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Ewan McGregor
McGregor at the Venice Film Festival in 2009
Born	Ewan Gordon McGregor
Nationality	Scottish
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1993–present
Spouse(s)	Eve Mavrakis (1995–present; 3 children)

Ewan Gordon McGregor (born 31 March 1971) is a Scottish actor. He has had success in mainstream, indie and art house films. McGregor is perhaps best known for his roles as Mark Renton in the 1996 drama Trainspotting, the young Obi-Wan Kenobi in the Star Wars prequel trilogy, and Christian in the 2001 musical film Moulin Rouge!. He has also received critical acclaim for his starring roles in theatre productions of Guys and Dolls and Othello. McGregor was ranked No. 36 on Empire magazine's "The Top 100 Movie Stars of All Time" list.

Early life

Born in the Royal Infirmary in Perth, Scotland, McGregor was brought up in the nearby small town of Crieff, where he attended the independent Morrison's Academy. His mother, Carol Diane (née Lawson), is a teacher and school administrator, and his father, James Charles Stuart "Jim" McGregor, is a physical education teacher. He has an older brother, Colin, who is a former Tornado GR4 pilot in the Royal Air Force. He is the nephew of actor Denis Lawson and the late actress Sheila Gish, and the step-cousin of the late actress Lou Gish. McGregor studied drama at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama.

Career

Film and television

In 1993, six months prior to his graduation from Guildhall, McGregor won a leading role in Dennis Potter's six-part Channel 4 series Lipstick on Your Collar. That same year, he made his film debut in Bill Forsyth's Being Human. The following year, McGregor earned critical praise for his performance in the thriller Shallow Grave, for which he won an Empire Award, and which marked his first collaboration with director Danny Boyle. His international breakthrough followed in 1996 with the role of heroin addict Mark Renton in Boyle's Trainspotting, an adaptation of Irvine Welsh's novel of the same name.

McGregor played the male romantic lead in the British film Little Voice (1998), and in the Hollywood films Moulin Rouge! (2001) and Down With Love (2003). He received critical acclaim for his portrayal of an amoral drifter mixed up with murder in the drama Young Adam (2003), which co-starred Tilda Swinton.

In 2005, McGregor lent his voice to two successful animated features; he played a robot named Rodney Copperbottom in Robots, which also featured the voices of Halle Berry and Robin Williams, and he voiced the lead character in Gary Chapman's Valiant, alongside Jim Broadbent, John Cleese and Ricky Gervais. Also in 2005, McGregor played two roles---one a clone of the other---opposite Scarlett Johansson in Michael Bay's The Island, and he appeared in Marc Forster's Stay, a psychological thriller co-starring Naomi Watts and Ryan Gosling.

McGregor was offered the role of James Bond in the 2006 reboot Casino Royale, but he turned it down because he feared becoming typecast. In 2006, he narrated the Fulldome production Astronaut, created for the National Space Centre. That same year, he also narrated the STV show JetSet, a six-part series following the lives of student pilots and navigators at RAF Lossiemouth as they undergo a gruelling six-month course learning to fly the Tornado GR4, the RAF's primary attack aircraft.

In 2007, McGregor starred opposite Colin Farrell in the Woody Allen film Cassandra's Dream. In 2009, he co-starred with Jim Carrey in I Love You Phillip Morris and appeared in Amelia alongside Hilary Swank. Also in 2009, he portrayed Camerlengo Patrick McKenna in Angels & Demons, the film adaptation of Dan Brown's novel of the same name. McGregor is scheduled to co-star with Daniel Craig in Dan Harris' upcoming film adaptation of Glen Duncan's novel I, Lucifer.

Star Wars

In 1999, McGregor starred in the blockbuster Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace as the young Obi-Wan Kenobi, a role originally made famous by Sir Alec Guinness in the original Star Wars trilogy. He reprised his role for the subsequent prequels Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones (2002) and Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith (2005). McGregor took very special care---especially in Revenge of the Sith---to ensure that his portrayal of Obi-Wan's mannerisms, speech timings, and accents closely resembled Alec Guinness' version. By appearing in the Star Wars films, he continued a family tradition of sorts: his uncle, Denis Lawson, had played Wedge Antilles in the original trilogy.

Trademarks

McGregor is one of few major male actors to have repeatedly done full-frontal nudity. He has appeared nude in many of his films, including Trainspotting (1996), The Pillow Book (1996), Velvet Goldmine (1998), and Young Adam (2003). Additionally, McGregor has played gay or bisexual characters in The Pillow Book, Velvet Goldmine, Scenes of a Sexual Nature (2006), and I Love You Phillip Morris (2009).

