# Tim Booth

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British actor and singer (b. 1960)

For the Irish folk musician born 1943, see [Dr. Strangely Strange](/source/Dr._Strangely_Strange).

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Tim Booth Booth performing with Coldplay in 2023 Born (1960-02-04) 4 February 1960 (age 66) Bradford, West Riding of Yorkshire, England Occupations Singer, songwriter, dancer, actor Known for James, Booth and the Bad Angel

**Timothy Booth** (born 4 February 1960)[1] is an English singer-songwriter, actor and dancer. He is the lead singer and co-founder of the [indie rock](/source/Indie_rock) band [James](/source/James_(band)), and co-wrote several of their hit singles including "[Sit Down](/source/Sit_Down_(song))", "[Come Home](/source/Come_Home_(James_song))", and "[Laid](/source/Laid_(song))". As an actor, Booth is also known for portraying [Victor Zsasz](/source/Victor_Zsasz) in the 2005 film *[Batman Begins](/source/Batman_Begins)*.

## Career

### Early years

Booth was born in [Bradford](/source/Bradford), [West Yorkshire](/source/West_Yorkshire), England,[2][3][4][5] and grew up in [Boston Spa, West Yorkshire](/source/Boston_Spa%2C_West_Yorkshire) in his teenage years.[6] He attended [Shrewsbury School](/source/Shrewsbury_School).[7] Whilst a student at the [University of Manchester](/source/University_of_Manchester) studying [drama](/source/Drama) in 1981, Booth encountered [Jim Glennie](/source/Jim_Glennie), [Paul Gilbertson](/source/Paul_Gilbertson) and [Gavan Whelan](/source/Gavan_Whelan) in the cellar bar of the university's students' union. Impressed by Booth's distinctive dancing style, Gilbertson invited Booth to join their band as a dancer. Booth accepted the offer, and was soon promoted to lead singer and lyricist of the band [James](/source/James_(band)).

### 1990s

After a struggle for success and recognition through most of the 1980s, [James](/source/James_(band)) finally achieved commercial success in the early 1990s with the rise of the [Madchester](/source/Madchester) music scene, and their single "[Sit Down](/source/Sit_Down_(song))" reached number 2 in the [UK Singles Chart](/source/UK_Singles_Chart).

During 1995, Booth took a break from James and [recorded](/source/Sound_recording_and_reproduction) an [album](/source/Album) with [film](/source/Film) [composer](/source/Composer) [Angelo Badalamenti](/source/Angelo_Badalamenti), entitled *[Booth and the Bad Angel](/source/Booth_and_the_Bad_Angel)*. He then returned to James to complete the recording of the album *[Whiplash](/source/Whiplash_(album))*, and stayed with the band until 2001, when he announced his departure to concentrate on other projects.

### 2000s

After leaving James, Booth spent time concentrating on teaching the dance practice known as the [5Rhythms](/source/5Rhythms), a movement meditation practice. In 2004, together with [record producer](/source/Record_producer) [Lee Muddy Baker](/source/Lee_Muddy_Baker) and songwriter [KK (Kevin Kerrigan)](/source/KK_(Kevin_Kerrigan)), he released his first solo album, *Bone*, to general critical acclaim, though he referred to it as a collaborative effort and preferred to credit the album to 'Tim Booth & the Individuals' as opposed to taking sole credit. He also began taking acting lessons during this time, and starred in a production at [Bolton](/source/Bolton)'s [Octagon Theatre](/source/Octagon_Theatre%2C_Bolton). He also appeared as the [Batman](/source/Batman) villain [Victor Zsasz](/source/Victor_Zsasz) in the 2005 film *[Batman Begins](/source/Batman_Begins)*. Booth also voiced the character in the [video game adaptation](/source/Batman_Begins_(video_game)) of the film.

On [Good Friday](/source/Good_Friday), 14 April 2006, he appeared as [Judas](/source/Judas_Iscariot) in the [Manchester Passion](/source/Manchester_Passion) – a musical style show in the [middle of Manchester](/source/Manchester_city_centre), using [music](/source/Music) from the region to tell the story of [Easter](/source/Easter). Booth sang a version of [the Smiths](/source/The_Smiths)'s "[Heaven Knows I'm Miserable Now](/source/Heaven_Knows_I'm_Miserable_Now)", and although the James song "[Sit Down](/source/Sit_Down_(song))" was used, it was not sung by Booth himself (he did, however, sing it in an encore after the cameras had stopped rolling).[*[citation needed](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed)*]

Booth has also contributed to [MTV](/source/MTV)'s search for the greatest song lyrics in April 2006 as a [critic](/source/Music_journalism).

In January 2007, it was announced that Booth would be rejoining James. The band played an eight date tour in April 2007 and made appearances at several [music festivals](/source/Music_festival) throughout 2007. This was followed by a new James album, *[Hey Ma](/source/Hey_Ma_(album))* in April 2008 which coincided with a UK tour.

