Another side of Colm's enormous talent was revealed when his self titled L.P., Colm C.T. Wilkinson, hit number 1 in the Irish charts in 1977.
Numerous hit records in Ireland's hit parade followed. He added further to his international stature with his performance in the London production of Fire Angel, the musical version of
Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice, in which he played the role of Baruch, the Shylock character. In fact his performance was so outstanding in Fire Angel that he was invited to
join Great Britain's National Theatre as an actor. He also starred in Alan Dee's musical Adam & Eve, at the Dublin Theatre Festival, and created the role of Che on the concept
recording of EVITA for world distribution.

His compositions had been in the finals of Ireland's National Song Contest for a number of years and in 1977, his "There Was A Dream" was third in the national finals and went on to
become a number one hit in Ireland. Concentrating on composing, Colm competed in numerous song contests, achieving much success.

As a leading composer and a truly international star of stage musicals, cabaret, records, radio and television, Colm Wilkinson then extended his considerable talents both as singer and
composer to viewers in over twenty countries around the world when he represented Ireland in the Eurovision Song Contest on Aprill 22, 1978 in Paris with his own composition, "Born
To Sing". The song was recorded and released in many countries throughout the continent.

In the fields of radio and television, Colm Wilkinson starred many times on BBC 1, BBC 2, RTE Radio and Television, including RTE's "Me and my Music" television series, when the
whole programme was devoted to a selection of his compositions, sung by himself.

He might also be familiar to film audiences, for he sang two of the songs, "Liberated Man" and "Makes No Difference", on the soundtrack of Dick Lester's film, "The Ritz", which
starred Jack Weston and Rita Moreno. In 1980, he starred with Dory Previn at the Gaiety Theatre, Dublin in "Children of Coincidence". The show was subsequently filmed for
television, and called "Hunky Dory". He also performed and recorded "Rock Nativity" for Irish television in which he played Herod.

He was also involved in composing scores for documentary films and recorded "The Changing Face Of Ireland", a song composed for the documentary film on the Irish in America. He
also completed the musical score for "The Power And The Dream", a Swedish documentary on U.S. President Jimmy Carter.

By the early eighties his reputation as one of the finest singers of popular song was secure but he still longed for the role that would test his abilities as both singer and actor. He
appeared in the Dublin production of "Voices", a musical based on the life on Joan Of Arc. But the opportunity to truly test his talents came with the major role of Jean Valjean in "Les
Miserables", one of the classic stage musicals of recent times. Instinctively, he felt at one with the project from the start. "I knew that I was a part of something very special."

It wasn't until the show hit Broadway that "Les Miserables" really reaped the fruit of a rich critical harvest. The tentativeness of the British reaction was replaced with notices of
staggering superlatives. At the heart of the critics' raves was Colm Wilkinson.

Clive Barnes of the New York Post said, "With his voice of moral outrage and hulking prescence, Colm Wilkinson is superb." "An actor of pugilistic figure and dynamic voice, he is the
heroic everyman the show demands at its heart," reviewed The New York Times.

Colm Wilkinson had arrived on Broadway. His wonderfully moving stage presence and strikingly commanding voice had finally found a role the equal of his prodigous talents. Success
was sweet. He earned a Laurence Olivier Award nomination for Best Actor as well as a Tony and Drama Desk nomination, and winning the Helen Hayes Award, Outer Critics' Circle
Award, and a 1987 Theatre World Award for his celebrated portrayal.

"Every new role, whether singing or straight acting, is a fresh opportunity for me to prove myself and I thrive on it. For example, on my album 'Stage Heroes', there is a wonderful
variety of material. They are songs from stage shows that I loved, like "Porgy and Bess", "Phantom Of The Opera", "Les Miserables", and many more. But to really get inside those
songs demanded that little bit extra of me. Its the same when I'm writing songs or preparing for a new role. I push myself to produce the best performance I can. Nothing else will do."

In September, 1989, Colm pushed himself yet again, taking on the lead role in the Toronto production of "Phantom Of The Opera" to critical success. For his portrayal of "The Phantom,"
Colm won the 1989/90 Dora Mavor Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male in a Revue or Musical.

Most recently involved in the North American tour of Andrew Lloyd Webber's--"Music Of The Night," a spectacular compilation of songs spanning Sir Lloyd Webber's career, Colm is
always pushing himself in new directions.

For Colm Wilkinson, excellence is the only standard that matters.