Chris began his entertainment career as a teenager hosting a daily children’s show on local television.
He moved to Sydney, where he went on to establish a strong reputation on stage and on television across the country. He had the opportunity to appear on the famous Ed Sullivan Show in New York in the late 1960s.
After that he moved to England where he performed in Tommy Cooper’s A Blackpool summer season, Sunday Night at the London Palladium and a Ken Dodd tour. He increased his clientele in Australia in the early 1970s by opening for such well-known artists as Tom Jones, Shirley Bassey and Johnny Mathis.
He received various honors during these trips. He moved his family back to Australia in the 1980s, where he continued his acting and writing career.
Ventriloquist Chris Kirby
Wikipedia – Chris Kirby, the ventriloquist
Peter and Eileen Covington welcomed Chris into the world in Croydon, England in 1942.
Chris’ family moved to Australia when he was seven, first staying in Adelaide before briefly moving to Woomera so that Chris could complete his education there. Due to their parents’ involvement in local amateur productions wherever they lived, Chris and his younger brother Andrew were exposed to theater throughout their early years. Their father was a musician and Chris’ mother was an actress.
It only took him a few months of employment at the Commonwealth Bank of Australia in Adelaide to convince him of the merits of pursuing a career in show business.
Chris Covington would have a lower fanbase if he went by his own name. He made the decision to change his name somewhere in the first half of the 1960s. He had just started performing in Sydney nightclubs at the time. Chris spent his formative years developing a passionate interest in ventriloquism. Chris’ father, who preferred ventriloquism to music and seemed content with it, was the reason Chris was able to have his first doll.
Young people experiencing ventriloquism may have the opportunity to perform on live television, which is an ever-changing medium. Globally, it is credited with marking the start of Chris Kirby’s professional career. He built a lasting fan base in Australia while hosting a children’s television show in Adelaide.
Ventriloquist Chris Kirby obituary
Dementia praecox was the cause of Chris Kirby’s death.
He moved to Sydney aged 23, married and continued to perform live while working in television. When he was the first Australian to be invited to perform live on the Ed Sullivan Show in New York, his performing career took off.
Her performances and tours in the UK and Europe, as well as Sunday Night at the London Palladium, a summer season in Blackpool with Tommy Cooper and her travels with Ken Dodd, have all helped to develop her international profile.
In the 1970s he moved to the United States and spent twelve years there. He nevertheless continued to make frequent trips to Australia to do television performances for his supporters. Chris shared the stage with artists like Charles Aznavour, Johnny Mathis, Shirley Bassey, Tom Jones and Tony Bennett.
Kirby, like many other musicians of his time, took advantage of the thriving live entertainment scene in NSW bars at the time. He returned to Australia in the 1980s to take part in the Queen’s Royal Variety Concert at the Opera House. After his youngest son Peter died in 1987, he moved to a farm in Bucketty, a town north of Sydney. Following this move, he launched his writing and acting career with the films “The Total Eclipse of Toby Moon” and “Lips”.
After his death, his former wives Judy, Debbie and Christine, along with his children Michael, Shahn and Peter, continue his legacy.
On March 22, 2016, Chris passed away. His funeral was held at St James’s Anglican Church in Turramurra, New South Wales. The service was held on March 31, 2016, a Thursday.
