Norman Pace is an
EnglishEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
actorAn actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
and
comedianA comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience, primarily by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting a fool, as in slapstick, or employing prop comedy...
, best known as one half of the comedy duo
Hale and PaceHale and Pace are an English comedy duo who have starred in several TV sketch series.-Early career:Gareth Hale and Norman Pace met at Avery Hill teacher training college in Eltham South East London. They discovered much in common, particularly humour, and began playing clubs in a comedy band. One...
with his friend and comic partner
Gareth HaleGareth Hale is an English comedian and actor, born 15 January 1953, in Hedon, Yorkshire, who is best known as one half of the comedy duo Hale and Pace with his friend and comic partner Norman Pace....
. Former teachers, their comedy partnership has fronted several television programmes, most notably Hale and Pace, Pushing Up Daisies, h&p@bbc and Jobs for the Boys.
Early life
He grew up in
Newark-on-TrentNewark-on-Trent is a market town in Nottinghamshire in the East Midlands region of England. It stands on the River Trent, the A1 , and the East Coast Main Line railway. The origins of the town are possibly Roman as it lies on an important Roman road, the Fosse Way...
in
NottinghamshireNottinghamshire is a county in the East Midlands of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west...
. He attended the Magnus Grammar School (now called the
Magnus C of E SchoolMagnus Church of England School often abbreviated as 'Magnus' is a British Secondary school located in the market town of Newark-on-Trent, in Nottinghamshire, England...
). He then went to Avery Hill College, now the
Avery Hill Campus of the
University of GreenwichThe University of Greenwich is a British university located in the London Borough of Greenwich, London, England. The main campus is located on the grounds of the Old Royal Naval College, a central location within the Maritime Greenwich UNESCO World Heritage Site.-History:The history of the...
, in Eltham where he gained a
BEdA Bachelor of Education is an undergraduate academic degree which qualifies the graduate as a teacher in schools.-North America:...
in 1975.
Work with Gareth Hale
As straight actors, they also fronted the original TV dramatisation of
Dalziel and PascoeDalziel and Pascoe consist of Detective Superintendent Andrew Dalziel and Detective Sergeant Peter Pascoe....
; and in 1989 guest-starred together in the
Doctor WhoDoctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
serial
Survival-Writing:Writer Rona Munro approached script editor Andrew Cartmel at a BBC scriptwriting workshop and said that she'd "kill to write for Doctor Who." The story Munro developed incorporated themes including the morals of hunting...
. Also in 1989, Hale and Pace won the
Golden Rose of MontreuxThe Rose d’Or is one of the most important international festivals in entertainment television. It was founded in Montreux in 1961 and has taken place in Lucerne since 2004. Producers, executives from independent and public service broadcasters and heads of production companies from over 40...
. In 2007 they appeared in the Christmas Special of Extras, called
The Extra Special Series Finale, playing themselves.
Later work
Recently, Norman Pace has taken a direction towards
theatreTheatre is a collaborative form of fine art that uses live performers to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place. The performers may communicate this experience to the audience through combinations of gesture, speech, song, music or dance...
and has starred in 'Chicago' (Adelphi), 'Breakfast with
Jonny WilkinsonJonathan Peter "Jonny" Wilkinson OBE is an English rugby union player and member of the England national team. Wilkinson rose to acclaim from 2001 to 2003, before and during the 2003 Rugby World Cup and was acknowledged as one of the world’s best rugby players...
' and
Our Man in HavanaOur Man In Havana is a novel by British author Graham Greene, where he makes fun of intelligence services, especially the British MI6, and their willingness to believe reports from their local informants....
at the
Nottingham PlayhouseThe Nottingham Playhouse is a theatre in Nottingham, England. It was first established as a repertory theatre in the 1950s when it operated from a former cinema. Directors during this period included Val May and Frank Dunlop.-The building:...
. Currently, (summer 2010) he is appearing as the detective in a touring production of Peter Gordon comedy 'Murdered to Death'.
He is also a regular presenter for 'The Open' on the Sky Poker channel.
Personal life
Norman Pace is a keen
pokerPoker is a family of card games that share betting rules and usually hand rankings. Poker games differ in how the cards are dealt, how hands may be formed, whether the high or low hand wins the pot in a showdown , limits on bet sizes, and how many rounds of betting are allowed.In most modern poker...
player himself and has done well in several tournaments. In 2005 he appeared on the celebrity poker chatshow
Heads Up with Richard HerringHeads Up with Richard Herring or HUWRH, was a British celebrity chat show written by and starring Richard Herring, who is best known as one half of comedy duo Lee and Herring, the stars of BBC Two shows Fist of Fun and This Morning With Richard Not Judy...
to discuss his career and his love of poker. He has also provided commentary for the PartyPoker.com European Open.
Pace won the Grand Final of the Showbiz Poker event. In the final hand, his
A♦ J♣ hole cards started off ahead of
Michael GrecoMichael Greco is an English actor and poker player. He was educated in Surrey, England at Reigate College. Internet rumours claim he was born in Dunbar, Scotland, but Greco himself states that this is false, and that he grew up in London....
's
K♦ Q♦, but Greco made two pair on the
8♦ Q♥ K♠ flop. However, the
4♥ 10♣ that followed allowed Pace to complete his straight to win the £25,000 first prize.
Pace has a disabled daughter Holly, he has revealed that he fears for her wellbeing after he and her mother Beverley have died.
External links