- Joined
- Feb 26, 2014
Oh yes we did. She rocks, she is my fav. british actress together wih Glenda Jackson.
The first time I saw Maggie Smith in a movie was "The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie". She was simply fantastic and the movies is great too.
The Greatness of British Actors/Actresses.
- Thread starter BusyMom
- Start date
Oh yes we did. She rocks, she is my fav. british actress together wih Glenda Jackson.
The first time I saw Maggie Smith in a movie was "The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie". She was simply fantastic and the movies is great too.
Liam Neeson. His's Michael Collins is my fav movie alongside Schindler's List. Apart from married to late actress Natasha Richardson, he and Helen Mirren were partners in the 80s. I'm not so much like his new take on the action star lately.
Rik Mayall, great comedian from Blackadder passed away today at the age of 56. RIP. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obi...ry.html?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter
That is some splendid movie, I agree.
If you can ever find an obscure little film called Hot Millions, with Peter Ustinov and Maggie Smith, take a look. It's what they used to call a "caper" movie, meaning a light-hearted plan to steal something impossible. (Kind of like How to Steal a Million with Peter O'Toole and Audrey Hepburn, which is a bit easier to find and is equally charming.) Maggie Smith also dominated all her scenes in The VIPs, which was supposedly a Richard Burton/Elizabeth Taylor movie. (A melodrama, but worth a glimpse to see Smith.)
- Joined
- Nov 13, 2012
I'd have mentioned Liam Neeson for sure, but I thought he was Irish. But... checking on IMDb I see he's Northern Irish, so that means he does qualify. Just explaining this as I don't want anyone to think I'd make such an omission else.
(To make sure I just checked on Cillian Murphy as well, but I didn't make a mistake about him it seems - but he was good too. )The demographic of this region is pretty confusing. I thought, apart from Isle of Man and Channel Islands, only NI is not part of the UK. We need CaroLiza to confirm the facts though. Anyway one of my clients told me that they dropped the term Great Britain since the early 2000. Only using United Kingdom officially.
JK Rowling recently donate 1m pound for the campaign against Independence of Scotland (more confusing). Political speaking, they want to break free from the unity but in many sports they campaign to be group together. :think:
JK Rowling recently donate 1m pound for the campaign against Independence of Scotland (more confusing). Political speaking, they want to break free from the unity but in many sports they campaign to be group together. :think:
Wrong way around, BusyMom. Northern Ireland is the part of Ireland that is part of the U.K., where as the rest of Ireland, or Eire, is a sovereign nation. Northern Ireland, if I remember correctly, is the original Irish province/county of Ulster, and it remained with England when the rest of Ireland broke away to form a separate country, the Republic of Ireland. Carol_LizaFan will supply the most accurate details.
As you see, you're right about the demographic of the region being confusing. I think Man and the Channel Islands are part of the U.K. Be that as it may, a lot of actors and actresses from around the British Commonwealth (and from parts of Ireland, which is not a Commonwealth member, I think) have trained in England and are part of the English theater and/or film tradition.
- Joined
- Aug 2, 2011
I loved Leslie Howard's acting! Subtle, yet meaningful. His acting skills were immense and I must have rewatched The Scarlet Pimpernel three or four times many years ago. So sad that he died so soon and tragically. 
It is especially ironic that the plane he was in was shot by the Nazis in the 1940s while his last films were about fighting against Nazi Germany.
It is especially ironic that the plane he was in was shot by the Nazis in the 1940s while his last films were about fighting against Nazi Germany.
I tends to do that a lot. Up until the year 2000, I thought Isle of Wight is independence run.
Hey, most people don't even know where the Isle of Wight is. You're doing fabulously well, believe me.
Thanks for your encouragement Olympia.
Coincidentally there are a big festival at the Isle of Wight this week with big names as the headliners (Red Hot, Suede, Boy George...).
http://www.isleofwightfestival.com/
Can't believe not that long ago it was my kind of scenes. Now I'm talking about RHS Chelsea Flower Show. :think:
- Joined
- Oct 25, 2012
Don't worry - half time people in Northern Ireland don't know which country they are in! So, is it any wonder people from other countries get confused about us!
The full name of the UK is "The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland".
The UK is currently made up of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
The Isle of Wright is a county in England.
The Scilly Isles are part of Cornwall, a county in England.
The Shetland Islands are a county in Scotland.
The Orkney Islands are a county in Scotland.
The Outer and Inner Hebrides are also part of Scotland, but are divided between different counties.
Anglesey is a county in Wales.
Rathlin Island is part of Co. Antrim, a county in Northern Ireland.
The Isle of Man is a crown dependency.
The Channel Islands are crown dependencies as well.
Southern Ireland is an independent Republic.
Hope this clears everything up.
Back to actors and actresses.
