Actor / Director Profile

Tony Slattery is an actor, comedian, and singer best known for his seven years as a regular on the UK improvisational comedy "Whose Line Is It Anyway?" (1988). Anthony Declan James Slattery was born on November 9, 1959, in Northern London to working class Irish immigrants. He is the youngest of five, including one sister and triplet brothers. After completing his schooling at Gunnersbury Boy's Grammar School in West London, Tony won a scholarship to study medieval and modern languages at Cambridge University. His special studies there were Spanish Poetry and French Literature. Tony's introduction to the entertainment business came while attending Cambridge. There, he met aspiring actor Stephen Fry, who invited Tony to join the renowned Cambridge Footlights. From that point on, Tony has stated, "getting up on stage and hearing laughter took over." The Footlights won the very first Perrier Comedy Award at the Edinburgh Festival in 1981 for their production of "The Cellar Tapes." Then, in 1982, Tony was given the prestigious honor of being named President of the Footlights following such luminaries as Eric Idle, Clive Anderson, and Peter Cook. The early part of Tony's career was spent appearing in London clubs doing "kind of a variety act with bizarre turns." He also made guest appearances on a number of British television shows, including a stint as host of the children's program "TX" (1985). Tony's big break came in 1986, when he landed a starring role in the West End musical "Me and My Girl." His other theatrical endeavors included "Radio Times," "Neville's Island," and "Privates On Parade." Tony earned an Olivier Award nomination for his role as Gordon in "Neville's Island." Having quite a diverse career, Tony has also had numerous roles on the big screen in films such as How to Get Ahead in Advertising (1989), The Crying Game (1992), "Peter's Friends," To Die For, released in the US as "Heaven's A Drag", "Up 'N Under" and "The Wedding Tackle". Tony has made his biggest mark in television, having starred in and hosted many programs. "Saturday Night Stayback," "S&M" (with 'Mike McShane'), "Just A Gigolo," "The Music Whose Line Is It Anyway? (1988)_ are some of the many shows Tony has been involved with. For personal reasons, Tony took a break from performing for a few years but has recently begun working again. He had a starring role in a feature film and has done a number of projects for the BBC.