Thomas Cunningham (born 22 June 1964) is a Scottish musician and the

drummer A drummer is a percussionist who creates music using drums. Most contemporary western music ensemble, bands that play Rock music, rock, Pop music, pop, jazz, or Contemporary R&B, R&B music include a drummer for purposes including timekeepi ...

for the band

Wet Wet Wet Wet Wet Wet are a Scottish soft rock band formed in 1982. They scored a number of hits on the UK charts and around the world in the 1980s and 1990s. They are best known for their 1994 cover of the Troggs' 1960s hit " Love Is All Around", which ...

Biography

Cunningham's father, Tom Sr., bought his son his first

drum kit A drum kit or drum set (also known as a trap set, or simply drums in popular music and jazz contexts) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and sometimes other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one p ...

in 1977, "down the Social Club for £15". Shortly thereafter, a chance meeting with Graeme Clark on the school bus brought the two together. Over the next few years the two recruited fellow school friends Mark McLachlan and Neil Mitchell and concentrated on writing their original songs and perfected their song writing craft. From the release of their first single "Wishing I was Lucky", Wet Wet Wet had chart success for a further 10 years. Cunningham acrimoniously left the band in 1997 after a dispute over

royalty Royalty may refer to: * the mystique/prestige bestowed upon monarchs ** one or more monarchs, such as kings, queens, emperors, empresses, princes, princesses, etc. *** royal family, the immediate family of a king or queen-regnant, and sometimes h ...

payments, and the band went on tour in 1998 without him. At its conclusion, the three remaining members went their separate ways. In 2004, however, they reunited. In 2010 Cunningham along with Billy Sloan (DJ journalist) put on a benefit show for their friend Tiger Tim Stevens (DJ) who suffered from

multiple sclerosis Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an autoimmune disease resulting in damage to myelinthe insulating covers of nerve cellsin the brain and spinal cord. As a demyelinating disease, MS disrupts the nervous system's ability to Action potential, transmit ...

and had been forced to quit his job at

Radio Clyde Radio Clyde is a group of two Independent Local Radio stations serving Glasgow and West Central Scotland. Radio Clyde is owned and operated by Bauer Media Audio UK, Bauer, based at studios in Clydebank, West Dunbartonshire and forms part of Baue ...

due to his illness; on the same bill were

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, ...

, Jim Diamond,

Gerard Kelly Gerard Kelly (born Paul Kelly; 27 May 1959 – 28 October 2010) was a Scottish actor who appeared in many comedies, including ''City Lights'', ''Rab C Nesbitt'', '' Scotch and Wry'' and '' Extras''. He had more serious roles as well, including ...

Marti Pellow Marti Pellow (born Mark McLachlan; 23 March 1965) is a Scottish singer. He was the lead singer of the pop group Wet Wet Wet for 28 years: from their formation in 1982 until their split in 1997, and again from their reformation in 2004 to his d ...

and Paulo Nutini. Tommy played drums on Jim Diamond's album "City of Soul" released by Camino Records (catalogue number CAMCD40, release date 3 October 2011). All proceeds from this album of Soul covers benefit the children's charity Radio Clyde Cash For Kids. Cunningham and the remaining three original members of Wet Wet Wet reformed in 2004. Cunningham presents an occasional weekend show across the Greatest Hits Radio Scotland.

Personal life

Cunningham is married to his childhood sweetheart Elaine Gallacher. They married in 1991, and have two children: Tayler and Stephen.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cunningham, Tommy 1964 births Living people Musicians from Glasgow Scottish rock drummers Scottish male drummers Wet Wet Wet members People educated at Clydebank High School