Birthday's to share this week : 20th-26th November 2016.

Do you celebrate your Birthday this week?

Mads Mikkelsen does on 22nd November - check out my tribute to this Birthday Lad turning 51, 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 20th November

• Bo Derek - Born 1956, turns 60 - Actress
• Andrea Riseborough - Born 1981, turns 35 - Actress  

Monday 21st November

• Goldie Hawn - Born 1945, turns 71 - Actress | Producer  

Tuesday 22nd November

• Jamie Lee Curtis - Born 1958, turns 58 - Actress | Director
• Scarlett Johansson - Born 1984, turns 32 - Actress | Producer | Singer
• Terry Gilliam - Born 1940, turns 76 - Director | Producer | Writer | Actor | Animator
• Tom Conti - Born 1941, turns 75 - Actor
• Mads Mikkelsen - Born 1965, turns 51 - Actor
• Mark Ruffalo - Born 1967, turns 49 - Actor | Writer | Producer | Director  

Wednesday 23rd November

• Franco Nero - Born 1941, turns 75 - Actor | Producer | Director | Writer
• Vincent Cassel - Born 1966, turns 50 - Actor | Producer
• Miley Cyrus - Born 1992, turns 24 - Singer | Songwriter | Actress | Producer  

Thursday 24th November

• Katherine Heigel - Born 1978, turns 38 - Actress | Producer
• Billy Connolly - Born 1942, turns 74 - Actor | Writer | Producer | Singer | Songwriter
• Stephen Merchant - Born 1974, turns 42 - Actor | Writer | Producer | Director
• Colin Hanks - Born 1977, turns 39 - Actor | Producer | Director  

Friday 25th November

• Dougray Scott - Born 1965, turns 51 - Actor | Producer
• Joel Kinnaman - Born 1979, turns 37 - Actor
• Christina Applegate - Born 1971, turns 45 - Actress | Producer | Singer  

Saturday 26th November

• Tina Turner - Born 1939, turns 77 - Singer | Actress
• Mark L. Lester - Born 1946, turns 70 - Director | Producer | Writer

Mads Dittmann Mikkelsen was born in Osterbro, Copenhagen, Denmark to mother Bente Christiansen, a nurse, and father Henning Mikkelsen, a bank clerk and Trade Union official. He has an older brother, Lars, also an Actor. He was raised in Norrebro in Copenhagen. In his younger years he had aspirations on becoming a gymnast and pursuing athletics professionally. He then studied dancing at the ballet academy in Gothenburg, and worked as a professional dancer for almost a decade before turning his attention to studying drama at the Arhus Drama School in 1996 so kick starting his career in acting.

He made his acting debut in the 43 minute short film 'Blomsterfangen' and the 16 minute short 'Cafe Hector', both in 1996 before his full length feature film debut in Nicolas Winding Refn Danish crime drama that was also the Director's debut feature - 'Pusher' which was the launchpad for Refn, Mikkelsen, and other starring Actors. That was also 1996 and the film was hailed a critical and commercial success. 'Wildside' Written and Co-starring fellow countryman Nikolaj Coster-Waldau was released in 1998 with 'Angel of the Night' and then 'Bleeder' for Nicolas Winding Refn in 1999.

The new decade kicked off with 'Flickering Lights' before a couple of comedies with 'Monas verde' and 'Shake It' in 2001; 'I Am Dina' in 2002 with Gerard Depardieu and Christopher Ecclestone; 'The Green Butchers' and 'Torremolinos 73' in 2003. It was perhaps Antoine Fuqua's telling of 'King Arthur' in 2004 that helped propel Mikkelsen on to the international scene with its huge ensemble cast and winning action, adventure and drama storyline. That same year he returned as Tonny in Nicolas Winding Refn's sequel to his first film with 'Blood on My Hands : Pusher II' for which the Actor picked up three Best Actor award wins.

