Advanced search
- TITLES
- NAMES
- COLLABORATIONS
Search filters
Enter full date
to
or just enter yyyy, or yyyy-mm below
to
Only includes names with the selected topics
to
or just enter yyyy, or yyyy-mm below
to
1-50 of 54
- Mackenzie Crook, one of British comedy's best-known faces, who collected Star Wars figurines as a child, is now immortalized in plastic as a six-inch-high pirate action figure. He was born Paul Mackenzie Crook on September 29, 1971, in Maidstone, Kent, England, UK. His father worked for British Airways. His mother was a hospital manager. He went to grammar school in Dartford, and did his first plays there. In the summers, he spent time with his uncle in Zimbabwe.
Young Mackenzie Crook expressed his creativity through painting and even copied a pre-Raphaelite's painting on to the back of his biker's jacket. He also joined a local youth theater. At the age of 18, he failed to secure a place at art college and turned to writing comedy sketches. Crook ended up working at Pizza Hut, and at hospitals. However, the principal of the youth theater believed in his potential and became his manager, guiding Crook to a career as a stand-up comedian. In 1996, he made his film debut in The Man Who Fell in Love with a Traffic Cone! (1996). In 1997, Crook was scouted by Bob Mortimer at the Edinburgh Festival. Soon he made his debut on television as a stand-up comedian on The 11 O'Clock Show (1998), then worked on other TV shows playing grotesques and exaggerated characters.
He shot to fame as Gareth Keenan, a quirky geek with a funny haircut in a TV hit comedy, The Office (2001), and earned himself a British Comedy Award nomination. He also was a member of the main cast of the BBC show "TV to Go" (2001)_. After that, Crook shared the screen with Al Pacino in The Merchant of Venice (2004), with Heath Ledger in The Brothers Grimm (2005), and with Johnny Depp in Finding Neverland (2004). Depp bonded with Crook during the making of 'Neverland' and it was Depp who recommended him for the part of Ragetti, his best-known role, in Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003) and the sequel Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (2006). Crook is also billed as Ragetti in the third installment of the 'Pirates' franchise, Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (2007).
After having spent about a decade on a stand-up comedian circuit, Crook made a perfect tool out of that character-actor face and added experience to his effortless style. It is in the 'Pirates' trilogy that Mackenzie Crook had showed his funniest and widest variety of emotions, effortlessly shifting his facial expression from a deep philosophical pensiveness to a grotesque excitement, and from a comically exaggerated fear to such a gleeful exuberance while removing his wooden eyeball. For that particular scene he was wearing two contact lenses sandwiched on top of each other.
In 2004, Crook appeared as Billy Bibbit opposite Christian Slater in the West End stage production of "One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest," which initially opened at Gielgud Theatre and then was shown at the Edinburgh Theatre Festival. At the same time, Crook has been writing a script for his own future project; he describes it as a period production that is set in London around the same period as the 'Pirates' movies.
Mackenzie Crook has been enjoying a happy family life with his wife, Lindsay, a former advertising executive and club owner, and their son Jude (born in 2003). He is fond of gardening and is also focused on maintaining an organic way of life. He resides with his family in Peter Sellers' old art-deco house in Muswell Hill, North London, England. - Tamsin Margaret Mary Greig is an English actress, narrator, and comedian. She played Fran Katzenjammer in the Channel 4 sitcom Black Books, Dr. Caroline Todd in the Channel 4 sitcom Green Wing, Beverly Lincoln in British-American sitcom Episodes, and Jackie Goodman in the Channel 4 sitcom Friday Night Dinner. Other roles include Alice Chenery in BBC One's comedy-drama series Love Soup, Debbie Aldridge in BBC Radio 4's soap opera The Archers, Miss Bates in the 2009 BBC version of Jane Austen's Emma, and Beth Hardiment in the 2010 film version of Tamara Drewe. In 2020, Greig starred as Anne Trenchard in Julian Fellowes' ITV series Belgravia.
