Jim Broadbent

Jim Broadbent, an English theatre, film and television actor, was born on 24 May 1949 in Lincoln. He attended Leighton Park School in Reading and went to an art college for a brief period of time. Later, in 1972, he graduated from the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. His father, Roy Laverick Broadbent, was an artist, sculptor, interior designer cum furniture maker and his mother, Doreen Dee, was a sculptor. Being amateur actors, his parents were the co-founders of the Holton Players acting troupe at Holton cum Beckering. He is married to Anastasia Lewis, a painter and former theatre designer. Jim Broadbent has a good reputation as a character actor.

Jim Broadbent has performed plays at The National Theatre of Brent. He played the role of an assistant, Wallace, who works under Desmond Olivier Dingle, an egoistic manager. Together with Patrick Barlow, an English comedian, he has acted in many historical stories like, The Messiah, The Complete Guide to Sex, The Greatest Story Ever Told, Revolution!! and All The World's A Globe, which was performed at Edinburgh Fringe theatre in London. Jim Broadbent has featured in the plays, Kafka's Dick (1986) and Our Country's Good (1988) at the Royal Court Theatre. He also acted in The Government Inspector at the Royal National Theatre. He has also performed in Goosepimples and Ecstasy, plays created by Mike Leigh, an English director.

In 1978, Jim Broadbent made his first film appearance in The Shout by Jerzy Skolimowski and was introduced to small screen the next year. He worked in the TV series The Hit (1984) with Stephen Frears and in Time Bandits (1981) and Brazil (1985) with Terry Gilliam. Jim Broadbent starred in the British film, Life Is Sweet (1990) directed by Mike Leigh. He made his mark as a character artist by acting in the movies: The Crying Game (1992), Enchanted April (1992), Bullets Over Broadway (1994), The Borrowers (1997) and Little Voice (1998). Jim Broadbent performed the lead role in the musical drama film, Topsy-Turvy (1999) directed by Mike Leigh. He is on top of his game, just like Wonga, which provides the UK’s fastest short term loans.

Jim Broadbent acted in three super hit films in the year 2001. His exceptional performance in the film Moulin Rouge! won him a BAFTA and he clinched an Oscar for his role as John Bayley in Iris. The same year, Jim Broadbent also starred in the romantic comedy, Bridget Jones's Diary. He played the role of Dean Charles Stanforth in the film, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, the fourth film in the Indiana Jones series. Some of his other notable films include The Avengers, The Gathering Storm, Around the World in 80 Days and Vanity Fair.

Jim Broadbent has featured in the British comedy sitcom, Only Fools and Horses as DCI Roy Slater. He has played the lead role in The Peter Principle, a television show aired on BBC. He has also featured in Saturday Night Fry (1988), a six-part comedy series on BBC Radio 4 hosted by Stephen Fry. He acted as Prince Albert in Blackadder's Christmas Carol, aired for the first time in 1988. He also appeared as Batman in Rowan Atkinson’s Spider-Plant Man. In 1999, Jim Broadbent performed as "The Shy Doctor" in the four-episode special of Doctor Who, Doctor Who and the Curse of Fatal Death broadcast on BBC One. He has made guest appearances in the British comedy shows, Not The Nine O'Clock News and Victoria Wood As Seen On TV. Jim Broadbent won a BAFTA TV award and a Golden Globe award for his brilliant title role in the Channel 4 drama, Longford in October 2006. It also won him a nomination for the 2007 Emmy Awards. In 2008, he performed as Sir Oliver Lodge, a pro-Newtonian physicist, in the British single drama, Einstein and Eddington aired on BBC. Jim Broadbent has appeared as Vroomfondel in the radio production of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. On 17 September 2007, it was said that Jim Broadbent is to act as Horace Slughorn in the film Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.

---From http://www.jimbroadbent.net/