Michael Gambon

Sir Michael John Gambon, CBE (born October 19, 1940), is an acclaimed Irish-born British actor who has worked in television, film and theatre.

Biography

He was born in Dublin, Ireland during World War II. As his father was an engineer, he decided to seek work in the rebuilding of London, and moved Gambon and his seamstress mother moved to Mornington Crescent, north London, when he was 5. Unbeknownst to Michael, his father would take out official papers for him, making him a British citizen - a fact that would later allow him to be awarded a CBE and a knighthood http://www.tiscali.co.uk/entertainment/film/biographies/michael_gambon_biog.html

Raised a strict Roman Catholic, he attended Jesuit St Aloysius Boys' School in Somers Town and served on the altar. He then moved to St Aloysius' College in Hornsey Lane, Highgate, London - former pupils included Peter Sellers. He left later for a school in Kent, before leaving with no qualifications at 15. After leaving school he gained an apprentice from Vickers Armstrong as a toolmaker. By 21 he had become a fully qualified engineer. He kept the job for a further year - leaving him with a fascination and passion for collecting antique guns, clocks and watches, as well as classic cars.

Early Acting career

Aged 19, he attended the theatre. After passing the Shaftesbury Theatre, and loving the chaos experience inside, he joined the Unity Theatre in Kings Cross. Five years later he wrote a letter to Michael MacLiammoir, the Irish theatre impressario who ran Dublin's Gate Theatre. It was accompanied by a CV describing a rich and wholly imaginary theatre career - and he was taken on.

Gambon made his professional British stage debut in the Gate Theatre's 1962 production of Othello, playing "2nd Gentleman". In 1963, he was chosen by Sir Laurence Olivier to form part of the original Royal National Theatre company, alongside Maggie Smith, Nicol Williamson and newcomers including Lynn Redgrave. The company initially performed at the Old Vic, their first production being Hamlet, directed by Olivier and starring Peter O'Toole. He played for four years in many NT productions, including Much Ado About Nothing, and Tom Stoppard's Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead; worked with guest directors inclduing Noel Coward and Franco Zeffirelli

Success and Acceptance

He made his film debut in the Laurence Olivier Othello in 1965. He then played romantic leads, notably in the early 1970s BBC television series, The Borderers, in which he was swashbuckling Gavin Ker. As a result, Gambon was asked by James Bond producer Cubby Broccoli to audition for the role in 1970, to replace George Lazenby. However, his craggy looks soon made him into a character actor, and it was not until Dennis Potter's The Singing Detective (1986) that he became a household name. Even after this success, for which he won a British Academy Television Award, his career was patchy, with big hits such as the 1989 film, The Cook, The Thief, His Wife and Her Lover, which also starred Helen Mirren, interspersed with less notable work.

In 1992 he played a psychotic general in the Barry Levinson film Toys and he also starred as Georges Simenon's detective Inspector Jules Maigret in an ITV adaptation of Simenon's series of books. He starred as Fyodor Dostoyevsky in the Hungarian director Károly Makk's movie The Gambler (1997) about the writing of Dostoyevsky's novella The Gambler.

Today

In recent years, films such as Dancing at Lughnasa (1998) and Plunkett and Macleane (1998), as well as television appearances in series such as Wives and Daughters (1999) (for which he won another BAFTA), a made-for-TV adaptation of Beckett's Endgame (2001) and Perfect Strangers (2001) have revealed a talent for comedy. In 2004, he appeared in five films, including Wes Anderson's quirky comedy The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou; the British gangster flick Layer Cake; theatrical drama Being Julia; and CGI action fantasy Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow.

Perhaps his most significant role in 2004, however, was Albus Dumbledore, Hogwart's headmaster in the third instalment of JK Rowling's franchise, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, taking over from the late Irish actor Richard Harris, who died due to Hodgkins disease. He reprised the role in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, which was released in November 2005 in the UK and U.S.. He will return to the role of Dumbledore again in the fifth movie, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, to be released in 2007. Gambon admits to not reading the Harry Potter novels so that he is not "upset" when a significant story change occurs in the conversion to film.

Personal life

Sir Michael Gambon is divorced with one son.

When his love of cars resulted in him appearing on the BBC's Top Gear programme, Gambon raced the Suzuki Liana he was driving so aggressively that it was launched into the air on the last corner of his timed lap. The final corner of the Dunsfold Park track has been named "Gambon" in his honour.

He reappeared on the program on the June 4, 2006, and set a time in the Chevrolet Lacetti of 1:50.3, a significant improvement on his previous time of 1:55.

Gambon has said he finds interviews boring, and has throughout his career made numerous false statements to journalists. He claimed to have started out as a dancer at the Royal Ballet, only to have his career ruined when he fell from the stage and crashed through the orchestra's timpani drum kit. For years he carried round a photo of Robert De Niro that read "To Mike, Best wishes and love forever, Bob". He'd regale any entrant to his dressing-room with tales of the work he'd done with De Niro and the affection they had for one another - until some bright spark noted that Gambon had actually never worked with De Niro and clearly written the note himself. He once claimed that he used to be gay, but stopped because it made his eyes water - the journalist believed him and wrote this into their article.

Selected filmography

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2007)
The Good Shepherd (2006)
The Omen (Remake) (2006)
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005)
The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004)
Layer Cake (2004)
Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow (2004)
Being Julia (2004)
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004)
Angels in America (2003) (miniseries)
Sylvia (2003)
Open Range (2003)
The Lost Prince (2003) (TV)
Path to War (2002)
Ali G Indahouse (2002)
The Movie (2001) (voice)
Gosford Park (2001)
Perfect Strangers (2001) (TV)
Sleepy Hollow (1999)
The Insider (1999)
Wives and Daughters (1999) (TV)
Dancing at Lughnasa (1998)
Mary Reilly (1996)
The Browning Version (1994)
Toys (1992)
The Cook, The Thief, His Wife & Her Lover (1989)
A Dry White Season (1989)
The Rachel Papers (1989)
The Singing Detective (1986) (miniseries)
The Beast Must Die (1974)
Nothing But The Night (1972)
Othello (1965)

Quotations

"It was like a heartbeat. Something inside me. Some dream. I think it's being a dreamer as a child. Dreamy kids become actors, don't they?" Michael Gambon on his experience of joining and working with the Unity Theatre in Kings Cross

References

External links

Biography at Tiscali UK

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