Jimmy Nail (born March 16, 1954) is an English actor and singer. He is famous for his idiosyncratic looks, hit singles and a strong Geordie accent. He has starred in numerous roles on television since 1983.
Nail was born James Michael Aloysius Bradford in Benton, Newcastle upon Tyne, the son of Laura (née Johnson) and James Bradford. He was brother to two sisters: Shelagh (who died in June 1967) and Val McLane, who starred with him in the second series of Auf Wiedersehen Pet playing Norma Patterson. Jimmy currently lives in London.
Nail rose to fame playing Leonard Jeffrey 'Oz' Osborne in Auf Wiedersehen, Pet in 1983, despite having no acting experience whatsoever (he had appeared as an extra in the movie Get Carter). Nail has also starred in a number of films and had a long musical career, having been a singer before he was picked out at an audition to play Oz.
After the first two series of Auf Wiedersehen, Pet, Nail found himself typecast before creating the detective series, Spender, which he co-wrote with Ian La Frenais. The show ran for three seasons from 1990 to 1993 and also produced a tele-film. This was followed in 1995 by Crocodile Shoes, which he also created and starred as musician Jed Shepherd. After working with Madonna and Antonio Banderas in Alan Parker's Evita (1996) he co-starred in Clement & La Frenais' Sony movie 'Still Crazy' (1998). A song from the movie, 'The Flame Still Burns', sung by Nail, was nominated for a Golden Globe. In 1999 he began work on reviving the Auf Wiedersehen, Pet series, this time for the BBC. it was filmed in 2001 and aired in 2002, garnering audience figures of over 12 million. Another series saw the brickies holed up in Cuba, and the final two-hour instalment, set in Thailand, aired over Christmas 2004 attracting over 7 million viewers. He is currently said to be working with the BBC on a new comedy series.
He has released a number of albums of his own compositions, the first being 'Take It Or Leave It' in 1986, 1991's 'Growing Up In Public' (featuring among others Gary Moore, David Gilmour and George Harrison), the last being 'Tadpoles In A Jar' in 1999 . His 'Crocodile Shoes' album of 1995 sold over a million copies. Mark Knopfler plays guitar on some tracks, a compliment that was repaid with an important plot reference to Oz's being a fan of Dire Straits in the third (revived) series of Auf Wiedersehen, Pet (2002).
His work has resulted in five Bafta nominations (three in total for 'A.W.P.', one for 'Spender', one for 'Crocodile Shoes')), a Golden Globe nomination ( Best Original Song - 'Still Crazy'), an Ivor Novello nomination (for 'Ain't No Doubt) and numerous other awards and nominations.
In 2004, Jimmy Nail successfully sued the News of the World for defamation (Nail v News Group Newspapers Limited, 20 December 2004) and subsequently received damages of £30,000.
In 2005 Jimmy Nail's autobiography, 'A Northern Soul', was published in the U K by Penguin Books.
In January 2008 Jimmy Nail and Miriam Jones announced their separation. In a joint statement they said they remain the best of friends.
Television Shows in which he has appeared include:
Films in which he has appeared include:
Jimmy Nail - Ain't No Doubt excerpt
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