Paul Tonkinson

Paul Tonkinson is a self-confessed professional northerner - and far worse, a celebrity Manchester United fan. He is a star of comedy in all its forms. Be it on stage, in character or as a TV host, this man does not fail to make you giggle. Still relatively fresh-faced, Paul has actually been at the game quite a long time. Back in 1992, he was winner of the Time Out New Act of the Year Award and then completed the comedy double when he won Time Out Stand Up Comic of the Year in 1997. For someone who first shot to fame as the funny one on the early shift on Sunday mornings as host of BBC2's originally titled The Sunday Show back in 1996, the fact that he is still going strong today is testament to the brilliance and diversity of the thin faced comedian and the timeless quality of his comedy. Having made his name as host of The Sunday Show, he took an even bigger step into the limelight when he replaced Johnny Vaughan, briefly, on The Big Breakfast. Other television work includes; The Sunday Show (BBC2), The Stand Up Show (BBC1), Stand Up (Granada), Comedy on the Road (US TV), Raw Soap & Raw Soap II: Presenter (Carlton), MTV Hot: Presenter (MTV), The Big Breakfast: Presenter (CH4) Moving into radio, he became the first breakfast show presenter on Xfm's Manchester station when it was launched in March 2006. Like every good northerner who so loves their roots, he moved to London for another show with Xfm's flagship London station in 2007 the following year. He then moved across the capital to host his own show, the even more originally titled Paul Tonkinson Show for BBC London as well as pieces for Radio 4s seminal comedy news shows Loose Ends and The Week Ending. But it is stage as a stand-up comedian that Paul Tonkinson is most at home. A master of mimicry and particular amusing accents, he takes his audience on a guided tour of Britain, using his observational skills - and those funny voices to find humour in almost every region in the UK and further afield.