarters, in a highly secure suite of offices known as The Grid.
Spooks
The comedic misadventures of Roy, Moss, and their grifting supervisor Jen, a 'motley crew' of IT support workers at a large corporation headed by a hotheaded yuppie.
The IT Crowd
Jimmy Carr hosts proceedings as the 8 Out of 10 Cats crew take over the words and numbers quiz.
8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown
Comedy series about three young women living in Leeds who've graduated, had a year out, and are now struggling to find a job they're passionate about, a place to live that is half decent and a boyfriend they actually like. A sitcom about making terrible decisions, but having a brilliant time doing it. The show focuses on Meg, her eccentric cousin Bunny and their friend Laura as they discover that life might just be a bit tougher than they had imagined. From demeaning Promotions jobs complete with mad outfits to pursuing the men of their dreams - yet dating the men of their nightmares - the girls face '#FML-worthy' disasters in both their work and personal lives.
Drifters
Fist of Fun was a British comedy television and radio programme, written by and starring Lee and Herring. A lot of the show's comic material was adapted from Lee and Herring's radio programme Lionel Nimrod's Inexplicable World. Each episode of Fist of Fun featured several disparate sketches and situations. Fist of Fun began as a BBC Radio 1 series in 1993, before becoming commissioned as a television series on BBC Two in early 1995. It was broadcast at 9pm on Tuesday nights, and was successful, but not a major ratings-winner. The second series was aired on Friday nights, and although its ratings were relatively good, the show suffered from a lack of preparation and poor promotion. The show was not given a third series, and Lee and Herring went on to write This Morning with Richard Not Judy, for BBC Two. Many other comedians who appeared in the series went on to fame themselves, including Kevin Eldon, Peter Baynham, Ronni Ancona, Alistair McGowan, Al Murray, John Thomson, Rebecca Front, Mel Giedroyc, Sue Perkins, Ben Moor and Sally Phillips.
Fist of Fun
Boyz Unlimited is a British comedy series created by David Walliams, Matt Lucas and Richard Osman. It was initially broadcast on Channel 4 from 5 February to 12 March 1999. A six-part satire about the music industry, Frank Harper stars as career criminal Nigel Gacey, who gives himself a year to form his own boy band. Produced by Hat Trick Productions and credited as being written by Osman, Boyz Unlimited was struck by poor ratings and negative critical reception, resulting in cancellation; Walliams would later claim that his experiences caused both him and Lucas to refuse to work with Hat Trick on subsequent projects for many years, and Osman's experiences would cause him to lose confidence in his writing ability.
Boyz Unlimited
Set in a fictional hospital, this mockumentary follows the lives of porters, hospital radio DJs, chaplains and managers asking who exactly are all these people, and should any of them be remotely near a hospital?
Hospital People
A look back at the origins of the ground breaking BBC comedy series Monty Python's Flying Circus.
The Roots of Monty Python
Omar and Pete are half brothers. When their parents are eaten by lions they embark on a journey to find Omar's real father. What follows is a funny, heart-warming journey of self-discovery for both boys...in Blackpool. The Choudray family represents a truly contemporary example of modern multicultural Britain - but what will the brothers make of their eccentric newfound family? Will they be going to Mecca or Mecca bingo? In contrast to the old fashioned stereotypes about Blackpool, the comedy is sharp, current and non-stop.
Eaten by Lions
The film is a comedy short about two young brothers Pete (15) and Omar (17) who decide to go to Blackpool and scatter their dad's ashes (Pete's biological and Omar's surrogate). Once in Blackpool they decide to call round on Omar's biological father, who Omar has never met. Armed with a birth certificate, a photograph and their mum's diary extracts, the boys confront him.