Joseph Owen Thomas (born 28 October 1983)[2] is an English actor and comedian. He played Simon Cooper in the E4 sitcom The Inbetweeners (2008–2010) and its two film adaptations, The Inbetweeners Movie (2011) and The Inbetweeners 2 (2014).
Joe Thomas | |
|---|---|
 Thomas at the British Academy Television Awards in May 2012 | |
| Born | Joseph Owen Thomas 28 October 1983 Chelmsford, Essex, England |
| Education | King Edward VI Grammar School |
| Alma mater | Pembroke College, Cambridge |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 2002–present |
| Television | |
| Partner(s) | Hannah Tointon[1] (2012–present; engaged) |
| Children | 1 |
After The Inbetweeners concluded, Thomas remained connected to Channel 4, joining the cast of comedy-drama series Fresh Meat in 2011, portraying the role of Kingsley Owen until 2016. He was reunited with his The Inbetweeners colleague James Buckley when they both joined the cast of BBC Two sitcom White Gold, with Thomas portraying the role of Martin Lavender. In 2018, he starred in the comedy film The Festival.
Early life and education edit
Born in Chelmsford, Essex,[3] as the first of four boys, Thomas attended King Edward VI Grammar School, Chelmsford before reading History at Pembroke College, Cambridge.[4] At Cambridge, Thomas was a member of the Footlights, alongside his future Inbetweeners co-star Simon Bird.[5] Bird and Thomas served as the President and the Secretary of the Footlights, respectively, in 2005–2006.[6] Of his education, he states, "I never really recovered from the fact that the lecturers weren't paid to be nice to me. Or that the carrot-and-stick thing that happened at school no longer occurred. If you do quite well, nobody's that bothered; and if you really fuck up, nobody's that bothered. It has to be from you and I was easily distracted".[7] Nevertheless, Thomas graduated with a 2:1 degree in History in 2006.[8]
After graduation, Thomas briefly shared a flat with Bird and fellow Pembroke graduate and Footlights alumnus Jonny Sweet.[9]
Career edit
After entering the performing arts via the Footlights, Thomas performed with fellow University of Cambridge students at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in a production of All's Well That Ends Well directed by author Duncan Barrett.[10] After graduating from university, Thomas took to acting professionally, and his parents have accepted and are not ashamed of his choice of career.[11]
Thomas is in a double act along with Sweet, and they have performed their show, The Jonny and Joe Show, at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.[12]
Thomas' big break in television was his role as Simon Cooper in The Inbetweeners which was so popular that it spawned two feature films, The Inbetweeners Movie and The Inbetweeners 2. Together with Bird and writing partner Sweet, he wrote Chickens, a satirical sketch about three conscientious objectors during World War I. It was broadcast as part of Channel 4's Comedy Showcase in 2011.[9] In 2012, it was picked up by Sky One who commissioned a full, six episode series;[13] filming began in late 2012 and debuted in August 2013.[14]
Following this, Thomas starred in the student sitcom Fresh Meat as Kingsley Owen and played a Maths teacher in the first episode of the second series of Threesome. In 2017, Thomas began starring in the sitcom White Gold, along with his other The Inbetweeners co-star James Buckley.[15]
In 2018 Thomas began work on Proposal, a comedy radio series announced as part of BBC Radio 2's spring "funny fortnight", in which he plays Jamie, a man preparing to propose to his girlfriend Lucy (Pearl Mackie).[16]
Personal life edit
As of 2017, Thomas resided on the Barbican Estate, London, with his fiancée Hannah Tointon.[17][18] In October 2022, they announced the birth of their first child, a girl.[19] He is a supporter of Tottenham Hotspur[20] and self-diagnoses as being on the autism spectrum.[21]
Filmography edit
Film edit
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | The Inbetweeners Movie | Simon Cooper | |
| A Trick of the Light | Joe (voice) | Short film | |
| 2012 | Straw Donkey | Tom | |
| 2014 | The Inbetweeners 2 | Simon Cooper | |
| 2015 | Scottish Mussel | Danny | |
| 2016 | The Darkest Universe | Toby | |
| 2018 | The Festival | Nick Taylor | |
| 2022 | We Are Not Alone | Greggs | |
| 2023 | Mummies | Thut (voice) |
Television edit
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008–2010 | The Inbetweeners | Simon Cooper | 18 episodes |
| 2011–2016 | Fresh Meat | Kingsley | 30 episodes |
| 2011 | Comedy Showcase | George | Episode: "Chickens" |
| 2012 | Threesome | Teacher | Episode: "Back to School" |
| 2013 | Chickens | George | 6 episodes; also creator and writer |
| 2017–2019 | White Gold | Martin Lavender | 12 episodes; also writer of season 2, episode 2. |
| 2019 | The Inbetweeners: Fwends Reunited | Himself | Special |
| Taskmaster | Himself (contestant) | Series 8 | |
| 2021 | Richard Osman's House of Games | Himself (contestant) | Series 5, Week 3 |
| 2022 | Would I Lie To You? | Himself (guest) | 1 episode[22] |
| Hobby Man | Himself (guest) | 1 episode[23] | |
| 2023 | Great British Bake Off: Stand up to Cancer | Himself (contestant) | 1 episode; Star Baker[24] |
| Between the Covers | Himself (guest) | 1 episode [25] | |
| Maternal | Matt Malyon | Upcoming ITV drama[26] |
References edit
- ^ "HubMesh – Hannah Tointon and Joe Thomas to marry". Retrieved 23 October 2015.