Liam Neeson (from Ballymena), who has already been mentioned, is probably Northern Ireland's most famous actor.
Jimmy Nesbitt (from Broughshane) has been well known on British TV for the past decade (in "Cold Feet" and "Murphy's Law"), but he is about to become even more famous as he plays one of the main characters in "The Hobbit" films.
But, there is also Kenneth Branagh (Belfast). Foreigners probably know him best for being married to English actress Emma Thompson (yes, of "Nanny McPhee" fame!). He first became famous playing the title character in the Billy plays, a series of TV plays from the 1980's. He is currently playing Kurt Wallender in the British adaptation of the books.
Kenneth's Dad in the Billy plays was played by Belfast actor Jimmy Ellis, who died a few months ago. Jimmy Ellis was the first actor from Northern Ireland to use his real accent on British TV. He is best known for playing Bert Lynch in "Z Cars"
Charlie Lawson, who played Jim McDonald in "Coronation Street" for many years, is from Enniskillen, where my Auntie lives.
Since we are now onto soaps, Patrick Harvey, who played Connor O'Neill in "Neighbours", is from Andersonstown, a suburb of Belfast.
I haven't mentioned anybody from my own county yet. And the only person I can think of is Birdy Sweeney, who was from 10 miles down the road from me in Dungannon (He died in 1999). He is best known for playing Eamon Byrne in BBC drama "Ballykissangel". He was also in the Billy plays.
Can't really think of many actresses from up here. The most famous I can think of is Bronagh Gallagher, from Londonderry. She is best known for being in "The Commitments", but was also in the Star Wars film "The Phantom Menace"
But, there is also Jayne Wisener, from Jenna McCorkell's home town of Coleraine. She became known for her brief stint in "The Inbetweeners", but recently was playing one of the main characters in local drama "6Degrees". Oh, and she was in the "Sweeny Todd" film.
For Southern actors, the most famous of all time, Peter O'Toole (don't care what anybody says, he was Irish!), has already been mentioned.
But, what about Maureen O'Hara (from Dublin). She is bound to be the most famous Irish actress of all time.
The most famous Irish actor at the moment is Colin Farrell (from Dublin). Although he is now a major Hollywood actor, to me he will forever be Danny Byrne from "Ballykissangel".
"Ballykissangel" starred the cream of Irish acting from the past 2 decades.
There was Dervla Kirwan (from Dublin), who has been in so many dramas over the years.
Victoria Smurfit (from Dublin) has gone on to star in quite a few dramas (eg. "Trial and Retribution" and "Cold Feet") and films.
Niall Tóibín (from Cork) is best known as a comedian, but also did quite a few dramas, as well as being in "Veronica Guerin".
Although she was one of the few of her generation that was not in BallyK, another Dublin actress that has been in a lot of dramas is Niamh Cussack. I can't be bothered listing them all here, but if you look Niamh up, you will find that most of her family also went into acting.
So, I hope you have enjoyed this brief foray into the world of Irish acting.
CaroLiza_fan
- Joined
- Feb 18, 2014
^^^ CaroLiza_fan, I was wondering if anyone was going to mention Kenneth Branagh. 
His Henry V is one of my all-time favorite films. Also love his version of Much Ado About Nothing (with Emma Thompson) and still feel bad that they split up.
Re: Maggie Smith, in my mind she'll always be "Maggie the Magnificent."
My first visit to this thread, but definitely not the last. What fun!
His Henry V is one of my all-time favorite films. Also love his version of Much Ado About Nothing (with Emma Thompson) and still feel bad that they split up. Re: Maggie Smith, in my mind she'll always be "Maggie the Magnificent."
My first visit to this thread, but definitely not the last. What fun!
- Joined
- Feb 18, 2014
The mention of House - which I haven't seen (yet) - brings us nicely and neatly, methinks to... Hugh Laurie.
Anyone who has not yet seen Jeeves and Wooster should do themselves the favour of remedying this strange omission forthwith:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eqvddpX1uYA
Marvellous.
ITA! Hugh Laurie is beyond brilliant as Bertie Wooster, same for Stephen Fry as Jeeves. That series is a total
for me.I haven't yet watched the American version of "House of Cards" b/c got spoiled from the UK original many years ago. Ian Richardson's performance is so chilling....
- Joined
- Feb 26, 2014
Never seen these movies. Thanks for the tips, and if you have more please do write. I'm a fanatic of old movies, small movies, etc.
A Private Function is also fun movie. She is delightful to watch.
- Joined
- Oct 25, 2012
^^^ CaroLiza_fan, I was wondering if anyone was going to mention Kenneth Branagh.
Re: Maggie Smith, in my mind she'll always be "Maggie the Magnificent."
My first visit to this thread, but definitely not the last. What fun!