Theatre

From June 2005 to April 2007, McGregor starred alongside Jane Krakowski, Douglas Hodge, and Jenna Russell in the original Donmar Warehouse production of Guys and Dolls at the Piccadilly Theatre in London. He played the leading role of Sky Masterson, made famous by Marlon Brando in the film of the same name. McGregor received the LastMinute.com award for Best Actor for his performance in 2005, and he was nominated for a Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Musical in 2007.

From December 2007 to February 2008, McGregor starred as Iago in Othello at the Donmar Warehouse alongside Chiwetel Ejiofor as Othello and Kelly Reilly as Desdemona. He reprised the role on BBC Radio 3 in May 2008.

Personal life

Marriage and children

On 22 July 1995, in a village in France, McGregor married Eve Mavrakis, a French production designer, whom he met while filming a guest appearance on the British television series Kavanagh QC in 1994. They have three daughters, Clara Mathilde (born February 1996), Esther Rose (born 7 November 2001), and Jamiyan (born June 2001), whom they adopted from Mongolia in April 2006. McGregor has a heart and dagger tattoo of the names of his wife and daughters on his right arm. The family currently resides in Los Angeles, California, after moving from North London.

Long Way motorcycle journeys

A keen motorcyclist since his youth, McGregor undertook a marathon international motorcycle trip with his best friend Charley Boorman and cameraman Claudio von Planta in 2004. From mid-April to the end of July, they travelled from London to New York via central Europe, Ukraine, Russia (including Siberia), Kazakhstan, Mongolia, and Canada on BMW R1150GS Adventure motorcycles, for a cumulative distance of 22,345 miles (35,960 km). The trip formed the basis of a television series and a best-selling book, both called Long Way Round.

The Long Way Round team reunited in 2007 for another motorcycle trip from John o' Groats in Scotland to Cape Town in South Africa. The journey, entitled Long Way Down, lasted from 12 May until 5 August 2007. McGregor's brother Colin joined the motorcycle team during the early stages of the Long Way Down journey, and his father Jim also rode on sections of both Long Way Round and Long Way Down.

In September 2010, Charley Boorman stated that the third installment of the Long Way series is planned for 2011, riding up through South America.

Charity work

McGregor is involved in charity work, including with UNICEF and GO Campaign. During the Long Way Round journey in 2004, McGregor and his travelling companions took time out to see some of UNICEF's work in Ukraine, Kazakhstan, and Mongolia, and during the Long Way Down trip in 2007, he and Charley Boorman did work for UNICEF in Africa. McGregor hosted the annual Hollywood gala for GO Campaign in 2009 and 2010. He has also worked with the Children's Hospice Association Scotland, as featured in Long Way Down. McGregor and his wife are Patrons of the Zoological Society of London.

Health issues

In 2007, on an episode of Parkinson, McGregor stated that he had given up alcohol after a period where he was arguably a functioning alcoholic, and that he had not had a drink in seven years. In 2008, he had a cancerous mole removed from underneath his right eye.

Filmography

Discography

• "Choose Life" with PF Project, Trainspotting #2: Music from the Motion Picture, Vol. #2, 1997.
• "TV Eye" with Wylde Ratttz, Velvet Goldmine: Music from the Original Motion Picture, 1999.
• "Come What May" with Nicole Kidman, Moulin Rouge! Music from Baz Luhrmann's Film, 2001.
• "Elephant Love Medley" with Nicole Kidman, Moulin Rouge! Music from Baz Luhrmann's Film, 2001.
• "Your Song" with Alessandro Safina, Moulin Rouge! Music from Baz Luhrmann's Film, 2001.
• "Here's To Love" with Renée Zellweger, Down With Love: Music from and Included in the Motion Picture, 2003.
• "The Sweetest Gift", Unexpected Dreams – Songs From the Stars, 2006.

