Antony Audenshaw (born 13 January 1965) is an English actor and singer. Audenshaw appeared 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 ''
Brookside'' from 1994 to 1996). Then in 2000, he began portraying the role of
Bob Hope on the
ITV soap opera ''
Emmerdale''. For his portrayal of the role, he received a nomination for Most Popular Newcomer at the
7th National Television Awards.
Life and career
Audenshaw was born in
Denton,
Lancashire
Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...
on 13 January 1965.
In 1993, Audenshaw married wife Ruth, and the pair had two children together before her death in 2017.
Audenshaw began both his acting and music careers on stage whilst performing songs and sketches that he had written, later taking part in
amateur theatre productions. Whilst trying to make it as an actor, he had a job at
Thorpe Park and slept in his car on the car park since he could not afford accommodation.
Between 1994 and 1996, he played the recurring role of PC Ian Coban 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 ''
Brookside''. His ''Emmerdale'' debut was in 1996, when he played the part of security guard Acky. He later appeared as
Bob Hope in 2000 and he has been a cast member since. For his portrayal of the role, he received a nomination for Most Popular Newcomer at the
7th National Television Awards.
In December 2006, he appeared as himself alongside other members of the ''Emmerdale'' cast on a celebrity version of the TV show ''
Family Fortunes'', and in 2009, he appeared in and won an episode of ''
Celebrity Mastermind''. His specialist subject was birds.
Audenshaw has completed numerous
London Marathons, and in 2010, he broke the
Guinness World Record for the fastest time set by a runner dressed as a baby, when he completed the London Marathon in 3 hours and 13 minutes.
He ran the Robin Hood Marathon in
Nottingham
Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located south-east of Sheffield and nor ...
on Sunday 12 September 2010 in 3 hours 54 minutes and 29 seconds. Audenshaw often runs in fancy dress for the charity
Leukaemia & Lymphoma Research. On 17 April 2011, Audenshaw ran the 2011 London Marathon in 3 hours and 18 minutes dressed as a fairy. He has presented a feature called Tony's Trials on the weekly running podcast ''Marathon Talk''. Audenshaw is the lead singer of a band called White Van Man, who released "Viva Englandia" in support of England's
2010 World Cup campaign. Since his wife died from
pancreatic cancer, Audenshaw raised £4100 for Pancreatic Cancer UK on ''
Celebrity Catchphrase'' in March 2022.
Filmography
Awards and nominations
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Audenshaw, Tony
1964 births
21st-century English male singers
21st-century English singers
Actors from Tameside (district)
English male film actors
English male soap opera actors
English male stage actors
English male television actors
Living people
Male actors from Lancashire
People from Denton, Greater Manchester