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Martin John Kemp (born 10 October 1961) is an English musician and actor, best known as the bassist in the new wave band
Spandau Ballet Spandau Ballet ( ) were an English new wave band formed in Islington, London, in 1979. Inspired by the capital's post-punk underground dance scene, they emerged at the start of the 1980s as the house band for the Blitz Kids (New Romantics), ...
and for his role as Steve Owen in ''
EastEnders ''EastEnders'' is a British television soap opera created by Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the East End of London, the ...
''. He is the younger brother of
Gary Kemp Gary James Kemp (born 16 October 1959) is an English songwriter, musician and actor, best known as the lead guitarist, backing vocalist, and principal songwriter for the new wave band Spandau Ballet. Kemp wrote the lyrics and music for all 2 ...
, who is also a member of Spandau Ballet and an actor. In 2012, Kemp finished third in the tenth series of ''
Celebrity Big Brother ''Celebrity Big Brother'' or ''Big Brother VIP'' is an adaptation of the '' Big Brother'' reality television series. It is the celebrity version of its parent franchise ''Big Brother'', the celebrity version airs in several countries, however, t ...
'', and in 2017 he appeared as a judge on the
BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
series '' Let It Shine''.


Early life

Kemp was born to Frank and Eileen Kemp at their house in
Islington Islington ( ) is an inner-city area of north London, England, within the wider London Borough of Islington. It is a mainly residential district of Inner London, extending from Islington's #Islington High Street, High Street to Highbury Fields ...
, north London, and attended Rotherfield Junior School. From the age of 7 he attended the Anna Scher Theatre drama club with his brother Gary, and appeared in many TV shows, including ''
Jackanory ''Jackanory'' was a BBC children's television series which was originally broadcast between 1965 and 1996. It was designed to stimulate an interest in Reading (activity), reading. The programme was first transmitted on 13 December 1965, and the ...
'', ''
The Tomorrow People ''The Tomorrow People'' is a British children's science fiction on television, science fiction television series created by Roger Price (television producer), Roger Price. Produced by Thames Television for the ITV (TV network), ITV Network, th ...
'' and ''
Dixon of Dock Green ''Dixon of Dock Green'' is a BBC police procedural television series about daily life at a fictional London police station, with the emphasis on petty crime, successfully controlled through common sense and human understanding. It ran from 1955 ...
''. In his last year with Anna Scher, he won a role in an episode of the
BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
television series '' The Glittering Prizes'', appearing alongside
Tom Conti Tommaso Antonio Conti (born 22 November 1941) is a Scottish actor. Conti has received numerous accolades including a Tony Award and a Laurence Olivier Award as well as nominations for an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award and two Golden Globe Awards ...
and
Nigel Havers Nigel Allan Havers (born 6 November 1951) is an English actor and presenter. His film roles include Lord Andrew Lindsay in the 1981 British film ''Chariots of Fire'', which earned him a BAFTA nomination; as Dr. Rawlins in the 1987 Steven Spielb ...
in 1976. Kemp grew up in north London and attended
Central Foundation Boys' School Central Foundation Boys' School is a voluntary aided school, voluntary-aided comprehensive secondary school in the London Borough of Islington. It was founded at a meeting in 1865 and opened the following year in Bath Street, before moving to it ...
, Islington. After leaving school at 16, he began an apprenticeship in a print factory, but soon became disenchanted.


