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1-50 of 71
- Actor
- Writer
- Producer
Widely regarded as one of greatest stage and screen actors both in his native Great Britain and internationally, twice nominated for the Oscar and recipient of every major theatrical award in the UK and US, Ian Murray McKellen was born on May 25, 1939 in Burnley, Lancashire, England, to Margery Lois (Sutcliffe) and Denis Murray McKellen, a civil engineer and lay preacher. He is of Scottish, Northern Irish, and English descent. During his early childhood, his parents moved with Ian and his older sister, Jean, to the mill town of Wigan. It was in this small town that young Ian rode out World War II. He soon developed a fascination with acting and the theatre, which was encouraged by his parents. They would take him to plays, those by William Shakespeare, in particular. The amateur school productions fostered Ian's growing passion for theatre.
When Ian was of age to begin attending school, he made sure to get roles in all of the productions. At Bolton School in particular, he developed his skills early on. Indeed, his first role in a Shakespearian play was at Bolton, as Malvolio in "Twelfth Night". Ian soon began attending Stratford-upon-Avon theatre festivals, where he saw the greats perform: Laurence Olivier, Wendy Hiller, John Gielgud, Ralph Richardson and Paul Robeson. He continued his education in English Drama, but soon it fell by the wayside as he concentrated more and more on performing. He eventually obtained his Bachelor of Arts in 1961, and began his career in earnest.
McKellen began working in theatre over the next few years. Very few people knew of Ian's homosexuality; he saw no reason to go public, nor had he told his family. They did not seem interested in the subject and so he saw no reason to bring it up. In 1988, Ian publicly came out of the closet on the BBC Radio 4 program, while discussing Margaret Thatcher's "Section 28" legislation, which made the promotion of homosexuality as a family relationship by local authorities an offense. It was reason enough for McKellen to take a stand. He has been active in the gay rights movement ever since.
Ian resides in Limehouse, where he has also lived with his former long-time partner Sean Mathias. The two men have also worked together on the film Bent (1997) as well as in exquisite stage productions. To this day, McKellen works mostly in theatre, and was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 1990 for his efforts in the arts. However, he has managed to make several quite successful forays into film. He has appeared in several productions of Shakespeare's works including his well received Richard III (1995), and in a variety of other movies. However, it has only been recently that his star has finally begun to shine in the eyes of North American audiences. Roles in various films, Cold Comfort Farm (1995), Apt Pupil (1998) and Gods and Monsters (1998), riveted audiences. The latter, in particular, created a sensation in Hollywood, and McKellen's role garnered him several of awards and nominations, including a Golden Globe and an Oscar nod. McKellen, as he continues to work extensively on stage, he always keeps in 'solidifying' his 'role' as Laurence Olivier's worthy 'successor' in the best sense too, such as King Lear (2008) / King Lear (2008) directed by Trevor Nunn and in a range of other staggering performances full of generously euphoric delight that have included "Peter Pan" and Noël Coward's "Present Laughter", as well as Samuel Beckett's "Waiting for Godot" and Harold Pinter's "No Man's Land" (National Theatre Live: No Man's Land (2016)), both in acclaimed productions brilliantly directed by Sean Mathias.
McKellen found mainstream success with his performance as Magneto in X-Men (2000) and its sequels. His largest mark on the big screen may be as Gandalf in "The Lord of the Rings" film trilogy directed by Peter Jackson, which he reprised in "The Hobbit" trilogy. He also reprised the role of 'King Lear' with new artistic perspectives in National Theatre Live: King Lear (2018) offering an invaluable mesmerizing experience as a natural force of stage - and screen - of infinite generosity through his unsurpassable interpretation of the titanically vulnerable king.- Lee Ingleby was born on 28 January 1976 in Burnley, Lancashire, England, UK. He is an actor and writer, known for Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004), Ever After: A Cinderella Story (1998) and Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (2003).
