Jackie Clune
Encyclopedia
Jackie Clune is a British entertainer, noted as a woman journalist, actress, voiceover artiste and radio/TV broadcaster
. She performs cabaret
, and is known for her one-woman shows and late Karen Carpenter
tribute act. She is known for her dry anecdotal approach to comedy material and camp
sense of humour.
, Essex
, to Irish
Roman Catholic parents: her late father (died August 2010) was a buyer for a computer firm, her mother a nurse. The writer Maggie Clune is her sister.
Jackie Clune graduated with a degree in drama
from the University of Kent
.
in 1995, where she was spotted by a West End
producer.
Giving up her lecturing career, she co-founded the Red Rag Women’s Theatre Company, and fell into stand-up comedy
while working at the Hackney Empire
. In 1997 she appeared in the BBC soap EastEnders
in The Queen Victoria
public house
, and also appeared in ITV
's The Bill
. Since compering the Stonewall Society
equality shows at the Royal Albert Hall
, she has developed a multi-media career based on acting, singing, comedy and writing.
She has been a panellist on QI
, Never Mind the Buzzcocks
, The Staying-in Show and many other shows. Her name does not appear to be on Blackpool's Comedy Carpet.
She had a part in Showstopper, Bryony Lavery
's play A Wedding Story and portrayed Julie Burchill
, at the time a columnist for The Guardian
, in the one-woman play Julie Burchill Is Away by Tim Fountain
at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and in the West End. In 2006-7, she played the lead female role of 'Donna' in the Abba songs-based musical Mamma Mia!
international tour until 17 March 2007. On 4 June 2007, she took over the role of the dance teacher Mrs. Wilkinson in Billy Elliot the Musical
in London. She gave her final performance on 22 November 2008 prior to rejoining the current Mamma Mia! International Tour (2009-2011) again as Donna, and has done the Race For Life.
Jackie Clune sang the Dusty Springfield
theme tune, and contributed script to the popular TV show Smack the Pony
. After becoming involved in promotion for the revival of the Andrew Lloyd Webber
& Don Black
musical Tell Me On A Sunday
, she met Denise van Outen
. Now a friend, Miss Van Outen agreed to star in Miss Clune's show Blondes at the Festival Fringe Edinburgh in August 2009, with six preview performances at the New End theatre in Hampstead
.
Jackie Clune promoted an album Love Songs(Dress circle) courtesy of a show at Soho Theatre
in London's West End from 15–17 July 2010; she has also been involved in several musical projects.
She has also published two books, Man of the Month Club and Extreme Motherhood, diaries relating how her life changed when she found herself pregnant with triplets
little more than a year after having her first child.
She has been featured on the Discovery TV Channel regarding her unusual family and nocturnal schedule.
Jackie Clune recently played the part of the rambunctious Miss Ogle in The Belle's Stratagem
, a revival of a popular play by Hannah Cowley from the Georgian period at the award-winning Southwark Playhouse
which received many 5 star reviews: her role may have provided an impetus to relaunching her stand-up comedy performance and further acting parts.
performer Richard "Boom Boom" Hannant (Hammant), who was the fire officer at the arts centre where she was performing, and started a relationship with him. 11 months later, she became pregnant with their first child, a daughter. The couple now have four children, including a set of triplets, and married in 2008.
Broadcasting
Broadcasting is the distribution of audio and video content to a dispersed audience via any audio visual medium. Receiving parties may include the general public or a relatively large subset of thereof...
. She performs cabaret
Cabaret
Cabaret is a form, or place, of entertainment featuring comedy, song, dance, and theatre, distinguished mainly by the performance venue: a restaurant or nightclub with a stage for performances and the audience sitting at tables watching the performance, as introduced by a master of ceremonies or...
, and is known for her one-woman shows and late Karen Carpenter
Karen Carpenter
Karen Anne Carpenter was an American singer and drummer. She and her brother, Richard, formed the 1970s duo The Carpenters. She was a drummer of exceptional skill, but she is best remembered for her vocal performances of idealistic romantic ballads of true love...
tribute act. She is known for her dry anecdotal approach to comedy material and camp
Camp (style)
Camp is an aesthetic sensibility that regards something as appealing because of its taste and ironic value. The concept is closely related to kitsch, and things with camp appeal may also be described as being "cheesy"...
sense of humour.
Early life
Jackie Clune was the third of four children born in HarlowHarlow
Harlow is a new town and local government district in Essex, England. It is located in the west of the county and on the border with Hertfordshire, on the Stort Valley, The town is near the M11 motorway and forms part of the London commuter belt.The district has a current population of 78,889...
, Essex
Essex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
, to Irish
Irish people
The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...
Roman Catholic parents: her late father (died August 2010) was a buyer for a computer firm, her mother a nurse. The writer Maggie Clune is her sister.
