Antony Cotton

Antony Cotton (born Antony Dunn on 5 August 1975, Bury, Greater Manchester) is an English actor, best known for his roles in Coronation Street and the original UK version of Queer as Folk.

Early and personal life
Cotton was born in Bury, Greater Manchester. He is the son of actress Enid Dunn. He went to Woodhey High School at Holcombe Brook, Ramsbottom. Antony attended Oldham Theatre Workshop.

Cotton supports the Terrence Higgins Trust and is a patron of the LGF, the Albert Kennedy Trust and also the Queer Up North festival.

In August 2009, Daniel Kilkelly reported in an article in Digital Spy that Cotton is "openly gay". and in March 2010 the Daily Mirror reported that Cotton had exchanged rings with his partner, Peter Eccleston.

In January 2012, footballer Michael Ball was fined by the Football Association for a homophobic rant on Twitter about Cotton.

Television
Cotton currently plays barman and factory worker Sean Tully in Coronation Street.

Cotton played Alexander in the original UK version of Queer as Folk. He has also appeared in episodes of Absolutely Fabulous as the character Damon. On 13 January 2007, Cotton won the second series of ITV's Soapstar Superstar. He donated his winning money, £200,000, to the Elton John AIDS Foundation.

In July 2007, it was announced that Cotton would be fronting his own teatime talk show on ITV. The show, That Antony Cotton Show, was filmed in front of a live studio audience at Granada Television studios in Manchester, and combined celebrity talk with topical humour. It was first broadcast on Monday 13 August 2007 at 5pm on ITV; however, following the end of the first series, ITV announced that there would not be a second. Antony also appeared on Family Fortunes on 20 September 2008 winning £10,000 for his chosen charity. In December 2008, he appeared with co-star Suranne Jones on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?.

Cotton took part in the eleventh series of ''I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! '' which began airing on 13 November 2011. He left on 2 December 2011, after 21 days.

Film
Cotton made his film debut opposite Daniel Craig and Derek Jacobi in the 1998 film Love Is the Devil: Study for a Portrait of Francis Bacon. He also appeared in the 1998 film The Wisdom of Crocodiles.

Theatre
Cotton has appeared in several shows at the Oldham Coliseum. He appeared in The Fifteen Streets and The Hobbit at PManchester's Palace Theatre and Opera House. He has also appeared in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs at the Middlesbrough Theatre.

Awards and recognition
In 2005, Cotton won the Most Popular Newcomer category at the National Television Awards for his role in Coronation Street. Cotton also won the 2005 Inside Soap Awards for Best Newcomer and Funniest Performance. 2006 he won (again) the award for Funniest Performance. At the 2007 British Soap Awards, Cotton was awarded the Best Actor award, which was voted for by the public. Also in 2007 he won Best Actor at the Inside Soap Awards.

Antony Cotton was ranked 34 in the Pride Power List 2011, 7 in the Pink List 2011, 33 in the Pink List 2012, 63 in the Pink List 2013, 32 in the World Pride Power List 2012, and 38 in the World Pride Power List 2013.

The Pink List 2013 citation said:
 * "Best known as Sean Tully in Coronation Street, Cotton won the public’s hearts and the crown in Let’s Dance For Comic Relief, in March. An active supporter of LGBT charities, including the Terrence Higgins Trust, he is also patron of LGF, The Albert Kennedy Trust and the Queer Up North Festival."

Television

 * The Big Breakfast
 * The Cops
 * Queer as Folk (1999–2000) Alexander Perry
 * Having It Off Writer, Guy La Trousse
 * Coronation Street (2003, 2004–present) Sean Tully
 * Absolutely Fabulous
 * Soapstar Superstar
 * Love in the 21st Century
 * Burn It
 * That Antony Cotton Show (2007)
 * I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! (2011)