Jimmy Cricket

Jimmy Cricket was born James Mulgrew on October 17 1945 in Cookstown, Northern Ireland.

He left school at 16 years of age and worked for the next two years in a Belfast betting shop, before spending the summer of 1966 working as a Redcoat at the Butlin’s Holiday Camp in Mosney, outside Dublin. This was followed by two more summers at the Butlin’s Holiday Camp in Clacton-on-Sea.

By the early 1970’s Jimmy was living in Manchester and from 1972 worked at the Pontin’s Holiday Camps in Southport and Morecambe. It was at this time he started to develop as a comedian, as he started to appear around the then vibrant Northern Club Scene.

At  the beginning of the 1980’s, Jimmy won ITV’s television talent contest, ‘Search For A Star’ and was later given his own television show called ‘And There’s More’ broadcast over four series between 1985 – 1988(which included the first TV appearance by the impressionist Rory Bremner). 

Jimmy has had other numerous television appearances and has featured on the Royal Variety Performance and the Children’s equivalent. He also appeared in the 2007 Comic Relief video of The Proclaimers’ song ‘I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles)’ which featured Matt Lucas and Peter Kay.

Jimmy also had his own radio series on BBC Radio 2 during the 1990’s called ‘Jimmy’s Cricket Team.’

After producing several CDs, Jimmy’s first live standup comedy DVD called ‘Jimmy Cricket – Pull your seats forward’ was released in early 2010. 

Jimmy has also written three musical shows, and the latest is a Comedy Play, called, “No More Fiffing and Faffing”, and was given its premiere at the, “Thwaites Empire Theatre”, in Blackburn September 2018. This new Comedy is all about a Variety Double Act, who after a long career together are going to call it a day, in amongst settling old scores in the dressing room on their last night performing together, in an end of Pier Show. 

Jimmy’s best-known catchphrases include ‘come ere!’ and ‘…and there’s more!’Of course, he is instantly recognizable for the attire he wears, which includes a funny hat and his trademark wellies on the wrong feet. Jimmy is also famed for reading out a Letter from his Mammy!

Jimmy has had an illustrious and celebrated career, he as appeared across most platforms within stage and screen, but he doesn’t do reality TV shows, but last did a Television appearance on the John Bishop’s, “Only Joking”, show on Sky 1 back in 2013.

Finally, at the end of 2015 Jimmy featured in a special Christmas show alongside the internationally acclaimed, ‘Osmond’s’. The show was called the ‘Andy Williams Christmas Spectacular’, and toured for fifteen dates during December across the UK, visiting venues such as the O2 Arena in London and the Harrogate International centre.

During the spring of 2015 Jimmy started a successful residency at the Lyndene Hotel, one of Blackpool’s Premier Hotel destinations located on the Resort’s Seafront. To date, he is now currently working there into his fourth year!

Jimmy spent the summer of 2016 recording a CD which he released for the 2016 Christmas Season. It is a festive CD full of Christmas songs he has written and is called ‘Santa Bring My Wellie’s Back to Me’. This CD is in aid of the, “Francis House Children’s Hospice in Manchester”, over the last three Christmas’s.

List of achievements

–      Appeared in four television series on ITV of “And There’s More.”

–      Appeared in a television Special broadcast on ITV called “All Cricket and Wellies”

–      Appeared in the, “Royal Variety Performance”, 1985.

–      Appeared in many over the years, “The Children’s Royal Variety Performance”

–      Appeared in five Radio Series of “Jimmy’s Cricket Team” broadcast on BBC Radio Two

–      5 CD’s released: “Best of Jimmy Cricket”, “Jimmy Cricket – Bee in his bonnet”, “Jimmy Cricket – I’m dreaming of a far off land” and “Jimmy Cricket – Light and Shade”, “Santa bring my Wellies back to me”.

–      1 DVD released: “Jimmy Cricket Live – Pull your seats forward” (available from his website)

–      Two books published of “Letters from his Mammy”

–      Three Musicals written called “One Good Season”, “Let’s Hear it For the Wee Man” and “Maloney’s Big Moment”.

–      Has written a Comedy Play called, “No More Fiffing and Faffing”, which will play to audiences in 2019, 

–      23rdFebruary @Met in Bury

–      19thMay @Chorley Little Theatre

–      18thJuly @Spa in Bridlington

–      6thOct @Gladstone Theatre

–       36 pantomimes seasons completed in theatres across the UK, and Jimmy has achieved one of his goals in life, and that was to be in a Pantomime in his adoptive home town of Rochdale which he did the Christmas of 2017.