Leading actor, comedian, and impressionist, Jon Culshaw, has been unveiled as the host of this year’s Oldham Business Awards night.
This is Jon’s second time as our MC after he hosted the awards to great acclaim back in 2015.
He will be joined on stage by Granada Reports’ entertainment correspondent Caroline Whitmore, an OBA stalwart who has been our winners’ interviewer on several occasions and has even hosted the event herself in the past.
Together the pair will be announcing and speaking to the winners of our 11 categories at a sparking gala dinner at the iconic Queen Elizabeth Hall on Friday 22nd September.
It could be said there isn’t anything Jon Culshaw doesn’t excel at!
He has written and performed in a raft of hit TV and radio shows, most notably the multi-award-winning satire Dead Ringers on BBC Radio 4, which is now in its 21st year and 22nd series, including seven on BBC2.
He’s also starred in three series of Spitting Image and his bank of impressions amounts to more than 130 characters.
His skills for mimicry are so impressive that he once impersonated former Tory party leader, William Hague, during a live radio show and asked to be put through to then Prime Minister, Tony Blair. To everyone’s shock, he WAS put straight through, and despite having no prepared material, he engaged the PM in conversation for several minutes!
Some of his TV credits include The Impressionable Jon Culshaw, Parkinson, The Royal Variety Performance, The Graham Norton Show, Friday Night with Jonathan Ross, 2DTV, The Now Show, Head Cases, Jon Culshaw’s Commercial Breakdown (BBC1), and three series of BBC1’s The Impressions Show alongside Debra Stephenson. Jon is also a regular guest on current affairs programmes.
Jon’s vast array of dramatic character portrayals include David Bowie and Alan Whicker in radio plays, and he played the lead, King Arthur, in Spamalot at the Harold Pinter Theatre. He has also played various roles in plays by Harold Pinter and during lockdown took part in The Original Theatre Company and Perfectly Normal Productions ‘Billy and Me’, part of the acclaimed ‘Barne’s People’ online series.
Jon has also provided countless character voices and commentaries for the multi-award winning CBBC show, ‘Horrible Histories’, since its first TV outing in 2009.
Caroline, meanwhile, is the entertainment correspondent for Granada Reports and has worked with ITV for more than 20 years. She’s interviewed a whole host of celebrities from George Clooney and Will Smith to Renee Zellweger, plus local stars like Gary Barlow and Peter Kay.
This year marks the 15th anniversary of the awards and altogether 34 businesses and individuals have been shortlisted.
Stalwart sponsors who have supported the event since its inception in 2008, and continue their support include Pearson Solicitors and Financial Advisers, the Oldham Chronicle, New Image, and Oldham Council.
Get Oldham Working and Rowan Ashworth Ltd are this year’s headline sponsors, alongside Oldham Council.
Oldham-based agency, Cornerstone Design and Marketing – shortlisted as a finalist in the 2018 and 2019 awards – is this year’s media and marketing partner and continues its ongoing website sponsorship.
Tickets are being snapped up quickly, so if you haven’t yet acquired yours, contact Sue McGowan at susan.mcgowan@smartpasupport.com to buy them now!
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