Michael Gambon
Michael Gambon
Sir Michael John Gambon CBEis an Irish-born English actor who has worked in theatre, television and film. Gambon has played Philip Marlow in the BBC television serial The Singing Detective, Jules Maigret in the 1990s ITV serial Maigret, and Professor Albus Dumbledore in the last six Harry Potter films after the death of actor Richard Harris...
NationalityBritish
ProfessionMovie Actor
Date of Birth19 October 1940
CityDublin, Ireland
freedom magic quite subtext
There's no subtext in 'Harry Potter,' really; it's all magic - anything can happen. Why do I say this? Because it's a magic spell. It's quite nice in a way. There is a real freedom to it. Doesn't say much for acting, does it?
plays
There are more important ways of earning a living, aren't there? Like being a neurosurgeon. But some plays are very important, aren't they?
funny kids maybe rather sod white
Maybe that is why kids like Dumbledore: because he is funny rather than a miserable old sod with a long white beard.
chest fingers hit masters poking school
My only memories of school are of being beaten, of being hit in the playground, of masters poking their fingers in my chest all day.
classical dried lazy plays
Television has dried up for my generation, so it's plays and films. You get used to being lazy doing films, but classical theatre's going to finish me off.
bit british-actor floating hardly layers lighter pair played richard turned
Richard was in heavy, heavy costume, he could hardly sit, you know, and I turned up and they put me in two layers of silk, so I played him much lighter - you know, floating around in a pair of slippers, a bit of a hippy.
british-actor ease
I just play him as myself, I don't ease myself into any role really. I stick a beard on and play me.
flown license round
I've had a private pilot's license for years and flown all round the U.K. and over to France.
good la time
I want to be good all the time, so I feel anxious. But if you weren't like that, you'd be dead, wouldn't you? If you went out happy down the road, la la la. I've never been like that. I don't want to be.
spells
There were certainly no spells at my school. More like a smack in the mouth.
along brando films god lovely meant niro presents roles thank worked
I see film roles as lovely presents that come along now and again. I feel really lucky and say thank you very much. And if they fly me to L.A., I think, 'God, I must really be doing well.' I've worked with De Niro and Brando and Pacino, and that's made me feel very lucky. But the films have never meant a lot to me.
I don't play classical guitar. But I do in my mind. I've got it on a stand.
bit bored bother cause causing inferior rather room slightly teddy wanting
I like causing trouble. It's the teddy boy in me. I used to be a teddy boy. Feeling slightly inferior and wanting to cause a bit of bother and get some action going on in the room rather than get bored stiff. Does that make sense?
clubs dinner firearms
I belong to quite a lot of learned societies. We collect firearms and discuss them at dinners and clubs and things.