He has also stated that, despite the reunion of James, he still plans to release further solo material.[8]

### 2010s

In 2010, Booth continued his acting career with a role in the independent film *Poor Wee Me*, the debut feature from [Salford](/source/Salford%2C_Greater_Manchester) film director Simon Powell, in which he played the role of Gabriel De Souza, the shady boss of a debt collection agency.[9]

Booth released a new solo album, *Love Life*, in April 2011; again with Lee 'Muddy' Baker producing, co-writing and playing guitar. The release of the album was accompanied by a tour of the UK and then continental Europe, with Tim's backing band featuring Baker as well as [Saul Davies](/source/Saul_Davies), violinist with James.

## Discography

### Albums

- *[Booth and the Bad Angel](/source/Booth_and_the_Bad_Angel_(album))* (1996) - as [Booth and the Bad Angel](/source/Booth_and_the_Bad_Angel)

- *Bone* (2004)

- *Love Life* (2011)

## References

1. **[^](#cite_ref-1)** ["Booth, Tim"](https://www.oneofthethree.com/1960/02/04/tim-booth/). 4 February 1960.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-1990_Tour_2-0)** ["James - Tim Booth Questionnaire from 1990 Tour Programme"](http://www.oneofthethree.co.uk/articles/timquiz90.htm). *One of Three*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20160816173847/http://www.oneofthethree.co.uk/articles/timquiz90.htm) from the original on 16 August 2016. Retrieved 12 August 2020.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-Donald_Trump_3-0)** ["Music interview '" Tim Booth of James: '˜We all have an inner Trump, but to see it on the world stage, controlling the most powerful country in the world, is somewhat terrifying'"](https://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/arts-and-culture/music-interview-tim-booth-james-we-all-have-inner-trump-see-it-world-stage-controlling-most-powerful-country-world-somewhat-terrifying-1759338). *yorkshirepost.co.uk*. 10 August 2018. Retrieved 12 August 2020.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-City_Play_4-0)** Ray, Lucy (8 April 2008). ["Born to play the city"](https://www.thetelegraphandargus.co.uk/news/2182028.born-to-play-the-city/). *Bradford Telegraph and Argus*. Retrieved 12 August 2020.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-Radar_5-0)** Harper, Leah (7 June 2014). ["On my radar: Tim Booth's cultural highlights"](https://www.theguardian.com/music/2014/jun/08/on-my-radar-tim-booth-cultural-highlights-james). *The Guardian*. Retrieved 12 August 2020.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-6)** ["Tim Booth, Bone (Monkeygod, Sanctuary) ***"](https://www.yorkpress.co.uk/news/7885466.tim-booth-bone-monkeygod-sanctuary/). 17 June 2004.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-ExpressAndStar20081208_7-0)** Harvey, Ian. ["Hey ma, James are back in town"](https://www.expressandstar.com/news/2008/12/08/hey-ma-james-are-back-in-town/). *Express And Star*. Retrieved 29 May 2014.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-8)** ["Oneofthethree.co.uk"](http://www.oneofthethree.co.uk/timinterview0408.htm). Oneofthethree.co.uk. 25 April 2008. Retrieved 27 February 2014.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-9)** ["Tim Booth"](https://web.archive.org/web/20120308191230/http://poorweeme.com/cast-list/tim-booth/). Poor Wee Me. Archived from [the original](http://poorweeme.com/cast-list/tim-booth/) on 8 March 2012. Retrieved 4 May 2012.

## Sources

- [Stuart Maconie](/source/Stuart_Maconie): *Folklore*, Virgin Books, 2000 ([ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [0-7535-0494-4](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/0-7535-0494-4)).

## External links

- [IMDB](https://imdb.com/name/nm1173643)

- [Tim Booth's website](http://www.timbooth.co.uk/)

- [James' Official website](http://www.wearejames.com/)

v t e James Jim Glennie Tim Booth David Baynton-Power Saul Davies Mark Hunter Andy Diagram Adrian Oxaal Paul Gilbertson Gavan Whelan Larry Gott Michael Kulas Studio albums Stutter Strip-mine Gold Mother Seven Laid Wah Wah Whiplash Millionaires Pleased to Meet You Hey Ma The Night Before The Morning After La Petite Mort Girl at the End of the World Living in Extraordinary Times All the Colours of You Be Opened by the Wonderful Yummy Live albums One Man Clapping Compilations The Best Of Extended plays Jimone James II Village Fire Better Than That The Campfire EP Singles "Chain Mail" "Sit Down" "Come Home" "Sound" "Born of Frustration" "Laid" "She's a Star" "I Know What I'm Here For" Related articles Discography Booth and the Bad Angel

Authority control databases International ISNI VIAF GND WorldCat National United States France BnF data Artists MusicBrainz People Deutsche Biographie Other IdRef

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Tim Booth](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tim_Booth) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tim_Booth?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.