He formed a duo with Horace Wheatley,[1] and then, from 1881, with Joseph Tennyson (born in Manchester, 12 July 1861–5 September 1926).

As Tennyson and O'Gorman, they became one of the leading music hall acts in Britain, developing the idea of cross-talking.

[2] O'Gorman was also involved, with Joe Elvin, in setting up Brinsworth House in Twickenham, a care home for retired entertainers which opened in 1911.

He married Maggie Coleman in 1887; their two sons, Joe and David, later became a leading comic duo in variety shows as well as radio and films, peaking in popularity between the 1920s and 1940s.

Joe then remarried, to Jessie Grace (née Prosser), a slack wire performer known as "The Beautiful Jessica";[1] she died in 1908.

Joe O'Gorman died in Barnes, Surrey in 1937, aged 74, and was buried in Putney Vale Cemetery.