- Actor
- Soundtrack
J. Pat had a warm smile, twinkling eyes, and an Irish name. He was born in Burnley, England, and began his acting career in British musical halls. J. Pat came to the USA at the outbreak of World War II. He also worked on the Broadway stage during the 1940s and 1950s. J. Pat was a very familiar face on TV sitcoms and dramas for 3 decades, where he played mostly uncle and grandfather types. He made over 100 TV guest appearances, and was in groundbreaking series such as the The Twilight Zone (1959) and The Untouchables (1959). J. Pat performed a lot in radio with his versatile voice work, and he later used his talent in animated cartoons, providing many vocal characterizations. And the children always loved J. Pat the most. Many baby boomers have fond childhood memories of his portrayals in the TV series The Adventures of Spin and Marty (1955) and The New Adventures of Spin and Marty (1957) and of course he played Mr. Harry Burns in My Favorite Martian (1963). J. Pat was a kind and gentle man, who made this world a better place for having been here, and he left his legacy on film.- Natalie Gumede was born on 20 March 1984 in Burnley, Lancashire, England, UK. She is an actress, known for Titans (2018), C.B. Strike (2017) and Doctor Who (2005).
- Actor
- Producer
- Director
Jody Latham was born on 9 January 1983 in Burnley, Lancashire, England, UK. He is an actor and producer, known for The Silence (2010), EastEnders (1985) and Showground.- Writer
- Producer
- Additional Crew
Paul Abbott was born on 22 February 1960 in Burnley, Lancashire, England, UK. He is a writer and producer, known for Shameless (2011), Shameless (2004) and State of Play (2003). He has been married to Saskia Abbott since 1993. They have two children. He was previously married to Sheila Culf.- Actress
- Writer
- Producer
Julia Haworth was born on 27 July 1979 in Burnley, Lancashire, England, UK. She is an actress and writer, known for Coronation Street (1960), Three Seven Eleven (1993) and Blink (2010). She has been married to Jon Wormald since 6 May 2006. They have two children.- Actress
- Soundtrack
Hannah Hobley was born on 9 October 1988 in Burnley, Lancashire, England, UK. She is an actress, known for Benidorm (2007), Cranford (2007) and Benidorm: 10 Years on Holiday (2018).- Actor
- Soundtrack
Quirky, uncensored, and idiosyncratic, actor Muzz Khan is quickly becoming known in the entertainment industry for the characters he has brought to life on screen. From television, film, theater, and music, Khan proves time and time again that he can do it all. In 2016, he can be seen co-starring on ABC's musical comedy "Galavant." Khan is a scene-stealer as Barry, the belligerent and bewildered assistant to Wormwood [played by Robert Lindsay] who could be described as the Pakistani lovechild of Kramer from "Seinfeld" and Daphne from "Frasier." Season two of "Galavant" premiered in January 2016.
On the film front, Khan will make his US feature debut in Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's [MGM's] and New Line Cinema's "Me Before You" as Syed, set to be released on June 3, 2016. Based off the 2012 bestselling novel by Jojo Moyes, the film follows Louisa Clark [Emilia Clarke] who forms an unlikely bond with the recently paralyzed William Traynor [Sam Claflin] after she is hired [by Syed] as his caretaker.
Television credits for Khan include: "24: Live Another Day," "Black Mirror: White Christmas," "Catastrophe," "The Suspicions of Mr Whicher," "Bradford Riots," and "No Angels." His film credits include: "Happy Toys," "The Hatching," "Four Lions," and "East is East." Khan has also spent time working in theater, and has performed with Kim Cattrall in "Antony and Cleopatra," in the Scott Rudin produced "Behind The Beautiful Forevers" at the National Theatre in England, as well as at the Royal Shakespeare Company.
In addition to acting, Khan has been a successful DJ in London since 2007. He made his debut at the internationally renowned Pacha nightclub and became a resident there for two years. He has performed across Europe at venues including: Ministry of Sound, O2 Academy, Proud Camden, numerous festivals, and at Spanish clubs including Space and Es Paradis in Ibiza. Khan has shared the stage with artists such as: 2ManyDJs, Erick Morillo, Fedde Le Grand, MK, Armin Van Buuren, Eric Prydz, Basement Jaxx, Chris Lake as well as countless others.