Jackie Clune graduated with a degree in drama
Drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance. The term comes from a Greek word meaning "action" , which is derived from "to do","to act" . The enactment of drama in theatre, performed by actors on a stage before an audience, presupposes collaborative modes of production and a...
from the University of Kent
University of Kent
The University of Kent, previously the University of Kent at Canterbury, is a public research university based in Kent, United Kingdom...
.
Career
On graduation from university, Jackie Clune became a full-time drama lecturer at the Royal Holloway College for six years. She started singing in bands part-time, but between sets as a dj she switched on to acerbic jokes and ad-lib. This led a friend to suggest that she could create a performance based around a tribute act which promoted the liquid elegance of the late Karen Carpenter's vocals;this she developed successfully and took to the Edinburgh FestivalEdinburgh Festival
The Edinburgh Festival is a collective term for many arts and cultural festivals that take place in Edinburgh, Scotland each summer, mostly in August...
in 1995, where she was spotted by a West End
West End of London
The West End of London is an area of central London, containing many of the city's major tourist attractions, shops, businesses, government buildings, and entertainment . Use of the term began in the early 19th century to describe fashionable areas to the west of Charing Cross...
producer.
Giving up her lecturing career, she co-founded the Red Rag Women’s Theatre Company, and fell into stand-up comedy
Stand-up comedy
Stand-up comedy is a comedic art form. Usually, a comedian performs in front of a live audience, speaking directly to them. Their performances are sometimes filmed for later release via DVD, the internet, and television...
while working at the Hackney Empire
Hackney Empire
The Hackney Empire is a theatre on Mare Street, in the London Borough of Hackney, built in 1901 as a music hall.-History:Hackney Empire is a grade II* listed building...
. In 1997 she appeared in the BBC soap EastEnders
EastEnders
EastEnders is a British television soap opera, first broadcast in the United Kingdom on BBC One on 19 February 1985 and continuing to today. EastEnders storylines examine the domestic and professional lives of the people who live and work in the fictional London Borough of Walford in the East End...
in The Queen Victoria
The Queen Victoria
The Queen Victoria is a fictional Victorian public house in the BBC soap opera, EastEnders. It has the fictional address of 46 Albert Square, Walford, London E20.-Appearance and development:...
public house
Public house
A public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment fundamental to the culture of Britain, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. There are approximately 53,500 public houses in the United Kingdom. This number has been declining every year, so that nearly half of the smaller...
, and also appeared in ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
's The Bill
The Bill
The Bill is a police procedural television series that ran from October 1984 to August 2010. It focused on the lives and work of one shift of police officers, rather than on any particular aspect of police work...
. Since compering the Stonewall Society
Stonewall (UK)
Stonewall is a lesbian, gay and bisexual rights charity in the United Kingdom named after the Stonewall Inn of Stonewall riots fame. Now the largest gay equality organization not only in the UK but in Europe, it was formed in 1989 by political activists and others lobbying against section 28 of the...
equality shows at the Royal Albert Hall
Royal Albert Hall
The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall situated on the northern edge of the South Kensington area, in the City of Westminster, London, England, best known for holding the annual summer Proms concerts since 1941....
, she has developed a multi-media career based on acting, singing, comedy and writing.
She has been a panellist on QI
QI
QI is a British comedy panel game television quiz show created and co-produced by John Lloyd, hosted by Stephen Fry, and featuring permanent panellist Alan Davies. Most of the questions are extremely obscure, making it unlikely that the correct answer will be given...
, Never Mind the Buzzcocks
Never Mind the Buzzcocks
Never Mind the Buzzcocks is a comedy panel game television show with a pop music theme, currently without a permanent presenter. It stars Phill Jupitus and Noel Fielding as team captains. The show is produced by Talkback Thames for the BBC, and is usually aired on BBC Two...
, The Staying-in Show and many other shows. Her name does not appear to be on Blackpool's Comedy Carpet.
She had a part in Showstopper, Bryony Lavery
Bryony Lavery
Bryony Lavery is a British dramatist, known for her successful and award-winning 1998 play Frozen. In addition to her work in theatre, she has also written for television and radio...
's play A Wedding Story and portrayed Julie Burchill
Julie Burchill
Julie Burchill is an English writer and journalist. Beginning as a writer for the New Musical Express at the age of 17, she has written for newspapers such as The Sunday Times and The Guardian. She is a self-declared "militant feminist". She has several times been involved in legal action...
, at the time a columnist for The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
, in the one-woman play Julie Burchill Is Away by Tim Fountain
Tim Fountain
Tim Fountain is a British writer.-Life:An only child, Tim Fountain was brought up in a pub in the village of West Ardsley, West Yorkshire, where he lived with his parents and two goats, one of which had only three legs...
at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and in the West End. In 2006-7, she played the lead female role of 'Donna' in the Abba songs-based musical Mamma Mia!
Mamma Mia!
