Colin Firth

Background

Actor Colin Andrew Firth was born in 1960 in Grayshott, Hampshire, England. Both his parents were academics at the University of Winchester; his mother, Shirley Jean, was a comparative religion lecturer and his father, David Norman Lewis Firth, worked as a history lecturer and an education officer in the Nigerian Government at the time. Firth’s family moved around regularly during his childhood, due to his father’s occupation. For a while, they lived in Nigeria, then in the U.S., until his parents eventually decided to move back to the United Kingdom. Firth is the oldest of three siblings; he has a sister and a brother who are also actors. Even though both his parents worked in academia, Firth never showed great interest in his studies. Still, he attended Barton Peveril Sixth Form College, where he fell in love with English literature, inspired by his teacher, Penny Edwards.

When Firth graduated from high school, he had already decided to work towards a professional acting career. He joined the National Youth Theatre and then studied at the Drama Centre in London. Firth worked on different plays until his film debut in 1984 with the adaptation of the play “Another Country,” but didn’t have his major breakthrough until many years later. In 1995, he was cast in the role of Mr. Darcy in a T.V. adaptation of the famous Jane Austen novel “Pride and Prejudice.” This role gave Firth greater recognition and the push he needed in his career. From there, he started getting more prominent roles. He acted in successful films such as “The English Patient,” “Shakespeare In Love,” “Bridget Jones’s Diary,” and “Love Actually.” In 2010, Firth received his first Academy Award for Best Actor, for his outstanding portrayal of King George VI in the movie “The King’s Speech.”

In 1990, Firth had a son called William Joseph Firth. William followed in his father’s footsteps and became an actor. In 1997, Firth married Italian Livia Giuggioli; they had two children, Luca and Matteo. The couple divorced in 2019.