28 Facts About Colm Wilkinson

Colm Wilkinson recalls a home that resonated with singing, poetry, and musical instruments.

Colm Wilkinson worked with his father, who was an asphalt contractor, and was playing in bands part-time.

In 1976, Colm Wilkinson sang the part of Che on the album for the musical Evita.

Colm Wilkinson starred in Voices, a musical based on the life and times of Joan of Arc, which went on stage at the Olympia Dublin in 1984.

Colm Wilkinson was offered the role for the show's debut on the West End, but instead chose to play Jean Valjean in Les Miserables.

Originally, the American Actors' Equity Association refused to allow Colm Wilkinson to play the part of Valjean in New York, due to its strict policy of hiring only American actors unless an actor outside America was an international star.

At this, producer Cameron Mackintosh refused to open the show unless Colm Wilkinson played Valjean, and Actors' Equity relented.

Colm Wilkinson won the Helen Hayes Award, the Outer Critics Circle Award, and the Theatre World Award for his performance; he was nominated for the Tony Award and Drama Desk Award for Best Actor in a Musical.

In 1989, Colm Wilkinson relocated his family to Toronto, Ontario, Canada, when he was offered the title role in the original Toronto production of The Phantom of the Opera playing at the Pantages Theatre.

Colm Wilkinson has lived in Toronto ever since, and became a Canadian citizen in the early 2000s.

In 1992, an arbitrator for Actor's Equity found that Colm Wilkinson had used "excessive roughness" on his Phantom co-star Rebecca Caine, based on her testimony and witness accounts that he had repeatedly hurt her onstage and once severely sprained her wrist, which had to be put in a brace, resulting in her dismissal from the show.

From August 1998 through January 1999, Colm Wilkinson played Valjean , this time in Toronto at the Princess of Wales Theatre.

In 1995, Colm Wilkinson played Jean Valjean in the 10th Anniversary Concert of Les Miserables at the Royal Albert Hall.

Colm Wilkinson plays the part of Lord Darcy in the third season showing of Showtime's miniseries The Tudors which began airing on 12 April 2009.

Colm Wilkinson participated in US Senator Ted Kennedy's birthday celebration at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC, on 8 March 2009.

On 24 May 2009, Colm Wilkinson performed in the National Memorial Day Concert at the Capitol building in Washington, DC, in front of a large audience and screened live across America on PBS.

Colm Wilkinson's supporting television broadcast, Stage Heroes: Colm Wilkinson, aired on the heels of Les Miserables, brought positive reviews from fans and critic.

On 3 October 2010, Colm Wilkinson was a special guest at the 25th Anniversary Concerts of Les Miserables, at the O2 Arena, alongside many other original cast members.

Colm Wilkinson performed as part of a "Valjean Quartet"; alongside Alfie Boe, John Owen-Jones and Simon Bowman.

Colm Wilkinson is a Founding Artist of Theatre 20, a musical theatre company in Toronto formed by artists in 2009, and performed in Theatre 20's 2011 Concert Series at the Panasonic Theatre.

Colm Wilkinson appeared as the Bishop of Digne in the 2012 film production of Les Miserables.

Colm Wilkinson reprised this role in a performance of the musical in Toronto in January 2014 where Ramin Karimloo played Valjean.

Colm Wilkinson was voted one of the five greatest singers ever in a Rolling Stone Magazine readers' poll and is noted for maintaining a powerful singing voice into his late 60s.

Colm Wilkinson has attributed his longevity to avoiding coffee, alcohol, cigarettes, and dairy products, as well as ensuring proper sleep, diet, and exercise.

Colm Wilkinson is noted as being rather soft-spoken in order to refrain from overworking his voice.

In 1970, Colm Wilkinson married Deirdre, whom he describes as a source of constant and essential support over the past four decades.

The family moved to Toronto in 1989 when Colm Wilkinson began a four-and-a-half-year run at the Pantages Theatre as the title character of The Phantom of the Opera, originating the role in Canada.

Early in his music career, Colm Wilkinson insisted that his wife and children accompany him on tour to avoid familial separation.