'After the Wedding' which was nominated for the Best Foreign Language Film at the Academy Awards, 'Prague' and 'Exit' with Alexander Skarsgard followed in 2006, before his noted role as arch villain Le Chiffre in the 21st Bond outing 'Casino Royale' with the new James Bond, Daniel Craig later that year. In the meantime there had been the long running Police crime drama series 'Unit 1' in which Mikkelsen played a leading role over 32 episodes spanning four noted seasons from 2000 through until 2004, and then 'Julie' across five episodes of this short-lived family comedy series in 2005. This was followed up by 'Flame and Citron', and then his turn as Igor Stravinsky in the period romantic drama 'Coco Chanel and Igor Stravinsky' in 2009, before another offering with Nicolas Winding Refn at the helm of 'Valhalla Rising' and then 'The Door' that same year.

2010 saw the Louis Leterrier retelling of 'The Clash of the Titans' with an all star cast, before another fantasy period piece with Paul W.S. Anderson's 'The Three Musketeers' and 'A Royal Affair' with Alicia Vikander in 2012. 'The Hunt' followed to much critical acclaim, with 'Move On', 'Charlie Countryman' and 'Age of Uprising : The Legend of Michale Kohlhaas' coming next with Danish Western 'Salvation', 'Men & Chicken' and the recent turn as villain Kaecilius in the still on general release latest Marvel offering 'Doctor Strange' which has so far taken over US$500M at the global Box Office.

Meanwhile there has been 39 episodes across three seasons of the acclaimed NBC series 'Hannibal' with Mikkelsen playing the famed Dr. Hannibal Lecter based on the Thomas Harris character. Despite its critical success the series has been pulled after just three seasons due to declining viewership. Next up is 'Rogue One : A Star Wars Story' due in December this year for Director Gareth Edwards featuring an all star cast and Mikkelsen playing Galen Erso.

All up Mikkelsen has 47 acting credits to his name accumulating a haul so far of 25 award wins and another 33 nominations. He married his long term girlfriend Hanne Jacobsen in 2000 with whom he has a daughter Viola, and a son Carl.

Mads Mikkelsen - he of the chiseled Danish features and high cheek bones who cried tears of blood for Bond, James Bond and is the go to guy for Director Nicolas Winding Refn; keeps us entertained across just about all genres; and gives us his all with a gritty realism and grounded performances. Happy Birthday to you Mads, from Odeon Online.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

Birthday's to share this week : 28th December 2014 - 3rd January 2015.

It's New Year week - do you celebrate your Birthday this week? Anthony Hopkins does, on 31st December - check out the tribute to this Birthday Boy 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 28th December

• Denzel Washington - Born 1954, turns 60 - Actor | Producer | Director
• Stan Lee - Born 1922, turns 92 - Writer | Producer | Actor
• Alex Dimitriades - Born 1973, turns 41 - Actor
• Sienna Miller - Born 1981, turns 33 - Actress
• Noomi Rapace - Born 1979, turns 35 - Actress
• Maggie Smith - Born 1934, turns 80 - Actress

Monday 29th December

• Patricia Clarkson - Born 1959, turns 55 - Actress | Producer
• Mary Tyler Moore - Born 1936, turns 78 - Actress | Producer | Singer | Television Personality
• Jude Law - Born 1972, turns 42 - Actor | Producer
• Jon Voight - Born 1938, turns 76 - Actor | Producer
• Ted Danson - Born 1947, turns 67 - Actor | Producer
• Andy Wachowski - Born 1967, turns 47 - Director | Producer | Writer

Tuesday 30th December

• Tracey Ullman - Born 1959, turns 55 - Actress | Writer | Producer | Director

Wednesday 31st December 

• Barbara Carrera - Born 1945, turns 69 - Actress
• Val Kilmer - Born 1959, turns 55 - Actor | Producer
• Ben Kingsley - Born 1943, turns 71 - Actor
• Anthony Hopkins - Born 1937, turns 77 - Actor | Producer | Director | Composer