Awww thanks for the appreciation, skatedreamer.
Kenneth Branagh is definitely best known for acting in Shakespeare adaptations. I have to be honest, I have never been a big fan of Shakespeare. So, I haven’t seen too much of Kenneth’s work.
Branagh is like a lot of actors from over here in that he continued to tread the boards on a regular basis after becoming well known in front of the camera. So, when looking through a list of things he had been in, I wasn’t sure how many of his performances were on screen and how many were on stage!
So, I decided to play it on the safe side and just skipped Shakespeare completely.
Another actor from Northern Ireland that is best known for his work on the stage (and that is the reason I didn’t mention him in my comment last night) is Adrian Dunbar, from Enniskillen. He has also had a lot of TV and film appearances, but I haven't seen any of them, so I don't know how big the roles were.
This morning, I was trying to think of more actresses from Northern Ireland, and I realised that I had missed Coleraine’s other famous young actress – Bronagh Waugh. Bronagh is best known for her 4 year stint in the soap “Hollyoaks”, but she has since been in “The Fall”.
And this led me to remember about the other person from Northern Ireland that became famous through appearing in “Hollyoaks” – Gerard McCarthy (from Belfast). He also went on to appear in “The Fall”. Gerard is a sort of a protégé of Kenneth Branagh.
I don’t watch “Hollyoaks”, so the only actors/actresses in it that I know are those ones that have become well known (such as Jennifer Metcalfe, Gemma Merna, Gary Lucy, all from England). There have been others from this island that have been in it, but I don’t know who they are.
So far, I have just been mentioning any Irish actors/actresses that pop into my head. Let’s face it, “Hollyoaks” isn’t exactly where you find “great” acting! But Neeson, Branagh, Nesbitt and Dunbar are definitely the greatest of Northern Ireland’s acting stars.
By the way, returning to English actors, have you heard that Colin Firth has pulled out of the new film about Paddington Bear?
Colin was supposed to be doing the voice for the title character, but felt he just couldn’t get the voice right. (Maybe I’m getting confused, but I didn’t think Paddington spoke in the TV series. So, how would they know what he was supposed to sound like…?
)Anyway, Colin had a discussion with the makers of the film, and they decided to have a conscious uncoupling…
CaroLiza_fan
By the way, returning to English actors, have you heard that Colin Firth has pulled out of the new film about Paddington Bear?
Colin was supposed to be doing the voice for the title character, but felt he just couldn’t get the voice right. (Maybe I’m getting confused, but I didn’t think Paddington spoke in the TV series. So, how would they know what he was supposed to sound like…?
Anyway, Colin had a discussion with the makers of the film, and they decided to have a conscious uncoupling…
CaroLiza_fan
Paddington is a very insecure and stubborn at the same time. Colin is definitely very polite but stubbornness might not sound like him. 
It is very hard to do the voice-over for the well-loved character though. Like No one can beat Ringo Starr as The Thomas the Tank Engine. The later versions sounded wrong some how. I haven't got through both of your posts due to lack of sleep and work commitments. I'm sure your know why.
But I will try in the next few days.Thank you anyway for your inputs regarding the (confusing) GB. I definitely will get it wrong again in the future.
- Joined
- Feb 18, 2014
Any Harry Potter fans out there?
I'm asking because the cast of each HP film is essentially a "Who's Who" of British theater, too many to name them all. For me, some of the most memorable were:
Dumbledore -- Richard Harris, then Michael Gambon. Gambon was good but Harris was simply the quintessential Dumbledore.
Prof McGonagall -- the one and only Maggie Smith.
Hagrid -- Robbie Coltrane. Is there anyone else on earth who could have played the part quite that well?
"Mad Eye" Moody -- Brendan Gleeson. Such crazed eccentricity...
And...Imelda Staunton, whose odiously sanctimonious Dolores Umbridge totally made my skin crawl.
Wonderful as the films were, they wouldn't have been nearly as good if it hadn't been for those extraordinary actors. So glad they all committed to the project and stuck with it through completion of the series!
I'm asking because the cast of each HP film is essentially a "Who's Who" of British theater, too many to name them all. For me, some of the most memorable were:
Dumbledore -- Richard Harris, then Michael Gambon. Gambon was good but Harris was simply the quintessential Dumbledore.
Prof McGonagall -- the one and only Maggie Smith.
Hagrid -- Robbie Coltrane. Is there anyone else on earth who could have played the part quite that well?
"Mad Eye" Moody -- Brendan Gleeson. Such crazed eccentricity...
And...Imelda Staunton, whose odiously sanctimonious Dolores Umbridge totally made my skin crawl.
Wonderful as the films were, they wouldn't have been nearly as good if it hadn't been for those extraordinary actors. So glad they all committed to the project and stuck with it through completion of the series!
Similar threads