Spandau Ballet

Kemp's life changed when Steve Dagger, the manager of his brother Gary's band the Gentry, suggested Martin should replace the band's bass-player. Kemp learned to play bass in three months and performed for the first time with the Gentry at a college party. Eventually the band was renamed
Spandau Ballet Spandau Ballet ( ) were an English new wave band formed in Islington, London, in 1979. Inspired by the capital's post-punk underground dance scene, they emerged at the start of the 1980s as the house band for the Blitz Kids (New Romantics), ...
and Kemp left his printing job to concentrate on the band full-time. Spandau Ballet went on to have a great deal of success in the
New Romantic New Romantic was an underground subculture movement that originated in the United Kingdom in the late 1970s. The movement emerged from the nightclub scene in London and Birmingham at venues such as Billy's and The Blitz. The New Romantic mo ...
era, with four of their albums reaching the top ten of the
UK Albums Chart The Official Albums Chart is the United Kingdom's industry-recognised national record chart for album, albums. Entries are ranked by sales and audio streaming. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the O ...
. ''
True True most commonly refers to truth, the state of being in congruence with fact or reality. True may also refer to: Places * True, West Virginia, an unincorporated community in the United States * True, Wisconsin, a town in the United States * ...
'' also gave the band their first UK number-one album and, with the album's
title track A title track is a song that has the same name as the album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track cartridge, 8-t ...
, single. Kemp also performed with the band on the popular 1984 famine-relief-project song "
Do They Know It's Christmas? "Do They Know It's Christmas?" is a charity song written in 1984 by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to raise money for the 1983–1985 famine in Ethiopia. It was first recorded by Band Aid, a supergroup assembled by Geldof and Ure consisting of pop ...
", written by
Bob Geldof Robert Frederick Zenon Geldof (; born 5 October 1951) is an Irish singer-songwriter and political activist. He rose to prominence in the late 1970s as the lead singer of the Irish rock band the Boomtown Rats, who achieved popularity as part ...
and
Midge Ure James "Midge" Ure (; born 10 October 1953) is a Scottish singer-songwriter and record producer. His stage name, Midge, is a phonetic reversal of Jim. Ure enjoyed particular success in the 1970s and 1980s in bands including Slik, Thin Lizzy, ...
. Because of a dispute over royalties, the band split up in the early 1990s. Spandau Ballet announced they had reformed at a press conference on on 25 March 2009. The band also announced a world tour, beginning with dates in the UK and Ireland in October 2009.


