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UK Tickets Profile: Omid Djalili

Posted by Jack on Wednesday 15th July 2009 at 4:16PM

On stage:

Omid, soon to play Fagin in Oliver!, is best known as one of the UK’s most successful stand up comedians. With his manic, energetic performance style, his singing and, quite often, belly dancing, Djalili has a wide reaching appeal, having performed in thirteen countries. He has also headlined seven of the nine Edinburgh Fringe Festivals he has performed at. His performance No Agenda was so popular in Edinburgh that it transferred to the London Palladium in 2006.

From 20 July, Djalili will be playing Fagin in the critically acclaimed production of Oliver! at Drury Lane. It will be his musical theatre debut.

On screen:

Omid has also had a successful acting career with extensive film credits. He has appeared in The Mummy, The World is Not Enough, Gladiator, Casanova, Around the World in 80 Days and Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow.

On TV, Omid is widely known in the US as caretaker Nasim in Whoopi Goldberg’s sitcom Whoopi. In the UK, he has had roles in The Bill, Dinotopia, Small Potatoes and Black Books. A number of his stand up routines have appeared on TV and DVD, and he is a regular guest on such comedy panel shows as Have I Got News For You and Never Mind the Buzzcocks.

The first series of his own eponymous sketch show aired on BBC2 this year.

Currently:

Last minute rehearsals for his musical debut as Fagin in Oliver!. Also production work on his leading role David Baddiel’s new film The Infidel, to be released early next year.

He has also just finished writing the second series of his sketch show, The Omid Djalili Show.

Trivia:

Despite his tongue in cheek send ups of foreigners and Arab stereotypes, Omid has a huge following in the Middle East.

Despite his breakthrough stand up routine being titled ‘Short, Fat Kebab Shop Owner's Son’, Omid’s parents were actually a newspaper reporter and a dressmaker, who also ran a guest house.

In 2006 Omid recorded his on HBO special in New York. He is only the second British comedian after Eddie Izzard to do so.

Omid Djalili appears as Fagin in Oliver from 20 July 2009 and you can grab your tickets here.