Larry Lamb facts for kids

Lawrence Douglas Lamb (born 1 October 1947) is a famous English actor and radio presenter. You might know him as Archie Mitchell from the TV show EastEnders. He also played Mick Shipman in the funny BBC series Gavin & Stacey. Later, he was Ted Case in the BBC drama New Tricks. In 2016, he even appeared on I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!.

Early Life and Discoveries

Larry Lamb was born in Edmonton, Middlesex, England. He was the oldest of four children. Larry had a challenging childhood growing up.

In 2011, Larry took part in the BBC show Who Do You Think You Are?. On the show, he found out something amazing! He learned that his family used to own a famous traveling animal show called Day's Menagerie. He even discovered he was related to a lion tamer named Martini Bartlett!

Larry went to Edmonton County School. After school, he worked in the oil industry. This job took him to places like Libya and Canada. While in Canada, he went to St. Francis Xavier University. There, his interest in acting grew from a hobby into a professional career. He performed at Canada's Stratford Festival in 1975–1976.

Acting Career Highlights

After coming back to Britain from Canada, Larry Lamb joined the cast of the BBC soap opera Triangle. This show was set on a North Sea ferry. He played Matt Taylor, the ship's chief engineer, from 1981 to 1983.

Larry has appeared in many other popular TV shows. These include The New Avengers, The Professionals, Minder, Lovejoy, A Touch of Frost, Casualty, Spooks, and Midsomer Murders.

Playing Mick Shipman

From 2007 to 2010, Larry played Mick Shipman in the hit comedy Gavin & Stacey. He was Gavin's dad. He returned to this role for a special Christmas episode in 2019 and will be back for the show's final episode in 2024.

His Role as Archie Mitchell

In 2008, Larry started playing Archie Mitchell in EastEnders. Archie was the father of Ronnie and Roxy Mitchell. Larry based his acting of Archie on his own father. He left the show in April 2009 but came back in July of the same year. Archie was part of a big murder mystery storyline at Christmas 2009.

In 2009, Larry also acted in the film Blood: The Last Vampire. He played General McKee. In 2010, he appeared with his son, George Lamb, on a special EastEnders show. This was after Archie's killer was revealed.

Other Notable Roles

In April 2011, Larry helped with a BBC project called "Off By Heart Shakespeare." This was a contest for students to recite Shakespeare. Larry played Jaques from the play As You Like It and performed the famous speech, "All the world's a stage."

It was also announced that Larry would join the cast of New Tricks. He played Ted Case in the show's twelfth series.

Larry's films include Buster and Essex Boys. He also had a small part in Superman III in 1983. In September 2023, he appeared in the Channel 5 drama series The Inheritance.

Theatre Work

Larry Lamb has also performed in many plays on stage. Some of his theatre roles include:

Other Work and Appearances

In 2013, Larry started hosting a regular Sunday morning radio show on LBC. He also sometimes reports for the BBC program The One Show. In 2014, Larry took part in Gareth's All Star Choir. This was for the BBC's Children in Need charity appeal.

In 2016, he was a contestant on the sixteenth series of I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!. He was the sixth celebrity to leave the jungle in that series.

Personal Life and Family

Larry Lamb has been married twice. His first marriage was to Anita Wisbey, and they had a daughter named Vanessa Lamb in 1969. Larry has mentioned that Vanessa has a daughter of her own. His second marriage was to Linda Martin. With Linda, he has a son, George Lamb, who is a radio DJ and TV presenter, born in 1979.

Larry was in a relationship with Clare Burt from 1996 to 2014. They had two daughters together: Eloise Alexandra (born 1998) and Eva-Mathilde (born 2003). Larry currently lives in Cornwall. He is in a relationship with artist Marie Hugo.

Larry Lamb wrote a book about his life called Mummy's Boy, which was published in 2011.

Awards and Recognition

Larry Lamb won an award for Best Villain at the 2010 British Soap Awards for his role as Archie Mitchell in EastEnders.

Filmography

Films

Television Shows

See also

In Spanish: Larry Lamb para niños