Vic Reeves

Vic Reeves

Date of birth: 24-01-1959

Born in Leeds and raisied in Darlington, Jim Moir undertook an apprenticeship in mechanical engineering after leaving school, eventually moving to London and becoming a factory inspector.There he formed a band and began a part-time course at art college, as well as performing on the comedy circuit as various characters - including the 'North-East’s Top Light Entertainer', Vic Reeves.

His stage show Vic Reeves Big Night Out began life as a regular Thursday night gig at Goldsmith’s Tavern, New Cross. Here he met Bob Mortimer, a solicitor who jumped up on stage one night and ended up becoming a regular, starting an enduring comic partnership.

The pair were championed by Jonathan Ross, who gave them a break on his TV show, and Big Night Out was made into a Channel 4 show in 1990, where it became an instant cult hit.

The pair followed it up with the sketch shows The Smell of Reeves and Mortimer, and Bang Bang, It's Reeves aAnd Mortimer, quirky sitcom Catterick and he game show Shooting Stars.

They moved to prime-time Saturday night with the BBC One show Families At War, which ran from 1998 to 1999, and starred in a remake of Randall & Hopkirk (Deceased) the following year, but they never quite made the transition to mainstream entertainers.

He also had a No 1 hit with a cover version of Dizzy, recorded with The Wonder Stuff, and released hit versions of Born Free and I'm A Believer, a collaboration with EMF.

In 2004 he and was a contestant in the fourth series of I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here! with his wife Nancy Sorrell.

His other credit include the Discovery Channel's history series Rogues Gallery, Sky's Brainiac: Science Abuse and Radio 2 panel game Does the Team Think... - and he continues to work on his art, occasionally hosting exhibitions of his work.

Read More

Could Vic and Bob be making a comeback?

Reeves has hopes for a reunion stadium gig

Oasis might not be the only big-name 1990s double act heading for a reunion.

Vic Reeves has revealed he is planning a one-off comeback gig at Wembley Stadium with Bob Mortimer.

But he said his long-term partner is reluctant to make a return to the stage as he prefers a quieter life now.

Speaking to the Mirror at the Sky Arts awards, Reeves said: ‘I've spoken to him. And he's going, "I don't know." Because he likes fishing and I like bird watching. It would be great to do something though.'

'We wouldn't do Shooting Stars, we'd ­probably do all the other stuff. I hope we do ­something together. I think we will.’

But he said he hoped he wouldn’t rip off fans, as the Gallagher brothers and Ticketmaster have been accused of doing, with plans to price tickets around £30. 

Reeves - real name Jim  Moir – was at the event as he designed the awards handed out to winners including Fern Brady, who took the comedy gong. 

The Reeves and Mortimer act started life in South London pubs  The Goldsmiths Tavern and Albany Empire in the 1980s before finding fame on Channel 4. 

They last performed live together in 2016 – 20 years after their previous tour – but the start was delayed when Mortimer underwent a triple bypass heart operation.

It led to a TV revival of Vic and Bob's Big Night Out, but the pair drifted apart and 'never speak much' now, although they never had a falling out.

The comedians – who are both 65 –  were reunited on screen again last Christmas on Vic’s Sky Arts show Painting Birds With Jim And Nancy Moir.

Thanks for reading. If you find Chortle’s coverage of the comedy scene useful or interesting, please consider supporting us with a monthly or one-off ko-fi donation.
Any money you contribute will directly fund more reviews, interviews and features – the sort of in-depth coverage that is increasingly difficult to fund from ever-squeezed advertising income, but which we think the UK’s vibrant comedy scene deserves.
Read More

Published: 19 Sep 2024

Self sabotaged? | Will says Vic & Bob cut all his Shooting Stars jokes

Self sabotaged?

Former Shooting Stars captain Will Self has complained…
6/10/2014

A write pair...

Vic Reeves and Bob Mortimer are among the winners…
12/12/2012

Offshooting Stars

Vic Reeves and Bob Mortimer are working on a new show…
15/02/2012

Skip to page

Products

DVD (2012)
Hebburn

Agent

Claire Nightingale
Contact by email
22 Rathbone Street
W1T 1LG
Office: 020 7287 1112

We see you are using AdBlocker software. Chortle relies on advertisers to fund this website so it’s free for you, so we would ask that you disable it for this site. Our ads are non-intrusive and relevant. Help keep Chortle viable.