Greig is also an acclaimed stage actress; she won a Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in 2007 for "Much Ado About Nothing", and was nominated again in 2011 and 2015 for her roles in "The Little Dog Laughed" and "Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown". - Actor
- Producer
- Director
Tom Riley born 5 April 1981 is an English actor, producer and director. Riley was born in Maidstone, Kent. He became involved in drama in his hometown at the age of four, and spent his school years writing and directing plays. He attended Maidstone Grammar School. He studied English literature and drama at the University of Birmingham, graduating in 2002 with first class honours.[He then set up a small theatre company before starting a three-year acting course at London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art completing his studies in 2005.- Guy Henry is a British stage and screen actor. He is best-known for his roles in Rome (2005) and John Adams (2008). He trained at RADA (1979-1981). He has done most of his work at the Royal Shakespeare Company. He has appeared in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 (2010) and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (2011). He does work on stage, TV, radio and film.
During a two year break from the BBC drama Holby City he learned to drive buses, sitting and passing the PCV test. He enjoys driving motor coaches when not acting. - Rudi has completed shooting the lead role in Wakefield, a new 8 part series for ABC, directed by Jocelyn Moorehouse for which he received an AACTA Best Leading Actor Nomination. He has also recently completed Role Play for Amazon, The Lazarus Project for Sky by Joe Barton, The Split season 3 by Abi Morgan and Great Expectations for Disney and BBC, produced by Ridley Scott and Tom Hardy. Most recently he completed The Collaborator playing the lead role of Kadian.
He grew up in Maidstone, Kent, attending Vinters Boys School and Invicta Grammar School. He then joined the National Youth Theatre. He was a former county table tennis player.
He has since performed in numerous productions at the National Theatre. In 2013 he played the male lead in David Greig's two-hander, The Events for the Young Vic. The Play won numerous awards and was voted The Guardian's best play of 2013.
He has since performed in plays at the Royal court and the Almeida Theatre. Notably Oresteia and Mary Stuart, the later of which was directed by Olivier Award winner Robert Icke. He played the male lead role of Mortimer alongside Juliet Stevenson and Lia Williams. Both Oresteia and Mary Stuart both opened to huge critical acclaim.
He performed in the record breaking production of Hamlet at the Barbican in 2015 playing Guilderstern alongside Benedict Cumberbatch. - Eloise was born in Kent and grew up in Essex, England, and as a teenager she signed up with Select Model Management. Eloise was featured in numerous fashion magazines including "Self Service", "V magazine", "W" Magazine and the British, Italian, Brazilian and Japanese "Vogue".
She moved to New York and signed up with Ford models and worked with the top photographers Inez and Vinoodh, fast becoming one of the top 50 models at the time, and working on several campaigns such as "Just Cavalli", "John Richmond"and "Gossard".
Eloise wanted more than modeling and decided to focus on acting, as it's always been her true passion. She worked on a few theatre plays, took drama classes and quickly landed her first TV role in "The Royals". After her first TV job, more TV/film work came rolling in and she played "Ramona" in "The Bastard Executioner", FX Networks (Fox) directed by Kurt Sutter (Sons of Anarchy).
She can be seen playing "Lena" in "Firecracker" released by Vertical Entertainment in theaters and on demand now, as well as "Rikki" in "Villain" (2020), airing on Netflix US, Sky and on Amazon Prime and she has a role in the success film 'The Hustle", (Anne Hathaway, Rebel Wilson).
Eloise is a keen and strong martial artist. She trains and teaches Muay Kickboxing, Escrima (Philippine Martial Art) and handles a number of weapons and she does her own stunts. Fitness and meditation keeps her in balance daily. - Steven Finch was born on 28 December 1961 in Maidstone, Kent, England, UK. He is an actor, known for Worlds Beyond (1986), John Wycliffe: The Morning Star (1984) and Brookside (1982).