Born in Burnley and raised in Nelson, Lancashire, Khan always had a passion for the arts. By the age of eight he loved house music, and his passion for acting developed in high school when the BBC came to film an episode of the popular drama "Hetty Wainthropp Investigates" at his school. Khan volunteered to be one of the background students and ended up filming a small scene as an extra. With no acting experience and being from a small town, he found the whole experience incredibly seductive. He even landed his first paid acting gig before starting drama school in Miramax's "East is East" which featured Archie Panjabi from the series "The Good Wife."
Khan trained at the illustrious Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art in South Kensington, London, alongside his peers, Natalie Dormer, Rupert Friend, Elyes Gabel and Tom Mison, graduating in 2004.
Khan currently lives in the UK with his wife and his son.- Writer
- Producer
- Director
Peter Salmon was born on 15 May 1956 in Burnley, Lancashire, England, UK. He is a writer and producer, known for 999 (1992), Crimewatch UK (1984) and Wallace & Gromit: The Best of Aardman Animations (1996). He has been married to Sarah Lancashire since 22 August 2001. He was previously married to Penny Watt.- Alice was born the eldest of four children. She grew up in Burnley, attending St Mary Magdalene's school and came to acting late in life, after her son had grown up and left home. After working as an extra she was spotted by a director who encouraged her to go for larger parts, leading to roles in 'Coronation Street'. Peter Kay's Phoenix Nights' and most famously as the owner of the best little whore house on the Chatsworth estate in 'Shameless'. Alice's sense of humour has been evidenced in her appearances for BBC's Comic Relief appeals when she spoofed the knickerless tennis player in the famous Athena poster and also parodied Mena Suvari's scene in 'American Beauty',Alice being covered in plastic red noses as opposed to the rose petals of the original film.
- Ian Barritt was born in 1944 in Burnley, Lancashire, England, UK. He is an actor, known for Life on Mars (2006), Doctor Who (2005) and Foyle's War (2002).
- Richard Moore was born in 1934 in Burnley, Lancashire, England, UK. He is an actor, known for Robin Hood (1991), Emmerdale Farm (1972) and McCallum (1995).
- Actress
- Soundtrack
After training at LAMDA, Irene traveled widely with the Bristol Old Vic Company, including Europe, America and the Middle East. She worked in rep at Liverpool, Leatherhead, Worthing and Wolverhampton and did seasons at Stratford-on-Avon and Chichester and toured with a Shakespearean Company. She worked with Laurence Olivier's company and appeared in Olivier's film version of "Richard the Third". In addition, she worked extensively on the West End stage, including a year in "The Mousetrap", and acted in numerous radio and television plays before joining Coronation Street (1960) in 1968.- In a career sadly cut short by his death at 52 Anthony Sagar shared a screen with many of the greats of British cinema - Alec Guinness, Michael Redgrave, Tom Courtenay, John Mills and Richard Burton to name a few. He also popped up in 7 of the Carry On series, a Norman Wisdom film, a Ronnie Corbett film and the big-screen Dad's Army.
He never rose particularly high up the bill in film but could play pretty much any character, in the Carry Ons he was variously a policeman, ambulanceman, cook and bus conductor. Perhaps his best film appearance was in Richard Burton cult classic Villain (1971) his nervous, bootlicking character has some lovely scenes with Burton's vicious Vic Dakin and Nigel Davenport's intelligent, wily Inspector Matthews.
Sagar started fairly late in film and television, at 36 he made his debut in Dixon of Dock Green as Det. Sgt. Brownrigg, a role he reprised 8 times in the popular police series, though he also played two other characters in it in later years. Police series were somewhat of a staple as he subsequently appeared in Z Cars, Special Branch and New Scotland Yard and his last appearance on film was in The Offence, Sidney Lumet's hard-boiled police drama.
If Sagar didn't quite elevate himself to the ranks of John Le Mesurier, Richard Wattis, Roland Culver or Lionel Jeffries he's still worth noting as a diverse and interesting actor.
Other notable appearances are in classic television series Dad's Army, The Avengers and in film The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner (1962). - Kathy Jamieson was born in 1957 in Burnley, Lancashire, England, UK. She is an actress, known for Emmerdale Farm (1972), Butterfly Kiss (1995) and Merseybeat (2001). She is married to John McArdle.
