Cal was born Cahal McCrystal on 6th August 1959 to a journalist also named Cahal McCrystal and his social worker wife Stella. In 1964 the family moved from Cal's native Belfast to London and in 1967 to the USA in line with Cal Senior's job as the Sunday Times New York bureau chief. In 1970 the family came back to London where Cal's schoolmates noticed that he had picked up a Stateside accent and his acting ambitions were fostered by drama teacher Helen Woodhouse. Although he attended a catering college his ambition was to pursue a theatrical career and in 1981 he graduated from the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama, soon afterwards hosting youth programmes for Yorkshire Television. After some ten years as an actor Cal began directing for the Edinburgh Festival and later for the Cambridge Footlights Revue and at Derby Playhouse where he directed Jenny Éclair in 'The Killing of Sister George'. In 2011 he was invited by Nicholas Hytner to be the associate director on 'One Man Two Guvnors', his title later becoming physical comedy director - a highly important role in a fast-moving farce in which slapstick and energetic performances, along with musical interludes and audience involvement, hasten the plot along.