- Actor
- Writer
- Producer
Shaun Williamson was born on November 4, 1965 in Maidstone, Kent, England. He is an actor, known for EastEnders (1985), Scoop (2009) and The Invention of Lying (2009). He also starred alongside Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant in Extras (2005) and Life's Too Short (2011). He married Melanie in 1997 and they divorced in 2014. Shaun also has three children.- Sophie Lovell Anderson was born in Maidstone, Kent, England, UK. She is an actress, known for The Bastard Executioner (2015), Social Suicide (2020) and Secret Diary of a Call Girl (2007).
- Actor
- Writer
Andrew Clover was born in 1970 in Maidstone, Kent, England, UK. He is an actor and writer, known for Outlaw (2007), Ashes to Ashes (2008) and Woundings (1998).- Actor
- Producer
- Director
Aaron Michael Sidwell (born 12 September 1988) is an English actor and singer. He is known for portraying the role of Steven Beale on the BBC soap opera EastEnders, originating the role of Michael Dork in Loserville in the West End and fronting his own pop group, The Boston Plan. He was also the first British actor to play Johnny in Green Day's American Idiot musical. Sidwell is a method actor, known for using the Stanislavski technique.- Liv Boeree was born on 18 July 1984 in Maidstone, Kent, England, UK. She is an actress, known for The Host (2020), FullTiltPoker.net Aussie Millions (2006) and Rational Animations: Youtube Series (2021).
- Anna Louise Mountford was born in Kent, UK, in 1973 to John Mountford a school teacher and head master and Joan Mountford. She is an only child.
Anna's first professional work was at age eighteen in the hit West End Musical "Starlight Express".
Her TV break through role came playing the lead (Suzanne Pryce) opposite Cockney bad boy Keith Allen in BBC prime time drama series Jack of Hearts (1999). This was followed by several years as a series regular on prime time hospital drama Holby City (1999).
She trained at The Bristol Old Vic Theatre School where she graduated as Student of the Year and has worked regularly in TV, on Stage and in Film since then.
She has a son from her first marriage.
Anna is living and working in Los Angeles. - Olivia Lumley was born in 1981 in Maidstone, Kent, England, UK. She is an actress, known for Outlaw (2007), Prime Suspect 7: The Final Act (2006) and Law & Order: UK (2009).
- Production Manager
Carol McGiffin was born on 18 February 1960 in Maidstone, Kent, England, UK. She is a production manager, known for Equinox (1986), Dispatches (1987) and Who Wants to Be a Millionaire (1998). She has been married to Mark Cassidy since 8 February 2018. She was previously married to Chris Evans.- Music Department
- Actor
- Composer
Guy Fletcher was born on 24 May 1960 in Maidstone, Kent, England, UK. He is an actor and composer, known for Polar (2019), Away We Go (2009) and The Princess Bride (1987).- Art Department
- Writer
- Actor
Tony Hart was born on 15 October 1925 in Maidstone, Kent, England, UK. He was a writer and actor, known for The George Mitchell Choir: Around the World in Song (1962), Saturday Special (1951) and The Lenny the Lion Show (1957). He was married to Jean Hart. He died on 18 January 2009 in Shamley Green, Surrey, England, UK.- Camera and Electrical Department
Neil Tomlin was born on 10 April 1978 in Maidstone, Kent, England, UK. He is known for Inception (2010), Edge of Tomorrow (2014) and Jurassic World Dominion (2022).- Samantha Giles was born on 2 July 1971 in Maidstone, Kent, England, UK. She is an actress, known for Emmerdale Farm (1972), Where the Heart Is (1997) and Coronation Street (1960). She is married to Sean Pritchard. They have two children. She was previously married to Nick Moore.
- David Cromarty was born on 15 March 1981 in Maidstone, Kent, England, UK. He is an actor, known for The Day That Broke (2017), Prizefighter: The Life of Jem Belcher (2022) and Letters of Service (2004).
