Colin Firth's Biography

Who is Colin Firth?

Three of his grandparents were Methodist missionaries in India.

Colin Firth spent a few of his early years in Nigeria, where his father was an education officer.

When the New Statesmen asked why he became interested in the plight of refugees, Colin Firth explained:

"My mother campaigned for the rights of refugees, some of whom were guests in our house. You can't dismiss people as a political problem once you know them."

Colin Firth studied at the National Youth Theatre and went to the London Drama Centre in north west London.

An early acting breakthrough for Colin Firth was in 1984 when he followed in the line of Daniel Day-Lewis and Rupert Everett in playing the lead, Guy Bennett, in the West End run of Another Country.

He amassed a variety of credits before being cast in the title role in Milos Forman's Valmont in 1989.

Through working on Valmont, Colin Firth met Meg Tilly, with whom he had a son.

It was not until 1995 that Colin Firth stepped up a further notch in public awareness when he was cast as Fitzwilliam Darcy in the BBC adaptation of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice.

A variety of credits followed including The English Patient, Fever Pitch, and Shakespeare in Love.

In 2001 he starred as Mark Darcy (in effect reprising the Fitzwilliam Darcy character) in Bridget Jones' Diary.

As well as further Bridget Jones films, Colin Firth starred in the likes of The Girl with the Pearl Earring, Love Actually, Nanny McPhee, and Mamma Mia.

In 2009, he won the best actor award at Venice for his role in Tom Ford's film A Single Man.

The following year, Colin Firth achieved wide acclaim for his portrayal of stammering King George VI in The King's Speech.

In February 2011, he won an Oscar for best actor for the role.

Colin Firth is married to Livia Giuggioli, whom he met in 1996 on the set of Nostromo. They married on June 21, 1997.

In September 2011, Colin Firth played Bill Haydon in the film version of Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy.

In 2012, he starred as Harry Deane in a remake of the 1966 film Gambit.

He played the leading role of Harry Hart in the Kingsman films.

In September 2017, Colin Firth was granted dual British and Italian citizenship.

He and his wife Livia married in Italy and he had two children born in Rome.

In 2022, he was nominated for a Golden Globe for best actor in a limited series or TV movie for Staircase.

In 2024, he starred as Dr Jim Swire in a Sky series based on the book The Lockerbie Bombing: A Father's Search For Justice by Dr Swire and Peter Biddulph.