Later career

Kemp and his brother Gary returned to acting in 1990, both appearing in the British film '' The Krays'', in which they played the notorious gangster twins Ronald and Reginald Kray. Their performances received a great deal of critical acclaim. After ''The Krays'', Martin Kemp moved to Los Angeles in the early 1990s and made appearances in television series such as '' The Outer Limits'' and '' Highlander: The Series''. He also appeared in several Hollywood films, including '' Waxwork II: Lost in Time'' (1992) and '' Embrace of the Vampire'' (1994). In 1995, Kemp moved back to the United Kingdom and took a break from acting for a short while, recovering from removal of two benign brain tumours. He resumed his acting career in 1998 when he made a guest appearance in the ITV police drama series ''
The Bill ''The Bill'' is a British police procedural television series, broadcast on ITV (TV network), ITV from 16 October 1984 until 31 August 2010. The programme originated from a one-off drama, "Woodentop (The Bill), Woodentop" (part of the ''Storyb ...
''. He went on to become popular for his role as villain Steve Owen in the
BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
's top soap opera, ''
EastEnders ''EastEnders'' is a British television soap opera created by Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the East End of London, the ...
'', from December 1998. His character was involved in some of the soap's highest-rated storylines, such as the Saskia Duncan murder and " Who Shot Phil?". By the time he left the series in 2002, he was one of the best-known faces on British television. He was the subject of '' This Is Your Life'' in 1999, when he was surprised by
Michael Aspel Michael Terence Aspel (born 12 January 1933) is an English retired television presenter and newsreader. He hosted programmes such as '' Crackerjack!'', '' Ask Aspel'', ''Aspel & Company'', '' Give Us a Clue'', '' This Is Your Life'', '' Strange ...
while filming a scene for ''
EastEnders ''EastEnders'' is a British television soap opera created by Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the East End of London, the ...
''. Kemp won three TV Quick Awards for Best Soap Actor (2000, 2001, 2002), a National Television Award for Most Popular Actor (2000) and five British Soap Awards (Villain of the Year in 2000, Best Actor in 2001 and 2002, and Sexiest Male in 2001 and 2002) for his work on ''EastEnders''. Kemp signed a contract with ITV in 2002 and starred in several television dramas, including ''
The Brides in the Bath ''The'' is a grammatical Article (grammar), article in English language, English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the ...
'', in which he played real-life murderer George Smith, and ''Can't Buy Me Love'' opposite fellow ''EastEnders'' star
Michelle Collins Michelle Danielle Collins (born 28 May 1962) is a British actress. She is known for her role as Cindy Beale in the BBC soap opera A soap opera (also called a daytime drama or soap) is a genre of a long-running radio or television Serial (r ...
, which was based on a true story about a man who conned his wife and friends into believing he had won the lottery. He also starred in the short-lived crime drama series ''
Family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...
'' in 2003. From 2004 to 2007, he was the face of furniture chain ScS. He starred in a low-budget British film titled ''Back in Business'' which had a limited release in a few cinemas in February 2007 and one month later was released on DVD. He founded his own production company and in March 2008 directed a low-budget 20-minute short film entitled ''Karma Magnet'', which starred his brother Gary and featured Martin's wife and son, Shirlie and Roman. This was released only online. Kemp appeared on a celebrity special of ''
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? ''Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?'' (WWTBAM) is an international television game show franchise of British origin, created by David Briggs, Mike Whitehill and Steven Knight. In its format, currently owned and licensed by Sony Pictures Televis ...
'' in January 2008 with his brother Gary to raise awareness of and funds for the Encephalitis Society. Along with his son, Kemp also featured in one edition of a factual television series for Five, ''Dangerous Adventures For Boys'', based on the best-selling book written by Conn and Hal Iggulden, ''
The Dangerous Book for Boys ''The Dangerous Book for Boys'', by Conn Iggulden, Conn and Hal Iggulden is a guidebook published by HarperCollins, aimed at boys "from eight to eighty." It covers around eighty topics, including how to build a treehouse, grow a crystal, or t ...
''. In 2008, he appeared on the
Discovery Channel Discovery Channel, known as The Discovery Channel from 1985 to 1995, and often referred to as simply Discovery, is an American cable channel that is best known for its ongoing reality television shows and promotion of pseudoscience. It init ...
television programme '' Chop Shop'' where the cast built him a gangster car. He hosted ''TV's 50 Hardest Men'' for
Sky One Sky One was a British pay television channel operated and owned by Sky Group (a division of Comcast). Originally launched on 26 April 1982 as Satellite Television, it was Europe's first satellite and non- terrestrial channel. From 31 July 1989, ...
in July 2008 and guest-starred as Mr. Burley in BBC drama series '' Waterloo Road''. The year 2011 saw him starring as "Dr. Lawrence" in '' Jack Falls''. In November 2011 Kemp appeared as a contestant on the second series of ITV's 71 Degrees North but quit after three days. Kemp's first feature film as director, ''
