Jim Piddock
Piddock exiting the premiere of the filmMascots at the2016 Toronto International Film Festival
Born	James Anthony Piddock (1956-04-08)April 8, 1956 (age 69) Rochester,Kent, England
Alma mater	Drama Studio London King's College, London University
Occupation(s)	Actor, producer, writer, and author
Years active	1978–present
Spouse(s)	Margaret Oberman ​ ​ (m. 1991; div. 2004)​ [1] Ann Cusack ​ (m. 2023)​
Children	Alexandra Piddock (born May 1, 1994)
Relatives	Joan Cusack (sister-in-law) John Cusack (brother-in-law) Dick Cusack (father-in-law)

Jim Piddock (born 8 April 1956 inRochester, Kent) is an English actor, writer, producer, and author whose career spans over four decades. After training at Drama Studio London and graduating fromKing’s College, London, he began on stage in the UK before relocating to the United States in his early twenties. He made his U.S. theatrical debut in the one-man showThe Boy’s Own Story inSan Francisco, winning critical praise, and soon moved toBroadway, appearing in productions includingPresent Laughter,Noises Off,The Knack, andDesign for Living.

Transitioning into television and film, Piddock has collected a wide-ranging résumé. He has appeared in ensemble comedies byChristopher Guest, such asBest in Show,A Mighty Wind, andFor Your Consideration. Piddock has also worked on numerous major studio films such asLethal Weapon 2,Independence Day,The Prestige,Austin Powers in Goldmember, andThe Five-Year Engagement. On television, his credits include guest roles onFriends,ER,Lost,Modern Family,Mom,Castle,Law & Order: LA, among many others.

In addition to acting, Piddock is a prolific voice actor, lending his voice to video games (notably Major Zero inMetal Gear Solid 3) and animated series. He made his first major writing breakthrough in the 1990s, selling a spec screenplay, and went on to write and produce films such asThe Tooth Fairy andA Different Loyalty. He also co-created theHBO/BBC seriesFamily Tree with Christopher Guest. In 2022, he published his memoir,Caught With My Pants Down and Other Tales from a Life in Hollywood, offering a witty and insightful look at his journey in show business.

James Anthony Piddock was born on April 8, 1956 to Celia Mary (née O'Callaghan) and Charles Frederick Piddock, inRochester, Kent. His mother worked as a medical receptionist, and his father, raised by an aunt, became an agricultural engineer.^[2] Although Piddock decided as a teenager that he wanted to be an actor, he later learned that his family had deep roots in show business. His grandfather, Harry Piddock, had performed a Music Hall act withCharlie Chaplin, and his great-grandfather, J.C. Piddock, was a well-known comedian and singer.^[3]

Piddock attendedWorth School from the age of 10, a Catholic boarding school in Sussex. In his memoir, he referred to being "bored" during his education, until he was cast in a school play. He described opening night of the play as the moment he knew he wanted to become an actor. After that, Piddock wrote and acted in the school's annual comedy revues, often appearing withRobert Bathurst. The comedy revues at Worth had also seenHarry Enfield perform while at the school.^[3]

After finishing school, Piddock studied English Literature and Language atKing's College, London University, where by his own admission he spent "most of my time majoring in the subjects of acting and playing football." He was accepted intoDrama Studio London, having auditioned for his first choiceRoyal Academy of Dramatic Art.^[3]

Before moving to theUnited States, Piddock built his early career on the British stage. After graduating from drama school, he toured the UK for nine months with the Spectrum Theatre Company. He then worked extensively in regional repertory theatres in Chelmsford, Tunbridge Wells, Torquay, and Weston-Super-Mare, frequently playing leading roles. During this period, he also became the youngest director working in British repertory theatre. His early professional credits included a role in John Bull’s Other Island at the Greenwich Theatre in 1980.^[4]

After leaving England for the United States, Piddock made his American theatrical debut inThe Boy's Own Story, a one-man show about a football goalkeeper, at the Julian Theatre in San Francisco, for which he received the Bay Area Theatre Critics award for Best Actor (1981).^[5] He also won the Drama-Logue Critics Award for best actor for his performances in the one-man show.^[6] After being extended twice to accommodate the growing demand to see the show, the play transferred to the York Theatre, off-Broadway in New York in 1982.^[7] That same year, he was cast as Fred inNoël Coward'sPresent Laughter, starringGeorge C. Scott and in which he made his Broadway debut along withNathan Lane,Kate Burton, andDana Ivey. The production was an instant hit and other Broadway and Off-Broadway shows followed, including the original US production ofNoises Off,, in which he created the role of Tim Allgood in America,The Knack at theRoundabout Theatre,Make and Break starringPeter Falk, and Otto inDesign For Living.^[8][9] Piddock said this about his stage career;

