Richard Clifford Blackwood (born 15 May 1972) is a British actor, presenter, and rapper. Between 2015 and 2018, he played Vincent Hubbard 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 ...

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 ...

''. In 2020, he began portraying the role of Felix Westwood in the

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by Channel Four Television Corporation. It is state-owned enterprise, publicly owned but, unlike the BBC, it receives no public funding and is funded en ...

soap opera ''

Hollyoaks ''Hollyoaks'' is a British soap opera which originally began airing on Channel 4 on 23 October 1995. It was created by Phil Redmond, who had previously conceived the soap opera ''Brookside (TV series), Brookside''. From 2005 to 2023, episodes h ...

''. For his role as Felix, he has been nominated for a TRIC Award and a

National Television Award The National Television Awards (often shortened to NTAs) is a British television awards ceremony, broadcast by the ITV network and begun in 1995. The National Television Awards are the most prominent ceremony for which the results are voted o ...

Career

Blackwood presented the UK version of '' Singled Out'' on Channel 5, and in 1999, he presented his own series, titled '' The Richard Blackwood Show''. He was also a presenter on ''

Top of the Pops ''Top of the Pops'' (''TOTP'') is a British record chart television programme, made by the BBC and broadcast weekly between 1January 1964 and 30 July 2006. The programme was the world's longest-running weekly music show. For most of its histo ...

'' and the

MTV MTV (an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable television television channel, channel and the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on ...

television show, ''

MTV Select ''MTV Select'' was an interactive music television program airing on MTV channels across Europe and later on MTV Japan, MTV Canada, and MTV India. The show was hosted by a VJ, and viewers were able to contact the programme (using technologi ...

'' with

Donna Air Donna Marie Theresa Air (born 2 August 1979) is an English actress, producer and philanthropist. Early life and education Donna Marie Theresa Air was born on 2 August 1979, in Gosforth, North Tyneside, to receptionist Marie (née Lackenby) and ...

. In 2000, Blackwood had a number three single on the UK Singles Chart with the song "Mama Who Da Man", based on "

Mama Used to Say "Mama Used to Say" is the debut single release by the British R&B recording artist Junior, taken from his debut studio album ''Ji''. Formats and track listings ;12" vinyl #"Mama Used to Say" – 6:40 #"Mama Used to Say" (Instrumental) – 6 ...

" by his uncle

Junior Giscombe Norman Washington "Junior" Giscombe (born 6 June 1957) is an English singer-songwriter often known as Junior who was one of the first British R&B artists to be successful in the United States. He is best known for his 1982 hit single, " Mama Us ...

. He later followed it up with two singles, "1.2.3.4 Get with the Wicked" (number 10) and "Someone There for Me" (number 23) and released the album ''You'll Love to Hate This'' (number 35) in 2000. Blackwood was tricked into being interviewed on the satire comedy series ''

Brass Eye ''Brass Eye'' (stylised as brassEYE) is a British satirical television series parodying current affairs news programming. A series of six episodes aired on Channel 4 in 1997, and a further episode in 2001. The series was created and presented by ...

'' in 2001, during the episode " Paedogeddon!". Blackwood then had acting appearances in ''

Holby City ''Holby City'' (stylised on-screen as HOLBY CIY) is a British medical drama television series that aired weekly on BBC One. It was created by Tony McHale and Mal Young as a Spin-off (media), spin-off from the established BBC medical drama '' ...

'', and played the title character in the 2002 television series '' Ed Stone Is Dead''. During May 2003, Blackwood appeared in Channel 5's ''Celebrity Detox Camp'', which involved him being filmed "pumping 18 litres of coffee solution through his anus into isstomach". In March 2007, he acted in the

Bollywood Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, is primarily produced in Mumbai. The popular term Bollywood is a portmanteau of "Bombay" (former name of Mumbai) and "Cinema of the United States, Hollywood". The in ...

film '' Don't Stop Dreaming''. In 2005, Blackwood appeared in ''Princes of Comedii'' DVD release. In 2010, he played Brightie in the

Tennessee Williams Thomas Lanier Williams III (March 26, 1911 – February 25, 1983), known by his pen name Tennessee Williams, was an American playwright and screenwriter. Along with contemporaries Eugene O'Neill and Arthur Miller, he is considered among the three ...

play ''

Cat on a Hot Tin Roof ''Cat on a Hot Tin Roof'' is a 1955 American three-act play by Tennessee Williams. The play, an adaptation of his 1952 short story "Three Players of a Summer Game", was written between 1953 and 1955. One of Williams's more famous works and his ...