Stalker Stalking is unwanted and/or repeated surveillance or contact by an individual or group toward another person. Stalking behaviors are interrelated to harassment and intimidation and may include following the victim in person or monitoring t ...
'', was released in 2011. Kemp was announced as the thirteenth celebrity to participate in the summer series of ''Celebrity Big Brother'' 2012. Kemp appeared in the final episode and was placed third on 7 September 2012. From February to April 2016, Kemp appeared as the
Child Catcher The Child Catcher is a fictional character in the 1968 film ''Chitty Chitty Bang Bang'' and in the later stage musical adaptation. The Child Catcher is employed by the Baron and Baroness Bomburst to snatch and imprison children on the streets of ...
in the UK and Ireland tour of the musical ''
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang ''Chitty Chitty Bang Bang'' is a 1968 children's film, children's Musical film, musical fantasy film directed by Ken Hughes and produced by Albert R. Broccoli. It stars Dick Van Dyke, Sally Ann Howes, Lionel Jeffries, Gert Fröbe, Anna Quayle, ...
'', alongside Jason Manford, Phil Jupitus and
Michelle Collins Michelle Danielle Collins (born 28 May 1962) is a British actress. She is known for her role as Cindy Beale in the BBC soap opera A soap opera (also called a daytime drama or soap) is a genre of a long-running radio or television Serial (r ...
. Kemp hosted the first series of "Martin Kemp's Murder Files", aired from November 2016, on the UK TV channel
Quest A quest is a journey toward a specific mission or a goal. It serves as a plot device in mythology and fiction: a difficult journey towards a goal, often symbolic or allegorical. Tales of quests figure prominently in the folklore of every nat ...
. The show provided detailed accounts of crimes and a step-by-step forensic analysis as to how the evil killers were eventually identified. Murderers featured on the show included the Yorkshire Ripper and the Green River Killer. In December 2017, he appeared as
Captain Hook Captain James Hook is the main antagonist of J. M. Barrie's 1904 play ''Peter and Wendy, Peter Pan; or, the Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up'' and its various adaptations, in which he is Peter Pan's archenemy. The character is a pirate captain of the br ...
in ''Peter Pan – The World's Biggest Pantomime'' at the Barclaycard Arena in
Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...
and the SSE Arena in
Wembley Wembley () is a large suburbIn British English, "suburb" often refers to the secondary urban centres of a city. Wembley is not a suburb in the American sense, i.e. a single-family residential area outside of the city itself. in the London Borou ...
alongside Bradley Walsh as Smee. In November 2019, Kemp and his wife released their first album together as Martin & Shirlie, titled ''In the Swing of It'' via
Sony Music Sony Music Entertainment (SME), commonly known as Sony Music, is an American multinational music company owned by Japanese conglomerate Sony Group Corporation. It is the recording division of Sony Music Group, with the other half being the ...
. The album contains duet covers of classic
jazz standard Jazz standards are musical compositions that are an important part of the musical repertoire of jazz musicians, in that they are widely known, performed, and recorded by jazz musicians, and widely known by listeners. There is no definitive List ...
s plus two original songs written by their daughter Harley Moon Kemp. In June 2020, Kemp, with his son
Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...
premiered as hosts of the new Sunday breakfast programme for ITV, '' Martin & Roman's Sunday Best!''. In October 2020, Kemp with his wife Shirley published ''Shirlie and Martin Kemp: It's a Love Story'', an
autobiography An autobiography, sometimes informally called an autobio, is a self-written account of one's own life, providing a personal narrative that reflects on the author's experiences, memories, and insights. This genre allows individuals to share thei ...
-cum- relationship advice book. The Kemps said the book was published in response to "growing media interest" in the couple's longlasting relationship. In February 2021, Kemp appeared in '' McDonald & Dodds'', starring alongside
Jason Watkins Jason Peter Watkins (born 28 October 1962) is an English stage, film and television actor. He played the lead role in the two-part drama ''The Lost Honour of Christopher Jefferies'', for which he won the British Academy Television Award for Bes ...
and
Rob Brydon Robert Brydon Jones (; born 3 May 1965) is a Welsh actor, comedian, impressionist, presenter, singer and writer. He gained prominence for his roles in film, television and radio. He was appointed Order of the British Empire, Member of the Order ...
. On 24 March 2021, Kemp and son
Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...
featured in an episode of ITV's ''DNA Journey''. In April 2021, Kemp and his son Roman Kemp began presenting ''Martin & Roman's Weekend Best''; a
spin-off Spin-off, Spin Off, Spin-Off, or Spinoff may refer to: Entertainment and media *Spinoff (media), a media work derived from an existing work *''The Spinoff'', a New Zealand current affairs magazine * ''Spin Off'' (Canadian game show), a 2013 Canad ...
of Martin & Roman's Sunday Best!. In December 2021, Kemp appeared as
Father Christmas Father Christmas is the traditional English name for the personification of Christmas. Although now known as a Christmas gift-bringer, and typically considered to be synonymous with Santa Claus, he was originally part of a much older and unrela ...
as part of a government campaign to encourage people to get their coronavirus vaccinations ahead of the Christmas holidays. In January 2023, Kemp appeared alongside his wife Shirlie Kemp on the fourth series of '' The Masked Singer'' as "Cat & Mouse".


