John Bishop

John Joseph Bishop (born 30 November 1966) is an English comedian, presenter, actor and former semi pro footballer.

Bishop formerly played football as a midfielder for Winsford United F.C., Crewe Alexandra F.C., Runcorn F.C., Rhyl F.C., Witton Albion F.C., Hyde United F.C., Southport F.C., Stalybridge Celtic F.C., Northwich Victoria F.C., Caernarfon Town F.C. and Hanley Town F.C.

John Bishop was born at Mill Road Hospital in Everton, Liverpool on 30 November 1966, the son of housewife Kathleen (née Hackett) (d. 2023) and labourer Edward Bishop, a couple from nearby Huyton.

He has an older brother, footballer Eddie, and two older sisters, Kathy and Carol.

He grew up mostly in the Cheshire towns of Runcorn and Winsford, attending Murdishaw West Primary School and Brookvale Comprehensive School (now known as Ormiston Bolingbroke Academy).

He briefly studied English at Newcastle Polytechnic, and gained a BA in Social Science from Manchester Polytechnic.

Bishop performed stand-up comedy for the first time in Manchester in October 2000 and, the following year, made it to the final of all the major new act competitions, including So You Think You're Funny, the Daily Telegraph Open Mic Awards, the BBC New Comedy Awards, and the City Life North West Comedian of The Year Award, which he won.

In 2002, he was named best newcomer by BBC Radio Merseyside, and in 2004, he won the North West Comedy Award for best stand-up.

He later became a medical representative for the pharmaceutical company Syntex, where he worked until leaving in 2006 to pursue his comedy career full-time at the age of 40.

His first television appearance was in 2007 on the RTÉ topical-comedy show The Panel, where he was a regular panelist until 2008.

He subsequently appeared in seasons 3 and 4 of the E4 teen drama Skins and the Ken Loach film Route Irish.

Bishop's first television appearance was in 2007 on the RTÉ topical-comedy show The Panel, where he was a regular panelist until 2008.

He then went onto the Channel 4 panel show 8 out of 10 Cats before appearing on the BBC's Live at the Apollo.

In 2009, Bishop appeared as the first act on Michael McIntyre's Comedy Roadshow in Manchester.

That year, he appeared at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, where his show Elvis Has Left the Building was nominated for an "Eddie" (Edinburgh Comedy Award).

In 2009, Bishop appeared in Channel 4's series Comedy Showcase and was a contestant on Celebrity Mastermind.

He also appeared in the BBC Three sitcom Lunch Monkeys as fireman Terry.

He has appeared five times on 5 Live's Fighting Talk quiz show, claiming four victories on the programme.

His material is drawn from his life's experiences, including fatherhood, cycling around the world, playing semi-professional football, and working as a nightclub doorman.

In December 2009, Bishop started his own TV show on LFC TV called John Bishop Meets..., where he interviewed former Liverpool football players.

He has also hosted his own shows such as John Bishop's Britain (2010–2011), John Bishop's Only Joking (2013), and two versions of The John Bishop Show (2015, 2022).

He also has played the companion Dan Lewis in Doctor Who from 2021 to 2022.

Bishop had a regular Sunday slot on Liverpool radio station Radio City called Bishop's Sunday Service.

In 2010, Bishop was a celebrity team captain on What Do Kids Know? with Rufus Hound, Joe Swash and Sara Cox on Watch.

He has also appeared on BBC's Mock the Week, and Radio 4's Act Your Age.

In series 3 and series 4 of Skins, Bishop portrayed Emily and Katie Fitch's father.

In 2010, Bishop appeared in Ken Loach's Route Irish, which premiered at the 2010 Cannes Film Festival.

Bishop is a regular panelist on Sky1 show, A League of Their Own, as well as a stand-up/sketch show for BBC One titled John Bishop's Britain.

On 11 July 2010, Bishop came runner-up in the second-ever game of How Many Peter Jones'? on ITV's James Corden's World Cup Live.

He has appeared as a panellist on BBC programmes Have I Got News for You, Would I Lie to You?, and on QI.

On 28 October 2010, he also guest hosted an episode of series 40 of Have I Got News For You.

On 12 February 2010, during an appearance on Friday Night with Jonathan Ross it was revealed that prior to his TV breakthrough, Bishop had worked as a warm-up for the show.

In March 2011, Bishop and fellow comedians Alan Carr, James Corden, Catherine Tate, and David Walliams appeared in the video for Take That's single "Happy Now" for Comic Relief.

He is also known for his charity work, most notably raising £4.2 million for Sport Relief 2012.

On 24 June 2012, he appeared on Desert Island Discs.

On 28 August and 4 September 2012, he appeared in Accused as Peter for two episodes.

In late 2012, Bishop appeared on BBC genealogy series Who Do You Think You Are? and on an ITV one-off episode called Panto!, where he starred as a local Morecambe disc jockey called Lewis Loud.

As of January 2013, Bishop hosts John Bishop's Only Joking on Sky 1.

On 28 July 2013, Bishop headlined the Vodafone comedy festival in Dublin's Iveagh Gardens.

Before the gig, a reporter called Brian Boyd interviewed him about his recently replenished marriage and how his wife eventually found him funny again.