- Albert Wilkinson was born in 1938 in Burnley, Lancashire, England, UK. He is an actor, known for Labyrinth (1986), Countess Dracula (1971) and A Little in Tents (2017).
- John Nightingale was born in 1942 in Burnley, Lancashire, England, UK. He was an actor, known for When the Boat Comes In (1976), Looking for Clancy (1975) and The Stars Look Down (1974). He died in 1980 in Greenwich, London, England, UK.
- Philip Brack was born on 27 February 1927 in Burnley, Lancashire, England, UK. He was an actor, known for A Man for All Seasons (1966), Look and Read (1967) and The Silver Sword (1971). He was married to Paddy Frost. He died on 29 July 1979 in Sherborne, Dorset, England, UK.
- Actress
- Writer
- Director
Lamissah La-Shontae is an actress, known for Kin (2016), Deadline (2018) and Case Files (2018). Lamissah La-Shontae is the only daughter of Anthony and Zohra Bhatti and their second youngest child. She was born on September 11th, 2007 in Lancashire, England. Lamissah La-Shontae had been scouted as a baby for modelling after a shoot for worldwide baby brand Mother Care. At the age of four she was put on the gifted and talented register, and at the age of six she was signed to a very successful Model and Casting agency and is still with them to date. Her first Acting role was at eight years old on the movie Kin (2016) as Ella Fortuna, and at the present moment she's filming for Deadline (2018) as Sapphire Hierarchies Apprentice and Case Files (2018) as young Shannon Walker.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Thomas Morrison was born on 1 January 1983 in Burnley, Lancashire, England, UK. He is an actor, known for Blackpool (2004), The Theory of Everything (2014) and Brideshead Revisited (2008).- Mary Mackenzie (3 May 1922 - 20 September 1966) was born in Burnley, Lancashire, where she spent her early years. Although by 1954 she had performed in ten feature films and two BBC Sunday-Night Theatre (1950) episodes, she was known as a radio star. At this time and to publicize her upcoming radio program, "Spanner in the Works," that she was photographed sitting in a sports Maserati conversing with British motor racing driver and manager Roy Salvadori. In 1966, Mary died in London in a car accident at the age of 44.
- Nicola Wheeler was born on 4 April 1974 in Burnley, Lancashire, England, UK. She is an actress, known for Emmerdale Farm (1972), Band of Gold (1995) and Emmerdale: The Dingles - For Richer for Poorer (2010).
- Visual Effects
- Additional Crew
- Special Effects
Sean Farrow was born on 17 September 1970 in Burnley, Lancashire, England, UK. He is known for Batman Begins (2005), 1408 (2007) and Hunter Killer (2018).- Actor
- Producer
- Writer
Chris Cutler, born on December 17th 1984 in Burnley, Lancashire, England is a Producer, Director and Actor. He started screenwriting in 2008 before going on to act in both independent and mainstream films. He is known for '83' and Twist. He married Hayley Cutler in 2017 and they have one child.- Herbert Lomas was born on 17 January 1887 in Burnley, Lancashire, England, UK. He was an actor, known for The Sign of Four: Sherlock Holmes' Greatest Case (1932), Lorna Doone (1934) and Hobson's Choice (1931). He died on 11 April 1961 in Bovey Tracey, Devon, England, UK.
- Agnes Savile was born on 1 November 1886 in Burnley, Lancashire, England. She was married to Vincent Joseph Marie Savile. She died on 9 October 1972 in Scarborough, North Yorkshire, England, UK.
- James Buller was born on 4 April 1970 in Burnley, Lancashire, England, UK. He is an actor, known for Doctor Who (2005), EastEnders (1985) and Sunburn (1999).
- Jimmy Anderson was born on 30 July 1982 in Burnley, Lancashire, England, UK. He is a producer, known for Warriors (2015), Wimbledon (1937) and The Ashes (1930).
- Alexander Pollard was born on 15 October 1886 in Burnley, England, UK. He was an actor, known for The Monster Maker (1944), Private Number (1936) and Torchy's Busy Day (1932). He died on 17 June 1950 in Los Angeles County, California, USA.