Thursday 1st January

• Frank Langella - Born 1938, turns 77 - Actor
• Verne Troyer - Born 1969, turns 46 - Actor

Friday 2nd January

• Cuba Gooding Jnr. - Born 1968, turns 47 - Actor | Producer
• Todd Haynes - Born 1961, turns 54 - Director | Producer | Writer
• Taye Diggs - Born 1971, turns 44 - Actor | Producer
• Paz Vega - Born 1976, turns 38 - Actress
• Kate Bosworth - Born 1983, turns 32 - Actress | Producer
• Tia Carrere - Born 1967, turns 48 - Actress | Producer

Saturday 3rd January

• Victoria Principal - Born 1950, turns 65 - Actress | Producer
• Dabney Coleman - Born 1932, turns 83 - Actor
• Robert Loggia - Born 1930, turns 85 - Actor
• Mel Gibson - Born 1956, turns 59 - Actor | Producer | Director

Philip Anthony Hopkins was born in Margam, Port Talbot in South Wales on New Years Eve to mother Annie Muriel Yeates and father Richard Arthur Hopkins. He was not an academic child but did immerse himself in painting, drawing and learning the piano at school. He was enrolled at Jones' West Monmouth Boys School and then Cowbridge Grammar School. At age 15 he briefly met Richard Burton who greatly influenced the young Hopkins and coincidentally was also from Port Talbot. As a result he attended the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama in Cardiff where he graduated from in 1957. After completing his obligatory national service he relocated himself to London where he further studied at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art.

His first stage appearance came in 1960 at the Palace Theatre, Swansea in 'Have a Cigarette'. In 1965  he was seen by Lord Laurence Olivier who invited him to join the Royal National Theatre where he went on to become Olivier's understudy. His small screen career started off in 1967 in a BBC televised play 'A Flea in Her Ear' and that same year he appeared in the short film 'The White Bus' (aka 'Red, White and Zero'). However, 1968 saw his first big screen role playing King Richard I in 'The Lion in Winter' with Peter O'Toole, Katherine Hepburn and Timothy Dalton which went on to take out three Academy Awards that year. He continued to tread the boards, but progressively moved toward more television and film roles starring in this earlier years in the likes of 'The Looking Glass War', 'Hamlet', 'When Eight Bells Toll', 'Young Winston' for Director Richard Attenborough, 'The Girl from Petrovka', 'Juggernaut' and then 1977's 'A Bridge Too Far' again Directed by Richard Attenborough and with an all star cast. In the meantime there had been numerous television series and made for television movies, the most notable of which was the TV Mini-Series 'War & Peace' in which he starred in all seventeen episodes running over 1972 and '73.

The 1980's opened up opposite John Hurt in 'The Elephant Man' followed by 'A Change of Seasons' and then as William Bligh in 'The Bounty' with Mel Gibson, Laurence Olivier, Daniel Day-Lewis, Liam Neeson and Edward Fox. 'The Good Father', '84, Charring Cross Road' and again various television series and made for TV films also featured - 'A Married Man', 'Strangers and Brothers' and 'Hollywood Wives' amongst others.

It was the 1990's however, that really saw Hopkins movie career take off with the hugely successful and highly acclaimed Jonathan Demme Directed 'Silence of the Lambs' in 1991 which won the 'Big-5' Academy Awards including the Best Actor Award for Hopkins. He was nominated a further three times in the 90's for the golden statue - for 'Remains of the Day', 'Nixon' and 'Amistad'. There were other notable films too during the decade that included 'Howard's End', 'Dracula', 'Chaplin', 'Shadowlands' with Richard Attenborough Directing once more, 'Legends of the Fall', 'The Edge', 'The Mask of Zorro', 'Meet Joe Black', 'Instinct' and 'Titus'.

