Birthday's to share this week : 29th May-4th June 2016

Do you celebrate your Birthday this week?

Duncan Jones does on 30th May - check out my tribute to this Birthday Boy turning 45, at the end of this feature.

Do you also share your birthday with a well known, highly regarded & famous Actor or Actress; share your special day with a Director, Producer, Writer, Cinematographer, Singer/Songwriter or Composer of repute; or share an interest in whoever might notch up another year in the coming seven days? Then, look no further! Whilst there will be too many to mention in this small but not insignificant and beautifully written and presented Blog, here are the more notable and noteworthy icons of the big screen, and the small screen, that you will recognise, and that you might just share your birthday with in the week ahead. If so, Happy Birthday to you from Odeon Online!

Sunday 29th May

• Annette Bening - Born 1958, turns 58 - Actress  
• Rupert Everett - Born 1959, turns 57 - Actor | Producer | Writer
• Ted Levine - Born1957, turns 59 - Actor
• Danny Elfman - Born 1953, turns 63 - Composer | Songwriter | Actor 

Monday 30th May

• Duncan Jones - Born 1971, turns 45 - Director | Writer 
• Harry Enfield - Born 1961, turns 55 - Actor | Writer | Producer | Director    

Tuesday 31st May

• Clint Eastwood - Born 1930, turns 86 - Actor | Director | Producer | Composer | Singer | Songwriter
• Tom Berenger - Born 1949, turns 67 - Actor | Producer | Writer
• Colin Farrell - Born 1976, turns 40 - Actor | Producer  
• Brooke Shields - Born 1965, turns 51 - Actress | Producer

Wednesday 1st June

• Amy Schemer - Born 1981, turns 35 - Actress | Television Personality | Writer | Producer | Director  
• Brian Cox - Born 1946, turns 70 - Actor | Producer 
• Powers Boothe - Born 1948, turns 68 - Actor
• Jonathan Pryce - Born 1947, turns 69 - Actor | Singer
• Robert Powell - Born 1944, turns 72 - Actor
• Tom Holland - Born 1996, turns 30 - Actor
• Morgan Freeman - Born 1937, turns 79 - Actor | Producer | Director | Singer

Thursday 2nd June

• Wentworth Miller - Born 1972, turns 44 - Actor | Writer
• Kevin Feige - Born 1973, turns 43 - Producer
• Dominic Cooper - Born 1978, turns 38 - Actor | Singer
• Zachary Quinto - Born 1977, turns 39 - Actor | Producer  
• Liam Cunningham - Born 1961, turns 55 - Actor 
• Dennis Haysbert - Born 1954, turns 62 - Actor | Producer
• Stacy Keach - Born 1941, turns 75 - Actor | Producer | Writer | Director

Friday 3rd June

• James Purefoy - Born 1964, turns 52 - Actor
• Imogen Poots - Born 1989, turns 27 - Actress | Singer

Saturday 4th June

• Angelina Jolie - Born 1975, turns 41 - Actress | Producer | Director | Writer 
• Russell Brand - Born 1975, turns 41 - Actor | Writer | Producer
• Sean Pertwee - Born 1964, turns 52 - Actor | 
• Keith David - Born 1956, turns 60 - Actor | Producer | Singer
• Bruce Dern - Born 1936, turns 80 - Actor | Producer
• Geoffrey Palmer - Born 1927, turns 89 - Actor  

Duncan Zowie Haywood Jones, aka Zowie Bowie, is the only child from mother Angie Barnett - a Cypriot/American model, actress and musician, and father David Bowie the legendary English singer, songwriter, actor and record producer who died earlier this year aged 69. He was born in Bromley, London, but spent much of his younger years living between London, Berlin, and Vevey in Switzerland. His birth in 1971 prompted his father to write 'Kooks' which is included in his 'Hunky Dory' album of that same year. He studied at The International School in Lausanne, and in 1980 when his parents divorced, his father was granted custody. At that point he went by the name Zowie, but by twelve years of age he decided that he preferred Joey, which he shortened to Joe in his later teen years. At fourteen he was enrolled in the renowned Scottish boarding school, Gordonstoun. He had designs on becoming a professional wrestler while growing up with his father often commenting on his 'natural strength'. By eighteen he reverted to using his birth name of Duncan. In 1995 he graduated from The College of Wooster in Ohio with a Bachelors Degree in Philosophy. He went onto Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee to pursue a PhD but quit before completion to attend the London Film School, graduating as a Director in 2001.

In 1997 Jones was one of many cameramen working on his fathers televised 50th Birthday celebrations at Maddison Square Garden. He worked similarly again in 2000 at the two BowieNet concerts in New York City. In 2002 he Co-Produced, wrote and Directed his first short film - the thirty minute long 'Whistle' about an ultra-technological assassin who becomes involved in the life of one of his victims. He followed this up a year later with the video game 'Republic : The Revolution' on which he acted as Cinematic Director as well as penning elements of the script. In 2006 he Directed a relaunch campaign for fashion label French Connection.

2009 saw his feature film Directorial debut with 'Moon' which he also co-wrote the script for based on his own story. Made on a shoestring budget of just US$5M it made double that and in the process picked up eighteen award wins and another seventeen nomination including a BAFTA Award win for Jones as Outstanding Debut by a British Writer, Director or Producer, and numerous other wins either for Jones directly or the film. Starring Sam Rockwell and the voice of Kevin Spacey, the film was largely critically well received.



'Source Code' came next in 2011 - his second Directed feature film starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Vera Farmiga and Michelle Monaghan. Made for US$32M it took US$148M at the global Box Office and was hailed both a commercial and critical success winning one award for best Original Screenplay and eight further nominations. The story here surrounds Gyllenhaal as a soldier waking up in someone else's body and learning that he is part of a government experimental programme to locate a bomber aboard a busy commuter train. The catch here though is that he has just eight minutes to locate the bomber and prevent the explosion so completing his mission - but, he can relive that same eight minutes time after time after time, learning something new every time to thwart the bomber.

Next up and due for imminent release is 'Warcraft : The Beginning' based on the hugely popular video game and books set in the fantasy world of Azeroth. Made for US$160M the film has been in development for ten years with Jones announced to Direct in 2013. Starring Travis Fimmel, Ben Foster, Dominic Cooper, Toby Kebbell and Clancy Brown the story tells of Azeroth being on the brink of war as its civilisation, led by the humans, comes under attack from rampaging orcs fleeing their world of Draenor, which is dying. As the leaders of both worlds collide, the fate of their families, their people, their homes and their worlds hang in the balance.

Following this it has been announced that his next film will be 'Mute' with Paul Rudd and Alexander Skarsgard - set in Berlin forty years from now it follows a mute bartender investigating his partners disappearance, and said to be influenced by Jones favourite film of all time - 'Blade Runner'.

All up Jones has garnered thirteen award wins and another twelve nominations. He has five Director credits to his name, four Writing credits and one as Producer. In late 2012 he married photographer Rodene Ronquillo, who was diagnosed with breast cancer that same day, but has since been given the all clear, and the couple are now expecting their first child to be born in June.

Duncan Jones - the son of a music legend; was Best Man at his fathers wedding to Iman in 1992; has already achieved so much from so little and is an emerging talent increasingly playing in the big league as his works grow in acclaim and as his film progression continues. Long may your success last and very Happy Birthday to you Duncan, from Odeon Online.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-