Hall of Fame: Gary Oldman

Made in England

Born in New Cross, south East London in 1958, Gary Oldman has had an extraordinary career, acting, directing and writing a huge range of of outstanding work. Early appearances in films like Mike Leigh’s Meantime in 1984, opposite Tim Roth and Phil Daniels, showed a pent-up anger and an obviously mercurial talent. As Coxy the skinhead, Oldman was in turns dangerous, stupid and utterly compelling. Strong leads and film-stealing cameos followed: Sid Vicious in Sid and Nancy in 1986; Joe Orton in Prick Up Your Ears a year later. With the wonderfully psychotic Drexl in True Romance and the murderous Stansfield in Leon Oldman became a star in the States, and even when delivering cheesy bad guy roles in films like Lost In Space, Oldman was convincing.

His semi-autobiographical wince-as-you-watch Nil By Mouth in 1997 revealed a raw writing and directing talent, and gave Ray Winstone and Kathy Burke their meatiest roles to date. Recently, Oldman has shone in more mainstream parts: Sirius in the Harry Potter films and Jim Gordon in Dark Knight, but the edge remains. We look forward to his take on George Smiley in the up-coming Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy and can only hope Guns, Girls and Gambling lives up to its title. If you want to celebrate something English,  look no further than Oldman, a carved-in-stone original and an honoured member of the Maxim Hall of Fame.

As Bex in The Firm