Filming from the driver’s seat of his car, with his pet whippet, Lara, in the background, Michael Barrymore shows an array of dog treats he has collected to test to the camera. There’s a twist, though: it won’t be the dog doing the testing. In a series of quick edits, the fallen star of primetime 1990s television grimaces his way through cheese biscuits and pork sausages.
The lamb spaghetti is particularly challenging, though he claims to quite like the chicken sausage slices. The dog treat video is part of a steady stream of content being produced by Barrymore on his TikTok account, where the 74-year-old has become an unlikely hit. The platform is used most heavily by the under-30s, many of whom would have no memory of his former career as one of Britain’s leading light entertainers.
Particularly popular are Barrymore’s “munchie runs” to supermarkets, sweet shops and takeaways, where he snacks his way through an alarming array of treats, energy drinks and fast food. It is all a long way from his ITV heyday hosting Strike It Lucky and Barrymore, a career he abruptly lost in 2001 after the death of Stuart Lubbock, a 31-year-old father of two who died shortly after being found unconscious in Barrymore’s swimming pool. Despite investigations and several arrests, no one has ever been charged in relation to Lubbock’s death.
The case remains unresolved. Barrymore has always denied any involvement, but his TV career did not recover. However, TikTok and its all-powerful algorithm have allowed him to build a vast new audience over the past four years.
He is on course to amass close to 5m followers by the end of 2026. More than 6m have watched him scoff a trending pistachio nut cake after driving across the south-west, where he now lives, to find one. In another viral hit, he devours an M&S Colin the Caterpillar cake with his bare hands.
His success has become a case study in the media’s digital revolution, which is causing angst among traditional broadcasters. It has allowed Barrymore to bypass TV gatekeepers who shunned him after Lubbock’s death. These days, those who don’t think he should be in the public eye simply don’t follow him on social media.” Professional short-form video editors have noted there is more to Barrymore’s TikTok success than his snacking antics.
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