- Actor
- Writer
- Producer
Alex Hale was born on 19 July 1992 in Burnley, Lancashire, England, UK. He is an actor and writer, known for The Projects: Rise of Redemption, The Future Rebellion and Lola.- Zoe Williams was born on 3 April 1980 in Burnley, Lancashire, England, UK.
- Producer
- Actor
Andrew Hawley was born in October 1969 in Burnley, Lancashire, England, UK. He is a producer and actor, known for Devil's Gold (2018) and The Innocent (1985).- Ernest Butcher was born on 7 April 1885 in Burnley, England, UK. He was an actor, known for No Trace (1950), Appointment with Crime (1946) and When We Are Married (1943). He was married to Muriel George. He died on 8 June 1965 in London, England, UK.
- Bobby Elliott was born on 8 December 1941 in Burnley, Lancashire, England, UK. He is an actor, known for The Justice Collective: He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother (2012), All There Is to Know and Beat-Club (1965).
- Producer
- Director
- Editor
Stephen Rigg has been responsible for a wide array of different films in various genres over the years. Having cut his teeth on home cinema in the early days of video, and studying under legendary indie-film legend Lloyd Kaufman, he has progressed from short films, through to music promo's, live concerts, TV commercials, online viral campaigns, full length documentaries and feature films.- Pamela Guthrie was born on 7 February 1939 in Burnley, Lancashire, England, UK. She was an actress, known for The Mercy Man (2009), Perception (2009) and The Voice of the Voiceless (2013). She was married to Eugene J. Guthrie. She died on 30 November 2022 in Richmond, Virginia, USA.
- Neil Hodgson was born on 20 November 1973 in Burnley, Lancashire, England, UK.
- John Bromley was born on 25 May 1927 in Burnley, Lancashire, England, UK. He was an actor, known for Vendetta (1966), Compact (1962) and Love Among the Ruins (1975). He died on 25 February 2017 in Richmond, Surrey, England, UK.
- Des Bettany was born on 11 October 1919 in Burnley, Lancashire, England, UK. He was married to Irene. He died on 14 December 2000 in Adelaide, South Australia, Australia.
- Jean-Luc Baker was born on 7 October 1993 in Burnley, England.
- Actor
George Broughton was born on 26 July 1883 in Burnley, England, UK. He was an actor. He died in 1969 in Lincolnshire, England, UK.- Music Department
- Composer
- Soundtrack
William Blezard, was best known as piano accompanist for such leading stage figures as Joyce Grenfell, Marlene Dietrich and Honor Blackman. He was also a composer of note, particularly of theatre and film music. Born in Padiham, near Burnley, he was the son of mill workers, and his tenor father sang semi-professionally. William showed talent, initially on the harmonium, and subsequently on the piano, which he played in the local cinema. A mill owner, Teddy Higham, paid for William to have piano lessons until, in 1938, he won a Lancashire County scholarship, leaving Clitheroe Royal grammar school, where he had already performed Gershwin's Rhapsody In Blue, to go to the Royal College of Music (RCM) in London.
His studies were interrupted in 1940 by war service in the RAF as a Morse code operator in Wick, but he soon found access to a piano and continued to study and compose. On his return to the RCM in 1946, he studied piano with Arthur Benjamin and Frank Merrick, composition with Herbert Howells, and orchestration with Gordon Jacobs. He won the prestigious Cobbett Prize, for Fantasy String Quartet.
This resulted in Muir Mathieson inviting him to work at Denham Studios as a composer and arranger for documentaries. He arranged and orchestrated Noël Coward's music for the film of his play The Astonished Heart (1949).
Through his wife-to-be, the conductor and teacher Joan Kemp Potter, William met the pianist Donald Swann, and it was through Swann that he met Joyce Grenfell. His participation in Joyce Grenfell Requests The Pleasure started in 1954, and he remained her accompanist throughout her career, including several BBC broadcasts, four world tours and her last performance, for the royal family at Windsor Castle in June 1973. William contributed, with relish, The Battle March Of Delhi, a Victorian parlour song.
