Tony Monopoly

Tony Monopoly (3 December 1944 – 21 March 1995)[1] was an Australian-born cabaret singer and actor who enjoyed success in the United Kingdom.[2] Born Antonio Rosario Monopoli in Adelaide, he was a regular on the national radio show, Kangaroos on Parade at the age of nine as a boy soprano.[2]

At the age of sixteen he became a Carmelite monk and remained in the order for five years.[2] During the 1960s he regularly performed with Edwin Duff and Norm Erskine, as a trio of singers, on In Melbourne Tonight and Tonight with Don Lane.[3]

In 1975 he was appearing at Caesar's Palace in Luton when he auditioned for Opportunity Knocks, a British television talent show, for a run of six appearances.[2] In June 1976, his self-titled album peaked at No. 25 in the UK Albums Chart.[4][5]

In a national pre-selection to choose the song that would go to the Eurovision Song Contest, held on 9 March 1977 at the New London Theatre, Monopoly earned 66 points and placed ninth with the tune "Leave a Little Love." By the early 1980s Monopoly performed aboard cruise liners, "I lived on one yacht for a year," he said. "I went to 56 countries. I had champagne for breakfast. But I hated it".[2] When fulfilling his increasingly rare engagements on dry land, he divided his time between Australia and the UK.

Monopoly was head-hunted for a musical while appearing in Cinderella at Hanley, near Stoke-on-Trent. He starred – in drag – in Moby Dick, the inaugural production at the newly refurbished Old Fire Station Theatre in Oxford. The show's success prompted Cameron Mackintosh to mount a 1992 West End production,[6] which opened to scathing reviews and promptly closed, after which Monopoly portrayed Old Deuteronomy in a UK tour of Cats.

Monopoly died in Brighton, England on 21 March 1995.[2]

References
  1. Antonio Rosario Monopoli gravestone
  2. Chalmers, Robert (28 March 1995). "Obituary :Tony Monopoly". The Independent. Retrieved 10 November 2016.
  3. Broun, Shirley (14 October 2012). "Edwin Duff takes his final bow". On with the show. Retrieved 10 November 2016.
  4. Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 375. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
  5. "Tony Monopoly | Full Official Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 10 November 2016.
  6. "Tony Monopoly – Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 19 December 2012.
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