Richard Vranch
Richard Leslie Vranch (born
June 29 1959 in
Bristol,
England) is an
English comedian, actor, and TV panel show participant.
He was the improvising
pianist and
guitarist on the original British television show
Whose Line Is It Anyway? in
1988, but only a small proportion of his work was musical. He improvises on stage with
the Comedy Store Players every Wednesday and Sunday at
The Comedy Store, London. He has voiced
British Airways TV and radio commercials since 2003, and he narrates TV documentaries. He has performed since 1979, and formed a comedy double-act with
Tony Slattery in 1981. Tony and Richard hosted the Channel 4 quiz 'The Music Game' and over 100 episodes of 'Cue The Music' on ITV.
Acting work includes 'Dogman,' 'The Dead Set' and sketch shows touring the world from Mexico to the Occupied Palestinian Territories. He has improvised comedy in the Middle and Far East and India - 27 countries in all. He has written for stage, radio and TV, and made several animated films with artist Lucy Allen. They have had their cartoons published in
Maxim,
Punch and
The Spectator.
He presented kids' shows
Let's Pretend on ITV and
Jackanory on BBC1, and was on a charity special of
The Weakest Link in 2005. He guested on BBC Radio 4's long-running panel game
Just a Minute in 1999.
Vranch had a previous career as a research physicist and he appears on lateral thinking panel shows like
Puzzle Panel on BBC Radio 4 and 'Mind Games' on BBC TV. He hosted his own science series 'Beat That Einstein' on Channel 4 TV in 1994, and co-wrote and performed in the
Paul Merton show at the
London Palladium.
In 2006 Vranch appeared at the Ars Nova theatre, New York. He is currently appearing in his improvised storytelling group The YarnBards and developing a new show for the Edinburgh Fringe.
Trivia: 'Richard Vranch House' is one of the fictional locations in the cult British TV series
Little Britain*
Official page