As the new century rolled over Hopkins reprised his role as Dr. Hannibal Lecter twice again - in 2001's 'Hannibal' Directed by Ridley Scott, and then Brett Ratner's 2002 'Red Dragon'. What followed included 'The Human Stain', 'Alexander' for Oliver Stone who also Directed Hopkins in 'Nixon', 'Proof', 'Fracture', 'The World's Fastest Indian', the CGI animated 'Beowulf' and his own Written, Directed and Starring 'Slipstream' in 2007.

More recently there has been 'The Wolfman'. 'The Rite', Marvel's 'Thor' and it's sequel 'Thor : The Dark World', '360', 'Hitchcock' as the great Director himself opposite Helen Mirren, 'RED 2' and 'Noah' most recently. 

Coming up there is 'Autobahn' and 'Kidnapping Freddy Heineken' due in 2015, 'Solace' in post-production currently and 'Go with Me' presently filming. The 'Westworld' Television series is filming too for 2015 and 'The Dresser' television movie is in pre-production now.

All up Hopkins has 127 acting credits to his name, three Directer credits for which he also composed his own music scores and a total 51 worldwide award wins and 44 other nominations. The Academy Awards were mentioned before, and in addition there are six Golden Globe nominations and the 2006 Cecil B. DeMille Award win; two Primetime Emmy Award wins for 'The Lindbergh Kidnapping Case' and 'The Bunker' and two other nominations; and four BAFTA Award wins for 'War & Peace', 'Silence of the Lambs', 'Shadowlands' and The Academy Fellowship win in 2008, plus four other nominations.

During his career he has played British Prime Minister David Lloyd George; English King - Richard the Lionheart; two US Presidents - John Quincy Adams and Richard Nixon; German Dictator Adolf Hitler; renowned artist Pablo Picasso; renowned film Director Alfred Hitchcock; and renowned literary scribe Charles Dickens, amongst other real life characters.

He was married to Petronella Barker from 1967 to 1972; to Jennifer Lynton from 1973 to 2002; and to Stella Arroyave from 2003 until the present day. He has a daughter - composer and actress Abigail Hopkins, born in 1968. He has both British and American citizenship and his charitable and philanthropic efforts extend to his Presidency of the National Trust's 'Snowdonia Appeal' to which he personally donated one million pounds sterling. He is  patron of his hometown YMCA and is a volunteer teacher at Santa Monica's Ruskin School of Acting. Additionally he is a prominent member of 'Greanpeace' and a patron of the 'Rehabilitaion for Addicted Prisoners Trust'. He is a reformed alcoholic having given up on Christmas day 1975, he has quit smoking and has been vegetarian now for some years, and he is a piano virtuoso. In the Queen's Birthday Honour's List in 1987 he was awarded the CBE (Commander of the British Empire); in 1992 she bestowed upon him in the New Year's Honour's List the KBE (Knight Bachelor of the Order of the British Empire); and in 2008 he was made a Fellow of the British Academy of Film and Television Arts.

Anthony Hopkins - owner of deep blue piercing eyes and a deep smooth voice, often playing restrained archetypal English roles, character actor and known for roles of historical personalities, trademarked as bringing to life one of cinemas most chilling characters, and still much in demand and still turning it on for us at 77 - Happy Birthday to you from Odeon Online.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

Birthday's to share this week : 30th November - 6th December 2014.

Do you celebrate your Birthday this week? Ridley Scott does, on 30th November - check out the tribute to this Birthday Boy 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 or 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 30th November

• Mark Forster - Born 1969, turns 45 - Director | Producer | Writer
• Mandy Patinkin - Born 1952, turns 62 - Actor
• Ben Stiller - Born 1965, turns 49 - Actor | Producer | Writer | Director
• Ridley Scott - Born 1937, turns 77 - Director | Producer | Production Designer
• Terrence Malick - Born 1943, turns 71 - Director | Producer | Writer
• David Mamet - Born 1947, turns 67 - Director | Producer | Writer
• Gael Garcia Bernal - Born 1978, turns 36 - Actor | Producer | Director

