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As Gielgud's career saw him play every major Shakespearean role on stage, it is a wonder he ever found the time for the screen. The fact is that even if Gielgud had only ever acted in films, he would still be considered one of our all time greats. The grand-nephew of stage legend Ellen Terry, he was born in 1904. An avid theatre fan throughout his youth, he was determined to become an actor and by the time he reached his mid 20s he was playing Hamlet and Romeo in London's West End to rave reviews. Gielgud began acting on the big screen in the 1920s, and during his prolific career he played in everything from Welles' Chimes At Midnight to Arthur (he won an Oscar for his performance as Dudley Moore's butler). His last film was Shekar Kapur's Elizabeth in 1998. He was knighted in 1953, and a theatre was named after him on his 90th birthday.
