Tom Watt (actor)

Thomas Erickson "Tom" Watt (born 14 February 1956) is an English actor, writer and broadcaster, who is best known for playing the role of Lofty Holloway in the BBC soap opera EastEnders. He is also known for his appearances on the BBC radio show Fighting Talk and his documentary films for BT Sport.

Acting career

A native of Wanstead, Watt studied drama at Manchester University where he directed several stage productions. One of his first television roles was in the comedy series Never the Twain in 1981, but his big break came in 1985 when he was cast as one of the original characters in the BBC's fledgling soap opera, EastEnders. Watt played Lofty Holloway, the weedy, asthmatic barman of The Queen Vic from the show's inception until 1988.

Other acting credits have included roles in the BBC drama South of the Border, a South London detective show; the role of Norman in the 1990 film for ITV called And the Nightingale Sang, a love story set during the war; Boon 1992, with Michael Elphick; as well as a minor role in the 1992 film Patriot Games, among others.

As well as television and film he has had many theatre and stage roles. Most notably, he starred in the one-man show Fever Pitch, based on the Nick Hornby novel of the same name.

In 2014 he started working on a local crowdfunded spy thriller in Torrevieja, Spain , released in 2017.

TV and radio

After leaving EastEnders, Watt combined acting with his second passion, football, by becoming a sports journalist. He has presented for Channel 4, Radio 1, Radio 3, Radio 5 Live, talkSPORT, and cable TV. He has recently written, presented and produced several documentaries about football for BT Sport Films, including the 'Football Outposts' series. Until recently, he featured regularly on BBC Radio 5 Live's Fighting Talk,^[1] where we he won the "Champion of Champions" trophy on 28 May 2011. He also hosted Arsenal TV's Monday night Fans Forum until the show was discontinued.

He produced, directed and presented the Channel 4 children's sports show, Rookies in the early 1990s.

In 2010, Watt appeared in an episode of the BBC TV series New Tricks, had a small part in Guy Ritchie's first 'Sherlock Holmes' movie and appeared in a West End production of 'Madness In Valencia'.

Music

Watt recorded a version of Bob Dylan's Subterranean Homesick Blues in 1985, which featured members of the British band New Order among other artists. The single reached number 67 in the UK singles chart before dropping out of the chart completely. This was recorded for his own Watt The Duck label.

Writing

Watt wrote match reports and features for The Observer for several years. He has authored nine books about football, includingThe End ,A Passion for the Game, A Beautiful Game and the official legacy book for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. He was the ghost-writer for the David Beckham autobiography, My Side, which won a special prize at the British Book Awards and is the fastest-selling UK sports autobiography of all time.

Personal life

Watt was once romantically involved with his EastEnders castmate Anita Dobson, who played Angie Watts.^[2] He married his wife in 1993 and they have one son.

He is an avid supporter of Arsenal football club and Cheltenham Town. He is an advisory board member for BounceBack, a charity and social enterprise working with offenders.

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

• Tom Watt on IMDb
• Tom Watt BBC presenter profile
• Tom Watt Walford Gazette interview