Separated Twins: Musician Jonty Bankes And Actor John Simm
I am not sure if everybody knows The Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain 
, but after watching their DVD Anarchy in the Ukulele, I came to the conclusion that everybody should. Their rendition of popular songs on the Hawaiian instrument is so refreshing and often humorous, and as someone who loves remixes it is no wonder I loved their performance.
After playing their 2005 performance at the Barbican oh-so-many times, I have noticed one of the musicians, Jonty Bankes, looks eerily close to English actor John Simm, which I first knew as Detective Inspector Sam Tyler on BBC One’s ‘Life on Mars’:
| Left: Jonty Bankes, who plays the ‘bass ukulele’, in a photo taken from the musical ensemble’s 2005 performance at the Barbican. |
Right: DI Sam Tyler, AKA John Simm, in a ‘Life on Mars’ publicity shot taken in 2006. |
In addition to the facial similarities, note the ‘Life on Mars’ connection as you watch this ‘song about plagiarism’ from their DVD:
Watch this video on YouTube.
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09 April 2009 at 10:51 pm Permalink
I thought the exact same thing when I saw the DVD. They look so similar!
07 May 2009 at 2:31 pm Permalink
aaah, thank you! was banging on about this after their Cadogan Hall appearance last Tuesday, have seen them lots of times but it was only now, whey they did ‘Life on Mars’ it finally came to me… Jonty IS John Simm!
01 July 2009 at 5:09 pm Permalink
Yeah, that’s what I thought too! He looks _exactly_ the same!! And he’s singing “Life on Mars”! C’mon! Maybe they are twins actually?
13 April 2010 at 2:34 am Permalink
personally, i’m convinced he’s the ukulele playing lovechild of john simm and david thewlis.
29 December 2011 at 7:39 pm Permalink
I just came to that same conclusion 5 minutes ago. Jonty’s “Life On Mars” is a tribute to the genius of David Bowie……..