William Tarmey
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Bill Tarmey | |
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 Bill Tarmey as Jack Duckworth |
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| Born | William Cleworth-Piddington April 4, 1941 Manchester, England |
| Years active | 1950s-present |
Bill Tarmey (born William Cleworth-Piddington on April 4, 1941 in Ardwick, Manchester) is an English actor and singer best known for playing Jack Duckworth on the soap opera Coronation Street. First appearing in the role in 1979, he has played it on a continuous basis since 1983.
Shortly after his birth, he moved with his family to live in Bradford, Greater Manchester. He was educated there. Following his father's death during the Second World War, his mother Lilian married for a second time, to a man called Robert Cleworth. On leaving school, William was apprenticed to his step-father, who was an asphalt spreader by trade, and he worked in the construction industry for a number of years.
In 1955, he met his future wife Alma in the local youth club. They went on to marry in 1962, and have two children together: Carl (b. 1966) and Sara (b. 1970).
In 1968, he gave up his job in the building industry to work as a nightclub singer and entertainer. In order to supplement his income, he took on works as an extra on shows such as Coronation Street, amongst others. Despite suffering a serious heart attack in 1976, he was eventually offered the role of Jack Duckworth, a character who would go on to become an institution in British soap operas. Though presently in poor health, he hopes to continue playing the part until 2009, at which point he will have appeared in the show for a landmark thirty years. He has suffered two heart attacks both very serious in 1976 and 2002 the latter being used a story line in the street to explain his absence An accomplished singer who has released several albums, he and his wife Alma presently live in Ashton under Lyne, Lancashire.
[edit] External links
- William Tarmey at the Internet Movie Database
- What's on TV profile
