Hugh Laurie
Hugh Laurie (born June 11, 1959) is a British comedian, actor, and author best known for his television work, especially his double act, A Bit of Fry and Laurie, with Stephen Fry.
He was born and raised in Oxford, where he attended the Dragon School (a famous prep school), before going on to Eton and then to Selwyn College, Cambridge, where he read Archaeology and Anthropology. His father had won an Olympic gold medal in rowing, and he himself was a rower at school and university, taking part in the Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race of 1980.
During his first year at university, Laurie dated Emma Thompson, now a well-known actress. He also joined the famous Cambridge Footlights, which has been the starting point for many successful British comedians. When Footlights brought their end-of-year revue to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 1980, Laurie met Stephen Fry. In his final year, 1981, he was the president of the Footlights Club, while Emma Thompson was the vice-president.
Fry and Laurie had several series of their own as a double act, as well as starring in the television series Jeeves and Wooster, an adaptation of P. G. Wodehouse's Jeeves stories. Laurie played Jeeves' employer, the amiable twit Bertie Wooster, a role for which his talent as a pianist and singer came in handy.
However, like Fry, Laurie has branched out into a solo career as an actor in both comic roles (such as the Blackadder series with Rowan Atkinson as Prince George and Lieutenant George) and also had more serious roles, such as his parts in the films, Peter's Friends and Sense and Sensibility. Other film appearances include Maybe Baby and Stuart Little. In 1996, his book The Gun Seller, a humorous novel of suspense, was published; it has become a best seller. Laurie is currently working on a second novel, The Paper Soldier.
Since 2002, Laurie has been a familiar face in a range of television dramas, guest starring that year in several episodes of the first season of the spy thriller series Spooks on BBC One. In 2003 he starred in and also directed ITV's comedy-drama series Fortysomething. He guest-starred in the Family Guy episode "One if By Clam, Two if By Sea."
Although previously best known for playing British characters, Laurie is currently starring as the cantankerous American physician Dr. Gregory House in the popular Fox medical drama, House, M.D.. In July 2005, he was nominated for an Emmy Award for this role.
Hugh Laurie married the former Jo Green in June 1989, and they live in north London with their two sons and daughter.
External links
- Hugh Laurie FAQ site, containing extensive information, articles, photos on Laurie's life and work
- hughlaurie.co.uk A fan site
- Hugh Laurie Forum Hugh Laurie Forum
- P.G. Wodehouse Hugh Laurie as Bertie Wooster
- Hugh Laurie at IMDb
- hughlaurie.net Another fan site