Mamma Mia! is a stage musical written by British playwright Catherine Johnson, based on the songs of ABBA, composed by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus, former members of the band. Although the title of the musical is taken from the group's 1975 chart-topper "Mamma Mia", the plot is fictional, not...
international tour until 17 March 2007. On 4 June 2007, she took over the role of the dance teacher Mrs. Wilkinson in Billy Elliot the Musical
Billy Elliot the Musical
Billy Elliot the Musical is a musical based on the 2000 film Billy Elliot. The music is by Sir Elton John, and book and lyrics are by Lee Hall, who wrote the film's screenplay. The plot revolves around motherless Billy, who trades boxing gloves for ballet shoes...
in London. She gave her final performance on 22 November 2008 prior to rejoining the current Mamma Mia! International Tour (2009-2011) again as Donna, and has done the Race For Life.
Jackie Clune sang the Dusty Springfield
Dusty Springfield
Mary Isobel Catherine Bernadette O'BrienSources use both Isabel and Isobel as the spelling of her second name. OBE , known professionally as Dusty Springfield and dubbed The White Queen of Soul, was a British pop singer whose career extended from the late 1950s to the 1990s...
theme tune, and contributed script to the popular TV show Smack the Pony
Smack the Pony
Smack the Pony is a British sketch comedy show that ran from 1999 until 2003 on Channel 4. Its title was intended to sound like a euphemism for female masturbation; the working title was Spot the Pony. The main performers and writers on the show were Fiona Allen, Doon Mackichan and Sally Phillips...
. After becoming involved in promotion for the revival of the Andrew Lloyd Webber
Andrew Lloyd Webber
Andrew Lloyd Webber, Baron Lloyd-Webber is an English composer of musical theatre.Lloyd Webber has achieved great popular success in musical theatre. Several of his musicals have run for more than a decade both in the West End and on Broadway. He has composed 13 musicals, a song cycle, a set of...
& Don Black
Don Black
Don Black may refer to:* Don Black , racialist campaigner* Don Black , English lyricist* Don Black , baseball player for the Cleveland Indians and Philadelphia Athletics...
musical Tell Me On A Sunday
Tell Me On A Sunday
Tell Me on a Sunday is a musical with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by Don Black. A one-act song cycle, it tells the story of an ordinary English girl from Muswell Hill, who journeys to the United States in search of love...
, she met Denise van Outen
Denise van Outen
Denise van Outen is an English actress, singer and television presenter. Her most notable roles to date are as a presenter on The Big Breakfast, and as Roxie Hart in the musical Chicago on both the West End and on Broadway.- Early life :Born Denise Kathleen Outen in Basildon, Essex, she is the...
. Now a friend, Miss Van Outen agreed to star in Miss Clune's show Blondes at the Festival Fringe Edinburgh in August 2009, with six preview performances at the New End theatre in Hampstead
Hampstead
Hampstead is an area of London, England, north-west of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Camden in Inner London, it is known for its intellectual, liberal, artistic, musical and literary associations and for Hampstead Heath, a large, hilly expanse of parkland...
.
Jackie Clune promoted an album Love Songs(Dress circle) courtesy of a show at Soho Theatre
Soho Theatre
Soho Theatre is a theatre in the eponymous Soho district of the City of Westminster. It presents new works of theatre, together with comedy and cabaret....
in London's West End from 15–17 July 2010; she has also been involved in several musical projects.
She has also published two books, Man of the Month Club and Extreme Motherhood, diaries relating how her life changed when she found herself pregnant with triplets
Multiple birth
A multiple birth occurs when more than one fetus is carried to term in a single pregnancy. Different names for multiple births are used, depending on the number of offspring. Common multiples are two and three, known as twins and triplets...
little more than a year after having her first child.
She has been featured on the Discovery TV Channel regarding her unusual family and nocturnal schedule.
Jackie Clune recently played the part of the rambunctious Miss Ogle in The Belle's Stratagem
The Belle's Stratagem
The Belle's Stratagem is a romantic comedy of manners that premiered on February 22, 1780; it was the most successful work by Hannah Cowley. It drew its title from George Farquhar's play The Beaux' Stratagem. The show was presented by David Garrick, filling the 2,000-seat Drury Lane theatre. to...
, a revival of a popular play by Hannah Cowley from the Georgian period at the award-winning Southwark Playhouse
Southwark Playhouse
-History:Southwark Playhouse Theatre Company was founded in 1993 by Juliet Alderdice, Tom Wilson & Mehmet Ergen. They identified the need for a high quality accessible theatre which would also act as a major resource for the community...
which received many 5 star reviews: her role may have provided an impetus to relaunching her stand-up comedy performance and further acting parts.
Personal life
In 2001 she met actor and stuntStunt
A stunt is an unusual and difficult physical feat, or any act requiring a special skill, performed for artistic purposes in TV, theatre, or cinema...
performer Richard "Boom Boom" Hannant (Hammant), who was the fire officer at the arts centre where she was performing, and started a relationship with him. 11 months later, she became pregnant with their first child, a daughter. The couple now have four children, including a set of triplets, and married in 2008.