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Colin Firth (born 10 September, 1960) is a British actor.
Early life
Firth was born in Grayshott, Hampshire, England to David Firth (a history lecturer and the son of an Anglican priest) and Shirley (a comparative religion lecturer, whose own parents were Congregationalist ministers); he has a sister, Kate, and a younger brother, Jonathan, who is now also an actor. Both of Firth's parents were born and raised in India, as their English-born parents were involved in missionary work.
Firth spent part of his childhood in Nigeria, where his father was teaching. He lived in St. Louis, Missouri when he was 11.
Film career
Firth starred in the award-winning 1981 London stage production of Another Country. He reprised this role for his first film appearance in 1984. In 1987, he appeared alongside Kenneth Branagh in the film version of J. L. Carr's novel, A Month in the Country. In 1989, he took the lead in the film Valmont.
Despite widespread admiration for his performances, it was only with the 1995 BBC television adaptation of Pride and Prejudice that Firth gained wider renown. The serial was a big success and Firth became known as a heart-throb because of his role as Fitzwilliam Darcy. This performance also made him the object of affection for fictional newspaper columnist Bridget Jones (created by Helen Fielding), an interest which carried on into the two novels featuring the Jones character. In the second novel, The Edge of Reason, the character even meets Firth in Rome. As something of an in-joke, when the novels were adapted for the cinema, Firth was cast as Jones's love interest Mark Darcy.
Consequently, he had a supporting role in The English Patient (1996) and since then has starred in films such as Fever Pitch (1997), Shakespeare in Love (1998), Bridget Jones's Diary (2001), The Importance of Being Earnest (2002), Love Actually (2003) and The Edge of Reason (2004). He has also appeared in recent television productions, including Donovan Quick (an updated version of Don Quixote) (1999) and Conspiracy (2001).
Most critics consider him to be a talented and versatile actor, equally at home on stage or on screen.
Personal life
In 1989, Firth entered into a romantic relationship with actress Meg Tilly, his co-star in Valmont. In 1990, she gave birth to a son, Will Firth.
In 1994, Firth was involved with actress Jennifer Ehle, his co-star in Pride and Prejudice. Currently, Firth lives both in London and Italy. He is married to Italian documentary filmmaker Livia Giuggioli (since 21 June, 1997). The couple has two sons, Luca Firth (born 2001) and Matteo Firth (born 2003).
Firth's favourite Christmas song is Fairytale of New York; his favourite romantic film is Brief Encounter.
Selected filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Other notes |
| 2005 | Nanny McPhee | Cedric Brown | |
| 2005 | Where the Truth Lies | Vince Collins | |
| 2004 | Trauma | Ben | |
| 2004 | The Edge of Reason (film) | Mark Darcy | |
| 2003 | Girl with a Pearl Earring | Johannes Vermeer | |
| 2003 | Love Actually | Jamie Bennett | |
| 2003 | What a Girl Wants | Henry Dashwood | |
| 2002 | The Importance of Being Earnest | Jack | |
| 2001 | Bridget Jones's Diary | Mark Darcy | |
| 2000 | Relative Values | Peter Ingleton | |
| 1998 | Shakespeare in Love | Lord Wessex | |
| 1997 | Fever Pitch | Paul Ashworth | |
| 1996 | The English Patient | Geoffrey Clifton | |
| 1995 | Circle of Friends | Simon Westward | |
| 1995 | Pride and Prejudice | Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy | television mini-series |
| 1989 | Valmont | Valmont | |
| 1987 | A Month in the Country | Tom Birkin | |
| 1984 | Another Country | Tommy Judd |
External links
1960 births | English film actors | English stage actors | English television actors | Living people
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