He is a singer, lyricist, radio and television presenter and author born Timothy Miles Bindon Rice in Amersham, Buckinghamshire, England, and the father of the best-selling writer Eva Rice.
He studied at St. Alban’s School and Lansing College and initially intended on becoming a solicitor after graduation but having aspirations in music and from 1961 to 1963 he was a member of the band The Aardvarks.
He began a long-standing collaboration with the composer Andrew Lloyd Webber in 1965 and together they are acclaimed for their Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat, Jesus Christ Superstar, The Likes of Us, Evita and Cricket, which was a celebration of Queen Elizabeth II’s 60th birthday.
His collaboration with Stephen Oliver produced the musical Blondel and his work for the Walt Disney Company involved him collaborating with Sir Elton John with songs for Aladdin, The Lion King and the Road to El Dorado. Continuing in his collaborations with artists from the world of popular music, his work with the former ABBA members Bjorn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson resulted in the musical Chess, his work can be heard on the albums Cost of Living and 1984 by Rick Wakeman and Freddie Mercury’s Barcelona.
He has recorded songs using pseudonyms and his lyrics have also been heard on single releases and albums by artists such as Sacha Distel, Placido Domingo, David Essex, Paul Jones, Elvis Presley, Bobby Vee, Mike Batt, Sarah Brightman, 10cc and INXS.
In 1999 he was recognized for his work in music when he was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame and in 2007 received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
As an author he was a co-founder of the regularly published Guinness Book of British Hit Singles, which he also edited from 1977 to 1996 and helped him gain the title of “Rock Brain of the Universe” in 1985. He has also published his autobiography Oh What a Circus – The Autobiography of Tim Rice.
Often appearing on radio and television as a guest panellist or adjudicator on game shows such as Trivia Test Match and Just a Minute, he was seen in this capacity when he was featured on an episode of Countdown that appeared in the film About a Boy.
Outside the world of entertainment he is also a staunch sports fan and is known to be a supporter of Sunderland Football Club and follower of cricket to the point of founding his own team, Heartaches CC, and holding the post of President of the Marylebone Cricket Club for 2002.
He was awarded an honorary doctorate from the University of Sunderland in 2006.
Anne Sofie von Otter recordings
Heaven Help My Heart (Bennie Andersson/Bjorn Ulvaeus/Tim Rice)
Sources:
- http://www.timrice.co.uk/cv.html
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tim_Rice
- http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005358/