References

1. "Empire Magazine's Top 100 Movie Stars 1997". amiannoying.com. Retrieved 26 March 2011.
2. "Ewan McGregor biography". tiscali.co.uk. Retrieved 15 January 2008.
3. "Ewan McGregor Biography (1971–)". filmreference.com. Retrieved 15 January 2008.
4. ^ Spencer, Ben (18 September 2006). "Ewan felt the force of my lightsaber". Daily Record.
5. ^ "Profile – Ewan McGregor". Hello!. Retrieved 9 July 2008.
6. ^ "Hello Magazine Filmography – Ewan McGregor". Hello Magazine. Retrieved 9 July 2008.
7. "Empire Awards, UK: 1996". IMDB.com. Retrieved 9 July 2008.
8. ^ "Ewan McGregor Biography". Yahoo!. Retrieved 9 July 2008.
9. Slater, Matthew (9 October 2003). "Young Adam's dark tale". BBC. Retrieved 9 July 2008.
10. Dawtrey, Adam (21 September 2003). "Thomas' distrib misstep". Variety. Retrieved 9 July 2008.
11. Hartlaub, Peter (11 March 2005). "It's a bucket of bolts that rattles agreeably. Robots mingles brass, laughs and, yes, Robin Williams". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 9 July 2008.
12. Holden, Stephen (19 August 2005). "Thse Brave Pigeons Are Doing Their Part for the War". New York Times. Retrieved 9 July 2008.
13. Clinton, Paul (22 July 2005). "'Island' just interesting enough". CNN. Retrieved 9 July 2008.
14. Dargis, Manohla (21 October 2005). "Something Is Happening, but Who Knows What It Is?". New York Times. Retrieved 9 July 2008.
15. Stansfield, Robert (23 October 2006). "007 role offered to Ewan". Daily Mirror.
16. "Ground School". STV. 27 July 2007. Retrieved 10 July 2008.
17. Moore, Roger (29 January 2008). ""Dream" gives wakeup call to Woody Allen". The Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved 9 July 2008.
18. "I, Lucifer (2009)". Internet Movie Database. Amazon.com. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |citedate= ignored (help)
19. Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith – Web Documentaries of Revenge of the Sith DVD (DVD). 20th Century Fox. 2005.
20. Star Wars Trilogy (DVD). 20th Century Fox. 2004.
21. ^ Farndale, Nigel (13 September 2003). "McGregor the brave". Telegraph. Retrieved 9 July 2008.
22. "Guys and Dolls musical". Guys and Dolls the Musical. Archived from the original on 4 July 2008. Retrieved 9 July 2008.
23. Singh, Anita (25 October 2005). "McGregor wins theatre award". The Scotsman.
24. "The nominees and winners of the 2006 Laurence Olivier Awards". The Society of London Theatre. Archived from the original on 5 February 2008. Retrieved 15 January 2008.
25. ^ "Ewan McGregor returns to London stage for minimum wage". International Herald Tribune. 12 May 2007.
26. "Ewan McGregor to Play Iago in Othello at London's Donmar". Broadway.com. 11 May 2007.
27. Stephen M. Silverman and Pete Norman (12 April 2006). "Ewan McGregor Adopts a Daughter". People. Retrieved 9 July 2008.
28. "Ewan McGregor Tattoo Pictures". Ready2Beat. Retrieved 22 February 2011.
29. "Long Ride to Self Discovery" (PDF). Telegraph. Long Way Around. 14 October 2004. Archived from the original (PDF) on 28 May 2008. Retrieved 9 July 2008.
30. ^ "Ewan McGregor gets back on his bike – this time for BBC Two". BBC. 15 May 2007. Retrieved 23 January 2008.
31. Ewan McGregor, Charley Boorman, David Alexanian, and Russ Malkin (18 October 2004). "Long Way Round". Long Way Round. 42 minutes in. Sky One.
32. Ewan McGregor, Charley Boorman, David Alexanian, and Russ Malkin (28 October 2007). "Long Way Down". Long Way Down. BBC Two.
33. C Taylor (17 November 2007). "Ewan McGregor Admits To Drinking Problem". Entertainment Wise. Retrieved 9 July 2008.
34. "McGregor fine after cancer scare". BBC. 22 April 2008. Retrieved 22 April 2008.

Further reading

• Adams, Billy. Ewan McGregor: The Unauthorized Biography. Overlooks Press, 1999. ISBN 0879517042
• Bassom, David. Ewan McGregor: An Illustrated Story. Hamlyn, 1999. ISBN 0600596532
• Jones, Veda Boyd. Ewan McGregor. Facts On File Inc., 1999. ISBN 0791055019
• Nickson, Chris. Ewan McGregor: An Unauthorized Biography. Macmillan, 1999. ISBN 0312969104
• Pendreigh, Brian. Ewan McGregor. Thunder's Mouth Press, 1999. ISBN 1560252391
• Robb, Brian J. Ewan McGregor: From Junkie to Jedi. Plexus, 1999. ISBN 0859652769

External links

• Ewan McGregor at IMDb
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• Use British English from January 2011
• Use dmy dates from January 2011
• Alumni of the Guildhall School of Music and Drama
• European Film Awards winners (people)
• Long-distance riding
• People from Crieff
• People from Perthshire
• People self-identifying as alcoholics
• Scottish actors
• Scottish expatriates in the United States
• Scottish film actors
• Scottish male singers
• Scottish musical theatre actors
• Scottish stage actors
• Scottish television actors
• Scottish voice actors
• Skin cancer survivors
• 1971 births
• Living people