Seán Cullen

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Seán Cullen (born 1965 in Peterborough, Ontario) is a Canadian comedian who has been active in the comedy world since the late 1980s. He is known for his unique talents of combining improvisation with uncanny mimicry and his broad musical talents.

Cullen entered into the public eye in 1988 as a member of musical comedy group Corky and the Juice Pigs, a seminal group on the Canadian comedy scene that has influenced comedy performers as far away as Australia and the UK.

Over the next 13 years, Corky and the Juice Pigs toured the world, becoming fixtures of the Melbourne International Comedy Festival, winning awards at the Edinburgh Fringe and performing at the Just for Laughs in Montreal eight times. The group was also featured on Fox's MAD TV and released two wide-selling comedy albums, their self-titled debut album, and their second album, Pants.

In 1998, after eleven years in the group, Cullen went solo, accompanied by the musical talents of musician (mainly acoustic guitarist) Dylan Goodhue and a cast of characters including the Catholic priest Father Seán (with readings from the apocryphal Book of St. Justin) and the 145-year-old British theatre luminary Dame Sybille. He wrote and mounted his own one-man show called Wood, Cheese and Children which went on to become a special in CTV's Comedy NOW! series and was nominated for a Gemini Award.

Cullen has been featured in Time as the "vanguard of comedy's next generation". He has appeared on shows such as The Ellen Show with Ellen DeGeneres, Payne with John Larroquette and has been on The Late Late Show with Craig Kilborn, hosted NBC's Late Friday and for Comedy Central he has appeared on Premium Blend and a half-hour special Comedy Central Presents...Sean Cullen.

Cullen is a two time Gemini Award winner: in 2001 for his gala performance at Just for Laughs and in 2003 for hosting The 17th Annual Gemini Awards. He also won the 2002 Best One Person Show Canadian Comedy Award for his show Erotic Laser Swordfight. Sean has appeared on CBC's Air Farce, CTV's The Associates, The Comedy Network's Patti and Liocracy, as well as playing the role of Basil in the TMN mini-series Slings & Arrows.

Six episodes of The Seán Cullen Show premiered on CBC in 2003 to critical acclaim. In the summer of 2002 Cullen appeared on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno live from Just for Laughs. He made such an impression that he has now appeared on the show six times. Cullen also hosted for his second consecutive year, The Annual Gemini Awards, and was the host for The Just For Laughs 20th Anniversary Special on CBC.

In 2003 on the CBC, Seán Cullen's Home for Christmas special aired, featuring musical guest Holly Cole, as Cullen returned to his hometown of Peterborough for the holidays. This past Christmas season, Cullen toured parts of Canada and the U.S. as a special guest on the Barenaked Ladies Winter Tour.

Recently, Cullen starred as Max Bialystock in the Canadian production of Mel Brooks' The Producers for Mirvish Productions.

July 2nd 2005 saw the premiere of Simply Sean, a radio programme hosted by Cullen which airs on CBC Radio One.

[edit] External links

• Seán Cullen at the Internet Movie Database
• Seán Cullen's Official Web Site
• Feature on Dame Sybille from the UWO Gazette