- ^ Christie, Janet (27 May 2017). "Interview: Joe Thomas". The Scotsman. Retrieved 16 March 2018.
- ^ "Essex-born Inbetweeners star Joe Thomas on his new movie The Festival". The Echo. 10 August 2018. Archived from the original on 12 August 2018. Retrieved 15 April 2019.
- ^ Leggett, Tabatha (16 November 2010). "Tab Interview: Joe Thomas". The Tab. Archived from the original on 27 December 2013.
- ^ "Cambridge Footlights Presents: Niceties". Cambridge Footlights. Archived from the original on 4 June 2008.
- ^ "Footlights: Alumni 2000–2009". Cambridge Footlights. Archived from the original on 27 December 2013.
- ^ Webb, Claire (9 October 2012). "Fresh Meat: Joe Thomas – I was quite similar to Kingsley at university". Radio Times. Retrieved 16 April 2019.
- ^ Webb, Claire. "What's next for an Inbetweener". BBC Nordic. Archived from the original on 7 April 2014.
- ^ a b Lobb, Adrian (29 August 2011). "Chickens: What the Inbetweeners did next". The Guardian. Retrieved 16 April 2019.
- ^ "The Ariel Society presents... All's Well That Ends Well". Camdram. Retrieved 16 April 2019.
- ^ Webb, Claire (22 August 2013). "Chickens: Inbetweeners Simon Bird and Joe Thomas on playing overgrown schoolboys – again". Radio Times. Retrieved 16 April 2019.
- ^ "Jonny Sweet: smell of success". The Independent. 18 January 2011. Archived from the original on 9 June 2022. Retrieved 16 April 2019.
- ^ Sky orders full series of wartime sitcom Chickens, retrieved 23 February 2012.
- ^ "Watch".
- ^ Jodie, Halford (24 May 2017). "White Gold: Inbetweeners writer honours Essex roots". BBC News. Retrieved 16 April 2019.
- ^ Bley Griffiths, Eleanor (23 March 2018). "Doctor Who actress Pearl Mackie to star in new BBC comedy Proposal". Radio Times. Retrieved 16 April 2019.
- ^ Soteriou, Stephanie (22 January 2017). "The Inbetweeners' Simon and Tara are engaged in real life". Yahoo! Entertainment. Retrieved 22 January 2017.
- ^ "Joe Thomas' My London". 7 August 2014.
- ^ Adejobi, Alicia (4 October 2022). "The Inbetweeners' Hannah Tointon and Joe Thomas welcome first child". Retrieved 4 October 2022.
- ^ "Premier League predictions: Lawro v Inbetweeners star Joe Thomas on opening weekend". BBC Sport. 12 August 2018. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
- ^ Bennett, Steve. "Joe Thomas: Trying Not To Panic : Reviews 2021 : Chortle : The UK Comedy Guide". www.chortle.co.uk. Retrieved 31 December 2022.
- ^ IPlayer, BBC. "Would I Lie To You? Series 15 Episode 9". BBC IPlayer. BBC One. Retrieved 2 July 2023.
- ^ "Hobby Man". radiotimes.com. Retrieved 28 August 2022.
- ^ Adewale, Dami (10 April 2023). "Essex TV star Joe Thomas wins Stand Up To Cancer Bake Off". Daily Gazette. Retrieved 10 April 2023.
- ^ "Between the Covers". BBC iPlayer. Retrieved 25 September 2023.
- ^ "ITV commissions six part medical drama, Maternal". itv.com/presscentre. Retrieved 28 July 2022.
External links edit
- Joe Thomas at IMDb