"I spent the first few years of my career pretty much doing nothing but stage work. I started in rep companies in England then did a one-man show in the US which led very quickly to doing several Broadway shows. I got very lucky early on. They were fun shows to do. I was in the first ever production ofNoises Off in America and my first ever job in New York was being directed by and appearing with George C. Scott."^[10]

After moving to Los Angeles, Piddock became an artistic associate at theLos Angeles Theatre Center, where he appeared inDiary of a Hunger Strike alongsideColm Meaney, the role of Jack Worthing inThe Importance of Being Earnest, the classic British 1960's revueBeyond the Fringe, and Mick inHarold Pinter'sThe Caretaker (play), for which he won a Los Angeles Drama Desk award (1988) for Best Actor. The same year, he also won a Drama Desk award for his performance oppositeJean Smart inHow the Other Half Loves at theTiffany Theater in West Hollywood.

In November 2007, he cemented his reputation as one of the UK's most renowned comedy actors when he appeared at theRicardo Montalbán Theatre in Hollywood, starring in a production ofWhat About Dick? alongside an all Britishexpat cast, includingBilly Connolly,Tim Curry,Eric Idle,Eddie Izzard,Jane Leeves,Emily Mortimer andTracey Ullman.^[11] When the play officially premiered in 2012, with the addition of Russell Brand, he was again in the cast.^[12] Piddock also worked withEric Idle in 2009 onAn Evening Without Monty Python, a 40 year anniversary tribute toMonty Python's Flying Circus, which he starred in withAlan Tudyk,Jane Leeves,Rick Holmes, andJeff B. Davis. The show played at theRicardo Montalban Theatre in Los Angeles and then on Broadway atThe Town Hall.^[8][9]

Of his transition into television, Piddock said:

I'd always wanted to end up working in film and TV. I guess I could have stayed in New York and probably had a long and fruitful career in the theatre but in the mid-1980s I felt like it was time to change gears and I'd certainly not been short-changed in terms of getting to perform live.^[13]

He has appeared in close to a hundred TV shows, includingThe Blacklist,The Haunting of Bly Manor,Modern Family,A Confession,Designated Survivor,Get Shorty,Training Day,Mom,Childrens Hospital,The Royals,Touch,Two and a Half Men,Castle,ER,Law & Order: LA,Party Down,Chuck,Dollhouse,Without a Trace,Monk,Lost,Crossing Jordan,Citizen Baines,Friends,Yes, Dear,Angel,The Tracey Ullman Show,Murder She Wrote,Coach,Tour of Duty,Max Headroom, andThe Twilight Zone.

He has also appeared in several TV films and mini-series, includingFrom The Earth to the Moon,A Mom for Christmas,She Creature onHBO, andThe Women of Windsor.^[8][9] He also created, wrote and produced theBBC seriesToo Much Sun.^[8][9]

His film appearances includeGet Him to the Greek, Woody Allen'sYou Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger.Falling Up,The Seeker: The Dark Is Rising,Who's Your Caddy?,Epic Movie,Meet the Spartans,The Prestige,Love for Rent,A Different Loyalty,See This Movie,Austin Powers in Goldmember,Multiplicity,Independence Day,Traces of Red, andLethal Weapon 2.

He also notably appeared in theChristopher Guest comediesBest in Show as the Dog Show commentator Trevor Beckwith withFred Willard, Leonard Crabbe inA Mighty Wind, Simon Whitset inFor Your Consideration, and Owen Golly Sr. inMascots, the last of which he co-wrote and produced.^[8][9]

In 2013, he also created, starred in, and produced the critically-acclaimedHBO andBBC television seriesFamily Tree withChristopher Guest, in which he playedChris O'Dowd's character's eccentric landlord Mr. Pfister.

As a voice actor, Piddock provided the voice ofMajor Zero in the English version of the video gameMetal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater as well as Agent One inReturn to Castle Wolfenstein forXbox andPlayStation 2. In film he provided the voice of Bolero the Bull in the filmGarfield 2 and of Kenneth Loring, the fictional artistic director of Forever Young Films, in the commentary of the directors' cut of theCoen brothers'Blood Simple. He also voiced the part of King Mufasa's hornbill majordomo, Zazu in the Disney gamesTimon & Pumbaa's Jungle Games andThe Lion King: Simba's Mighty Adventure, Batman's butler,Alfred Pennyworth, in the DC Comics animated filmBatman: Under the Red Hood, and voiced Chic for the animated science fiction filmDead Space: Downfall, based on the video gameDead Space.^[14]

Piddock appeared in 2012'sThe Five-Year Engagement, which starredJason Segel andEmily Blunt, playing Blunt's father,The Cold Light of Day starringHenry Cavill,Bruce Willis andSigourney Weaver,1915,Kill Your Friends, andThe Dictator withSacha Baron Cohen.^[8][9]

In August 2012, it was announced^[15] that Piddock would be co-writing, acting, and producing a new TV comedy series with Christopher Guest for HBO and the BBC titledFamily Tree.^[8][9] The show subsequently aired in 2013.