Monday 1st December

• Woody Allen - Born 1935, turns 79 - Director | Producer | Actor | Writer
• Treat Williams - Born 1951, turns 63 - Actor
• Bette Midler - Born 1945, turns 69 - Actress | Producer

Tuesday 2nd December

• Lucy Liu - Born 1968, turns 46 - Actress | Producer | Director
• Britney Spears - Born 1981, turns 33 - Singer | Songwriter | Producer | Actress

Wednesday 3rd December

• Julianne Moore - Born 1960, turns 54 - Actress | Producer
• Daryl Hannah - Born 1960, turns 54 - Actress | Producer
• Amanda Seyfried - Born 1985, turns 29 - Actress | Producer
• Brendan Fraser - Born 1968, turns 46 - Actor | Producer
• Jean-Luc Godard - Born 1930, turns 84 - Director | Producer | Writer | Actor | Editor | Cinematographer

Thursday 4th December

• Jeff Bridges - Born 1949, turns 65 - Actor | Producer | Singer
• Jay Z - Born 1969, turns 45 - Singer | Songwriter | Producer | Actor
• Marisa Tomei - Born 1964, turns 50 - Actress
• Tyra Banks - Born 1973, turns 41 - Actress | Producer | Writer

Friday 5th December 

• Frankie Muniz - Born 1985, turns 29 - Actor | Producer
• Nick Stahl - Born 1979, turns 35 - Actor

Saturday 6th December

• Judd Apatow - Born 1967, turns 47 - Director | Producer | Writer | Actor
• Nick Park - Born 1958, turns 56 - Director | Producer | Writer

Ridley Scott was born in the north-east of England in South Shields, and is the middle of three sons born to mother Elizabeth and father Colonel Francis Percy Scott. Frank was the eldest of the three, and Tony the youngest - both of whom are deceased. Scott's father was an officer in the Royal Engineers, and therefore absent from for much of the boys younger lives. He attended Grangefield Grammar School and then West Hartlepool College of Art where he graduated with a Diploma in Design. From there he went on to the Royal College of Art in London where he was instrumental in establishing a film department.

Graduating in 1963 he had already made a short film, 'Boy and Bicycle' starring both brother Tony and father Francis, before joining the BBC in set design work. Attending a trainee Directors course while there his first Directing role was on an episode of the iconic BBC Police drama of the time 'Z-Cars'. In 1968 he and Tony founded Ridley Scott Associates - a film and television commercial company who amongst many others brought the iconic 1974 'Hovis' bread commercial to our TV screens.

His film Directorial debut came in 1977 in 'The Duellists' and is set in the Napoleonic Wars period and stars Harvey Keitel and Keith Carradine - it won an award at the Cannes Film Festival for Best Film. Next up was 1979's iconic 'Alien' which made for just US$11M brought in US$105M globally and gave him international success both commercially and critically; it spawned three sequels; a spin off series with 'Predator'; the recent prequel (of sorts), 'Prometheus' also Directed by Scott in 2012; and made a cinematic icon of Sigourney Weaver in the role of Ellen Ripley. Sticking with the Sci-Fi theme Scott gave us 'Blade Runner' as his next offering in 1982 with Harrison Ford based on the Philip K. Dick novel; 'Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep'. Costing US$28M to make and grossing just US$33M it was not a commercial success, but time has been very kind to this outstanding film, and it now regarded a classic and the touchstone of the genre.

With all the hoo-haa surrounding 1984 and the Orwellian angst propagated at the time, Scott Directed a US$900K television commercial for the new Apple Macintosh computer which aired during the SuperBowl of that year. That advertisement was seen too as the cornerstone and a masterpiece of modern televised advertising. As the 80's played out Scott Directed 'Legend' in 1985 with Tom Cruise and Tim Curry; 'Someone to Watch Over Me' with Tom Berenger and Mimi Rogers in 1987; and 'Black Rain' with Michael Douglas and Andy Garcia in 1989.