'', alongside

Adrian Lester Adrian Anthony Lester (born Anthony Harvey on 14 August 1968) is a British actor. He is the recipient of a Laurence Olivier Award, an Evening Standard Theatre Award and a Critics' Circle Theatre Award for his work on the London stage, an ...

and

James Earl Jones James Earl Jones (January 17, 1931 – September 9, 2024) was an American actor. A pioneer for black actors in the entertainment industry, Jones is known for his extensive and acclaimed roles on stage and screen. Jones is one of the few perfor ...

at the

Novello Theatre The Novello Theatre is a West End theatre on Aldwych, in the City of Westminster. It was known as the Strand Theatre between 1913 and 2005. History The theatre was built as one of a pair with the Aldwych Theatre on either side of The Waldo ...

in London. In 2011, he played the role of

Donkey The donkey or ass is a domesticated equine. It derives from the African wild ass, ''Equus africanus'', and may be classified either as a subspecies thereof, ''Equus africanus asinus'', or as a separate species, ''Equus asinus''. It was domes ...

in the West End production of '' Shrek the Musical''. The show opened at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane on 14 June 2011. Blackwood appeared with the rest of the ''Shrek'' cast on '' Britain's Got Talent'' for ITV on 31 May 2011. They performed "

I'm a Believer "I'm a Believer" is a song written by Neil Diamond and recorded by the American band the Monkees in 1966 with the lead vocals by Micky Dolenz. The single, produced by Jeff Barry, hit the number-one spot on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart ...

". On 17 January 2015, it was announced that Blackwood would be joining the cast of ''

'' as character Vincent Hubbard. He made his first appearance on 17 February 2015, and his last appearance aired on 20 April 2018. In 2019, Blackwood took part in the eleventh series of ''

Dancing on Ice ''Dancing on Ice'' is a British television series broadcast from 2006 to 2014 and then from 2018 to 2025. It was presented by Holly Willoughby and Stephen Mulhern. Other previous hosts include Phillip Schofield and Christine Lampard. The series ...

'', partnered with professional skater Carlotta Edwards. They were eliminated in Week 3, following a skate off against Saira Khan and Mark Hanretty. In 2020, it was announced that he would be joining the cast of the

soap opera ''

''. Since joining ''Hollyoaks'', Blackwood has been nominated for a TRIC Award for Soap Actor of the Year, as well as a

for Serial Drama Performance.

Personal life

In a 2000 interview, Blackwood claimed that if he had not made it in show business he would have been "a graphic designer, designing buildings". He became the stepbrother of supermodel

Naomi Campbell Naomi Elaine Campbell (born 22 May 1970) is a British supermodel. Beginning her career at the age of eight, Campbell was one of six models of her generation declared supermodels by the fashion industry and the international press. She was th ...

when his father married her mother in the 1980s, until their divorce several years later. His uncle is singer

and his cousin is the actor and comedian Vas Blackwood. Blackwood has said he once attempted suicide after filing for bankruptcy in 2003. He has a son, Keaun, born in January 2001.

Discography

Studio album

Singles

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Blackwood, Richard 1972 births 20th-century English comedians 21st-century English comedians English people of Jamaican descent English radio DJs Black British radio presenters English television presenters English male stage actors British male soap opera actors Black British male actors Black British male rappers British male rappers Black British male comedians Black British comedians English stand-up comedians English male actors Comedians from London Male actors from London Rappers from London Living people