ABOUT MARTIN FREEMAN
FULL NAME
Martin John C. Freeman
CHARACTERS
Dr. John Watson
DATE OF BIRTH
08 September 1971
PLACE OF BIRTH
Aldershot, Hampshire, UK
HEIGHT
5.58 ft (1.70 m)
FANMAIL
FAO: Martin Freeman
c/o Creative Artists Management
4th Floor, 111 Shoreditch High Street
London E1 6JN, UK
MORE
Martin Freeman is the youngest of five children, born to Geoff Freeman and Philomena R. Norris. His grandfather was a member of the Royal Army Medical Corps during the evacuation of Dunkirk in 1940, who was killed in a bombing raid two days before his unit was able to leave. Martin attended Salesian School, a Roman Catholic comprehensive school in Surrey, followed by the Central School of Speech and Drama in London.
From 1997, he appeared in small roles across theatre, film and television, including 'The Bill' and 'Casualty' - stalwarts for any young British actor - before landing his biggest and most recognisable role as Tim Canterbury in 'The Office' in 2001, alongside Ricky Gervais. In 2003, Martin gained the lead role in beloved ITV sitcom 'Hardware', set in a DIY shop. The series ran for two years. Also in 2003, he was part of the ensemble cast of the all-star Richard Curtis romantic comedy 'Love, Actually'. Martin was BAFTA nominated in 2004 for his performance in The Office Christmas special - which incidentally was the final episode of the series.
In 2005 Martin played Arthur Dent in the big screen adaptation of Douglas Adams' 'The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy', perhaps his single most prominent role to date.
A variety of cameos - in films such as 'Hot Fuzz (2007) - as well as the lead role in the Christmas family comedy 'Nativity!' and roles in a variety of short films continued until 2009, when he was cast as John Watson in a prospective pilot for an hour long drama - a modern day updating of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes.
While the series didn't proceed in this format, Martin returned to the role in early 2010 to film a series of three ninety minute long episodes. He was again BAFTA nominated for his performance, in the Best Supporting Actor [Drama] category, and this time he won.
Following the success of 'Sherlock' in 2010, Martin was finally cast by Peter Jackson in 'The Hobbit' following the protracted pre-production on the long awaited fantasy. After wrangling due to his filming commitments to a second series of 'Sherlock', Martin was confirmed in the part played by Ian Holm in 'The Lord of the Rings' Trilogy, and began an intense schedule that saw him spend nearly two years filming in New Zealand, before the release of three films based on the book in 2012, 2013 and 2014. Additional photography to complete the trilogy is expected to take place in New Zealand from May 2013.
Martin has also recently filmed a cameo appearance in the upcoming music industry comedy 'Svengali', provided his voice to Aardman Animations' 'The Pirates! In an Adventure with Scientists,' and has a major role in 'The World's End', the final film in The Three Flavours Trilogy by director Edgar Wright and writer/star Simon Pegg, alongside Nick Frost.
Martin John C. Freeman
CHARACTERS
Dr. John Watson
DATE OF BIRTH
08 September 1971
PLACE OF BIRTH
Aldershot, Hampshire, UK
HEIGHT
5.58 ft (1.70 m)
FANMAIL
FAO: Martin Freeman
c/o Creative Artists Management
4th Floor, 111 Shoreditch High Street
London E1 6JN, UK
MORE
Martin Freeman is the youngest of five children, born to Geoff Freeman and Philomena R. Norris. His grandfather was a member of the Royal Army Medical Corps during the evacuation of Dunkirk in 1940, who was killed in a bombing raid two days before his unit was able to leave. Martin attended Salesian School, a Roman Catholic comprehensive school in Surrey, followed by the Central School of Speech and Drama in London.
From 1997, he appeared in small roles across theatre, film and television, including 'The Bill' and 'Casualty' - stalwarts for any young British actor - before landing his biggest and most recognisable role as Tim Canterbury in 'The Office' in 2001, alongside Ricky Gervais. In 2003, Martin gained the lead role in beloved ITV sitcom 'Hardware', set in a DIY shop. The series ran for two years. Also in 2003, he was part of the ensemble cast of the all-star Richard Curtis romantic comedy 'Love, Actually'. Martin was BAFTA nominated in 2004 for his performance in The Office Christmas special - which incidentally was the final episode of the series.
In 2005 Martin played Arthur Dent in the big screen adaptation of Douglas Adams' 'The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy', perhaps his single most prominent role to date.
A variety of cameos - in films such as 'Hot Fuzz (2007) - as well as the lead role in the Christmas family comedy 'Nativity!' and roles in a variety of short films continued until 2009, when he was cast as John Watson in a prospective pilot for an hour long drama - a modern day updating of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes.
While the series didn't proceed in this format, Martin returned to the role in early 2010 to film a series of three ninety minute long episodes. He was again BAFTA nominated for his performance, in the Best Supporting Actor [Drama] category, and this time he won.
Following the success of 'Sherlock' in 2010, Martin was finally cast by Peter Jackson in 'The Hobbit' following the protracted pre-production on the long awaited fantasy. After wrangling due to his filming commitments to a second series of 'Sherlock', Martin was confirmed in the part played by Ian Holm in 'The Lord of the Rings' Trilogy, and began an intense schedule that saw him spend nearly two years filming in New Zealand, before the release of three films based on the book in 2012, 2013 and 2014. Additional photography to complete the trilogy is expected to take place in New Zealand from May 2013.
Martin has also recently filmed a cameo appearance in the upcoming music industry comedy 'Svengali', provided his voice to Aardman Animations' 'The Pirates! In an Adventure with Scientists,' and has a major role in 'The World's End', the final film in The Three Flavours Trilogy by director Edgar Wright and writer/star Simon Pegg, alongside Nick Frost.