Jim Tavare
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Jim Tavare (born Essex, England, 1963) is an English stand-up comedian and musician. He is probably best known for his work on The Sketch Show on ITV and also plays the role of Tom, the owner of the Leaky Cauldron, in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.
Tavare moved to Cheshire with his family when he was seven, and he attended art school as a teenager in Northwich before going to London, where he successfully auditioned for RADA. He later branched out into stand-up comedy with a unique act which featured his double bass - an instrument he had learned to play to a reasonable standard during his childhood. He always donned tails and a white tie outfit - the uniform of the classical musician - when performing his act, though he only played the bass in short bursts for comic effect. A regular joke during these shows was pretending he was a midget with a violin.
After many years working the stand-up circuit and making fleeting television appearances as a guest comic, Tavare hosted a series for BBC2 entitled Jim Tavare Pictures Presents.... He also had a skit series of his own on Channel Five and an episode of the American series Wings was written entirely around his bass act.
Tavare is a father of two. His 8-year-old son, Louis was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer called Burkitt's Lymphoma.
[edit] Trivia
- Tavare is the cousin of former England batsman Chris Tavaré.
- He is an experienced sailor.
- He was the first stand up comedian to join the Enterprise Allowance scheme as a professional comic.