- Ian Gardiner began his life on the boards at Maidstone Grammar School during the Second World War, when as a member of the school's dramatic society he was called upon to play the lead in Henry V at the age of just 14. At that time, the young Ian, who was also vice-captain of the School's 1st XV, lived with his mother, Dr Anna Gardiner, a GP in Lenham.
Mr Gardiner, doubtless hoping his career might continue to parallel another young actor just making his name in the same role - one Larry Olivier - determined on a life in the theatre. His lucky break came in 1954 when he secured the juvenile lead in a West End production called The Love Match, where he played the son of Thora Hird and Arthur Askey. The title of the play proved rather prophetic, as it was there he met and married the female understudy, Janet Davies, whose own career later included playing the role of Pike's mother in Dad's Army.
He continued to work until 2000 when osteoarthritis and a knee replacement operation forced his retirement. - Robert Wyndham was born on 18 September 1905 in Maidstone, Kent, England, UK. He was an actor, known for Against the Wind (1948), Champagne Charlie (1944) and Dead of Night (1945). He died on 19 August 1947 in Pevensey Bay, East Sussex, England, UK.
- Special Effects
- Art Department
- Actor
Adrian Getley was born on 30 April 1967 in Maidstone, Kent, England, UK. He is an actor, known for Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016), Event Horizon (1997) and 28 Days Later (2002).- Robert Fisk was born on 12 July 1946 in Maidstone, Kent, England, UK. He was a writer, known for This Is Not a Movie (2019), From Beirut to Bosnia (1993) and Notes to Eternity (2016). He was married to Lara Marlowe and Nelofer Pazira. He died on 30 October 2020 in Dublin, Ireland.
- Composer
- Music Department
- Producer
Andrew is an Olivier Nominated & award winning classically trained composer, producer & arranger. He is also the co-founder alongside Garry Hughes of the popular electronica/world music act Bombay Dub Orchestra.
In 2019 he scored the award-winning stage play adaption of 'Life of Pi' for The Crucible Theatre, Sheffield, UK - Directed by Max Webster. The play adapted by Lolita Chakrabarti opened on Broadway in March 2023 after a successful run in London's West-End at the Wyndham Theatre. The filmed version by NT Live released in cinemas in March 2023. He also scored 'Henry V' starring Kit Harington at the Donmar also directed by Max Webster. The film version by National Theatre Live released in April 2022.
His music often fuses orchestral with folk and traditional elements of music from the film's region. His most recent films are multiple National Award-winning 'Hamid' by Aijaz Khan, the Marathi feature 'Raakshas' by Dnyanesh Zoting, 'The Music Teacher' by Sarthak Das Gupta as well as 'Long Live Brij Mohan' by Nikhil Bhat. Andrew also scored Sturla Gunnarsson's feature doc 'Monsoon' which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival 2014 and won the Peoples Choice Award for the best Canadian Film of 2014. In 2015 he scored Katherine Kingland's feature documentary 'In Rajasthan' which has gone on to win awards around the festival circuit.
His debut feature score for the film 'Little Box Of Sweets' by writer/director Meneka Das won the Grand Jury Award for Best Music at The South Asian International Film Festival of New York in 2008. He has also produced several films including the award winning short 'La Lune Folle' distributed by Shorts TV and streaming on Prime in the UK & US and 2022's 'We've Only Just Begun'' also by Meneka Das and as a producer is developing a slate of feature projects.
His company Bohemia Junction Ltd exclusively represents Abbey Road Studios for India, the Grand Philharmonic Orchestra (London) as well as the FAME'S Skopje Studio Orchestra and has recorded the scores for dozen's of Indian films over the last nine years from all regions of India including scores by the likes of AR Rahman and Santhosh Narayanan among many others.
He is the Director of India's first ever Composers Lab which started in 2013 as part Mumbai Film Festival in association with Abbey Road, PRS for Music UK and supported by BMI. He also co-curates Song Writing Camps in India and the UK working alongside the likes of BMI and APRA.