As composer and musical director, William had an illustrious career in the theatre. In 1957, he worked on two Royal Shakespeare Company productions with Peter Brook, Titus Andronicus and The Tempest. In the same year, he became musical director of John Osborne's The Entertainer, with Laurence Olivier as the failed music-hall artist Archie Rice. William fulfilled the same role for the Max Wall revival in 1974, and this led to William's involvement in the solo show Aspects Of Max Wall.
In 1965, William took over from Burt Bacharach as Marlene Dietrich's accompanist and musical director. With typical modesty, William always maintained that he landed the job because he had the correct zodiac sign. They gave three world tours, ending in 1975 when Dietrich broke her leg on stage in Sydney - it was her final performance.
William was also musical director for the show that Sheridan Morley wrote and narrated about Coward and Gertrude Lawrence, Noël And Gertie, and worked with Joanna Lumley, Ian Ogilvy, Patricia Hodge and Maria Aitken. In the 1980s, he started a long-running partnership with Honor Blackman, in her one-woman shows, Yvette and Dishonourable Ladies. In 1990, he played for the first of many performances of Tim Heath's Not Yet The Dodo, based on Coward's poem.
His gifts as an improviser were on display in the BBC television children's programme Play School from 1964 onwards. Often he was called on to provide, at the drop of a hat, what presenter Johnny Ball called "onomatopoeic music", music to evoke running water or splashing in puddles.
In later life, William was gratified to see several of his works performed. The Royal Ballet Sinfonia recorded his Battersea Park Suite, Caramba, The River and Duetto For Strings; the oboist Jill Crowther and the English Northern Philharmonia his Two Celtic Pieces; and Eric Parkin two CDs of his piano music. He was a Francophile who admired the music of Ravel, echoes of which can be heard in his own; he liked travelling abroad in general, and had an aptitude for languages.
Paradoxically, away from the piano, he was renowned for being clumsy and spatially unaware. He considered that inanimate objects conspired against him, and would often greet me at the door with a glum pronouncement of that day's score, "Inanimate objects three - Blezard nil."
Right up until his death William was performing, and could be seen bicycling around Barnes. His wife predeceased him in 2001, and he was survived by his son Paul and daughter Pookie.- Martin Cosgrif was born on 28 February 1948 in Burnley, Lancashire, England, UK. He was an actor, known for Marvin's Song (2011) and Juliet Bravo (1980). He died on 12 April 2020 in Warwick, Warwickshire, England, UK.
- Martin Starkie was born on 25 November 1922 in Burnley, Lancashire, England, UK. He was an actor and writer, known for Mysteries and Miracles (1965), Sherlock Holmes (1951) and BBC Sunday-Night Theatre (1950). He died on 5 November 2010 in London, England, UK.
- Walter Haggar was born on 26 November 1880 in Burnley, Lancashire, England, UK. He was an actor, known for The Poachers (1903), The Life of Charles Peace (1905) and Weary Willie and Tired Tim: The Gunpowder Plot (1903). He was married to Ada Roberts. He died on 20 September 1953 in Fordingbridge, Hampshire, England, UK.
- Fred Walmsley was born on 24 June 1873 in Burnley, Lancashire, England, UK. He was an actor, known for Dodging the Dole (1936). He died on 30 September 1943 in Blackpool, Lancashire, England, UK.
- Daniel Solazzo was born on 23 May 1983 in Burnley, Lancashire, England, UK. He is an actor, known for Emmerdale Farm (1972), Cutting It (2002) and A Boy Called Dad (2009).
- Eric Halsall was born on 18 March 1920 in Burnley, Lancashire, England, UK. He was married to Rita Greenwood. He died on 21 October 1996 in Burnley, Lancashire, England, UK.
- Additional Crew
Doreen Casey was born on 3 July 1929 in Burnley, Lancashire, England, UK. She is known for Steptoe and Son (1962), Treffpunkt Telebar (1961) and Frankfurter Palette (1958). She was married to Harry Smith Hampshire. She died on 16 September 2002 in Slough, Berkshire, England, UK.