Personal life

Kemp has been married to Shirlie Holliman since 1988. Holliman is a former backing singer of the group
Wham! Wham! were an English pop duo formed in Bushey in 1981 consisting of George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley. They were one of the most successful pop acts during the 1980s, selling more than 30 million certified records worldwide from 1982 to ...
and one half of the 1980s pop duo, Pepsi & Shirlie. The couple have one daughter, Harley Moon and a son,
Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...
(born January 1993). He is a patron of British/Irish charity the Encephalitis Society. At the time he became a patron, he confirmed that he had controlled
epilepsy Epilepsy is a group of Non-communicable disease, non-communicable Neurological disorder, neurological disorders characterized by a tendency for recurrent, unprovoked Seizure, seizures. A seizure is a sudden burst of abnormal electrical activit ...
since the 1990s, as a result of two brain tumours. Following surgery to remove the tumours, Kemp had a protective metal plate implanted over his brain under the scalp. The plate is unnoticeable but not undetectable; during an appearance on the
Frank Skinner Christopher Graham Collins (born 28 January 1957), known professionally as Frank Skinner, is an English comedian, actor, presenter and writer. At the 2001 British Comedy Awards, he was named Best Comedy Entertainment Personality. His televisio ...
Show in 2002, Kemp jokingly remarked he could never slip quietly through metal-detectors at airports, as the plate would set the alarm off. On 20 January 2006, Kemp opened a new CT scanning suite at
Russells Hall Hospital Russells Hall Hospital is an NHS general hospital located in Dudley, West Midlands, England, managed by the Dudley Group NHS Foundation Trust. The hospital is south-west of the town centre on the A4101 road, which connects to the Kingswinford ...
,
Dudley Dudley ( , ) is a market town in the West Midlands, England, southeast of Wolverhampton and northwest of Birmingham. Historically part of Worcestershire, the town is the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley. In the ...
, West Midlands. Kemp is a lifelong
Arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...
fan, having been born and raised in the
Highbury Highbury is an area of North London, England, in the London Borough of Islington. Highbury Manor Highbury was once owned by Ranulf, brother of Ilger, and included all the areas north and east of Canonbury and Holloway Roads. The manor hou ...
area. In 2021 Kemp and his wife moved to
Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and one of the home counties. It borders Bedfordshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Essex to the east, Greater London to the ...
and embarked on the renovation of a Victorian property, including an extensive garden. In May 2024 they were featured in BBC's coverage of the Chelsea Flower Show.


Filmography


Film


Television


As director

* ''Karma Magnet'' (2008) (short) * ''
Stalker Stalking is unwanted and/or repeated surveillance or contact by an individual or group toward another person. Stalking behaviors are interrelated to harassment and intimidation and may include following the victim in person or monitoring t ...
'' (2010) * '' Top Dog'' (2014)


Bibliography

* *


See also

* List of Celebrity Big Brother (British TV series) housemates


References


External links

*
The Mixtape with Martin Kemp on Greatest Hits Radio

The 80s Mixtape with Martin Kemp on Greatest Hits Radio

The 80s Mixtape with Martin Kemp on Greatest Hits Radio 80s

Encephalitis.info
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kemp, Martin 1961 births Living people Alumni of the Anna Scher Theatre School British Soap Award for Best Actor winners English bass guitarists English rock bass guitarists English male film actors English male singers English male soap opera actors English new wave musicians English television presenters Male actors from London English male bass guitarists People educated at Central Foundation Boys' School Military personnel from the London Borough of Islington People from Islington (district) Actors from the London Borough of Islington People with epilepsy Spandau Ballet members English people with disabilities