The 90's brought 'Thelma & Louise' in 1991 with Geena Davis, Susan Sarandon and a young Brad Pitt and was a critical and commercial success, unlike the Christopher Columbus Americas discovery telling '1492' in 1992, which cost US$47M to make and grossed just over US$7M. 'White Squall' followed with Jeff Bridges and then 'G.I.Jane' with Demi Moore and Viggo Mortensen.

As the new century clicked over, so came 'Gladiator' with Russell Crowe giving Scott one of his biggest critical and commercial successes with a worldwide gross of US$458M off a US$103M budget, and five Academy Awards including Best Film and Best Actor for Crowe. In the wake of this came 'Hannibal' in 2001 - the follow up to 'Silence of the Lambs', and then 'Black Hawk Down' later that same year with Eric Bana amongst a big name cast.

From here came more modest success with 'Matchstick Men', 'Kingdom of Heaven' and 'A Good Year' before 'American Gangster' with Russell Crowe again and Denzel Washington in 2007 bringing  critical and commercial acclaim once more. 'Body of Lies' featured next with Leonardo DiCaprio and acting stablemate Russell Crowe, and then a retelling of the much told 'Robin Hood' with Russell Crowe and Cate Blanchett making US$322M off a US$155M budget. In 2012 Scott returned to Sci-Fi for the first time in almost 30 years with a 'Alien' origin story with 'Prometheus' starring Noomi Rapace and Michael Fassbender which again gave him critical success and a box office haul of $403M from a production cost of US$120M. 2013 saw 'The Counsellor', a relatively low budget offering at just US$25M but with an all start cast taking in Diaz, Bardem, Pitt, Fassbender and Cruz and based on a Cormac McCarthy story, it made a return of US$71M.

Being a very busy man, even at 77 this week, Scott has 97 Producer credits to his name, 34 as Director, and ten as Production Designer. Directorially, he has 'Exodus : Gods & Kings' about to hit our cinemas and starring Christian Bale, Joel Edgerton, Ben Kingsley and Sigourney Weaver; and 'The Martian' is currently filming with Matt Damon, Jeff Daniels, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Sean Bean, Kristin Wiig and Jessica Chastain and is due for release in 2015; and a TV mini-series 'The Hot Zone' has been announced. As Producer, 'Prometheus 2' is in pre-production for 2016, with a 'Blade Runner' sequel, 'Potsdamer Platz', 'Emma's War' and 'David' all announced for future release.

Nominated as Best Director for Academy Awards for 'Black Hawk Down', 'Gladiator', and 'Thelma & Louise' but has yet to win  golden statue; he also has two Golden Globe nominations and a win for 'RKO-281' in the mini-series or TV movie category; and four BAFTA nominations and recipient in 1995 of the Michael Balcon Award - in total then 23 award wins and 48 other nominations throughout his illustrious career. He was awarded a KBE (Knight Bachelor of the Order of the British Empire) in 2003 by HRH Queen Elizabeth II in recognition of his services to the film industry.

He was married to Felicity Heywood from 1964 to 1975 and to Sandy Watson from 1979 to 1989 with whom he has three children between the two marriages - Jake (born 1965), Luke (born 1968) and Jordan (born 1978) - all of them work in the film & TV business either behind or in front of the camera. His current partner is actress Giamina Facio whom Scott has cast in the majority of his films since 2000. In 1995 he and brother Tony purchased London's Shepparton Studios which subsequently merged with Pinewood Studios and set about upgrading and expanding the facilities and studios into the renowned production centre it is today.

Ridley Scott - still going strong after all these years; diverse film and television portfolio; highly regarded as the Actors Director; maker of several classic movies; and a keen eye for detail and stunning visuals of the past and the future, we continue to eagerly await your next offering! Happy Birthday to you from Odeon Online.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-