On 13 October 2016,Mascots, which he also co-wrote with Guest, stars in, and produced, premiered on Netflix. Since then he has appeared in several television shows, includingModern Family,Designated Survivor,Get Shorty,Training Day,Blunt Talk, andThe Royals.

In 2021, he played Captain Carradine in the filmHaunting of the Queen Mary, which was shot in the UK and the US and released in 2023.

Piddock wrote the story for and producedTooth Fairy starringDwayne Johnson,Ashley Judd,Julie Andrews,Stephen Merchant, andSeth MacFarlane, New Line's action-comedyThe Man, starringSamuel L. Jackson andEugene Levy,One Good Turn,Traces of Red, and the Cold War romantic thrillerA Different Loyalty starring Rupert Everett and Sharon Stone, in which Piddock played the supporting role of George Quennell, who was based on the notorious spyDonald Maclean.

His light-hearted, gossipy, and irreverent memoir,Caught with My Pants Down and Other Tales from a Life in Hollywood, chronicling his four decades in the entertainment industry, was released on March 23, 2022, in paperback, ebook, and audiobook formats.^[16] American comedian and television hostSeth Meyers said of the book: "Jim has a big heart and a sharp wit and both are on display in the pages of this book. So f***ing read it!". British comedian, actor, and writer,Russell Brand commented that "Jim has done that rare thing that perhaps onlyMichael Caine andDavid Niven have done before; conjured a funny, inclusive, whimsical, and magical tale." American actressJean Smart wrote: "This laugh-out-loud book... entertains endlessly and most wisely".Downton Abbey starsHugh Bonneville described it as "hilarious, passionate, beautifully told, and memorably waspish" andElizabeth McGovern said: "When I wasn't gasping or laughing my head off, I was wondering why my life was so boring compared to Jim Piddock's". Among the other celebrity praise for the book were "Jim Piddock is a funny man with a trove of stories to tell" (Christopher Guest), "Jim Piddock is a sharp, witty, and erudite man" (Eddie Izzard), and "Dry as a bone, lethal as a rapier. Couldn't put it down. Great read." (Ian McShane).^[17]

Piddock lived with and datedLinda Kozlowski inNew York in the late 1970s/early 1980s, before he moved toLos Angeles.^[18] He was married to formerSaturday Night Live writer Margaret Oberman from 1991 until 2004.^[19][20] Together they have a daughter who was born in 1994.^[21][22]

Piddock married actress and singerAnn Cusack on April 1, 2023 in a private ceremony at their home in theHollywood Hills,California.^[23][24] British-born Piddock has lived inLos Angeles since the mid-1980s, but also splits his time between other residences inLondon andProvence.^[25]

He is a lifelong supporter of the English football team,Crystal Palace. In 1999, when the club entered administration with debts of £22 million,^[26] Piddock subsequently became a founder of the Crystal Palace Supporters Trust in an attempt to save the club.^[27][28] The formation of the supporters trust and the funds raised was seen as "a lifeline" for the club, which was eventually saved.^[29] The co-founders of the trust were recognised by theEnglish Football Hall of Fame for their fan activism.^[30]

He has also supportedCrystal Palace's official charitable arm Palace for Life on numerous fundraising efforts. In 2023, Piddock played in the charitable football match, Palace Aid, which was held atSelhurst Park.^[31] He also announced that 25% of the proceeds from his book released in 2025 would go to the foundation, and 25% toBAFTA's "Access for All" programme.^[32] Piddock has also worked alongside the club to provide talks to school leavers inSouth London.^[33]

Wikimedia Commons has media related toJim Piddock.

General

• Official website
• Jim Piddock atIMDb

Interviews

• "Culture: The Seeker Interview"
• "Straight2DVD Interview"
• "GeekWeek Tooth Fairy Interview"

• 1956 births
• Living people
• 20th-century English male actors
• 21st-century English male actors
• English expatriate male actors in the United States
• English male film actors
• English male television actors
• English male voice actors
• English people of Irish descent
• Male actors from Kent
• People educated at Worth School
• Actors from Rochester, Kent

• Articles with short description
• Short description is different from Wikidata
• Use British English from October 2014
• All Wikipedia articles written in British English
• Use dmy dates from March 2020
• Pages using infobox person with multiple spouses
• Articles with hCards
• Commons category link from Wikidata