Ben Whishaw
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{{Infobox actor
|image = Ben Whishaw Perfume.jpg |
| name = Benedict Whishaw
| birthname =
| birthdate = {{Birth date and age|1980|10|14|mf=y}}
| location = [[England]]
| deathdate =
| deathplace =
| yearsactive = 1999-present
| occupation = Actor
| othername =
| homepage =
| academyawards =
| emmyawards =
| spouse =
}}
'''Benedict Whishaw''' more commonly known as '''Ben Whishaw''' (born [[14 October]] [[1980]]) is an [[England|English]] actor who trained at [[RADA]]. Whishaw is perhaps best known for his breakthrough role as [[Hamlet#Hamlet as a character|Hamlet]], and plays the lead character in [[Tom Tykwer]]'s ''[[Perfume: The Story of a Murderer (film)|Perfume: The Story of a Murderer]]''.
==Biography==
===Background===
Whishaw grew up in [[Bedfordshire]], with his twin brother, James, and was a member of the Bancroft Players Youth Theatre at [[Hitchin]]'s Queen Mother Theatre. He attended [[Samuel Whitbread Community College]] in [[Clifton]], [[Bedfordshire]]. During his time with the group, he first rose to prominence during collaborations with their offshoot theatre company, Big Spirit. He was involved in many productions - perhaps most notably, ''If This Is A Man'' (also performed as ''The Drowned & The Saved''). This was a piece devised by the company based on the book of the same name by [[Primo Levi]], a survivor of a [[Nazi]] World War II prisoner of war camp. This harrowing and moving book was adapted into a physical theatre piece by the group and taken to the 1995 [[Edinburgh Festival]] where it garnered five-star reviews and great critical acclaim. Whishaw played the character of Levi in this and subsequent productions of the show.
===Career===
As the lead in [[Trevor Nunn]]'s 2004 young-cast production of ''[[Hamlet]]'' at the [[Old Vic]], he received highly favourable reviews. The role was shared with [[Al Weaver]] in an unusual arrangement that saw Whishaw playing all nights except for Mondays and matinées. Nunn is reported to have made this arrangement due to the youth of the two actors playing the lead, to relieve some of the pressure on each. It was Whishaw, however, who featured most prominently in the marketing materials and in the majority of reviews.
Whishaw's film and TV credits include ''[[Layer Cake (film)|Layer Cake]]'' and [[Chris Morris (satirist)|Chris Morris]]'s 2005 sitcom ''[[Nathan Barley]]'', in which he played a character called Pingu. He was named 'Most Promising Newcomer' at the 2001 [[British Independent Film Awards]] (for ''My Brother Tom'') and, in 2005, nominated as best actor in four award ceremonies for his Hamlet. He also played [[Keith Richards]] in the [[Brian Jones]] biopic ''[[Stoned (film)|Stoned]]''. In the spring of 2005, Whishaw received lots of press for his turn as a drug dealer in [[Philip Ridley]]'s post-apocalyptic fringe play ''[[Mercury Fur]]''.
In ''[[Perfume: The Story of a Murderer (film)|Perfume]]'', Whishaw plays Jean-Baptiste Grenouille, a perfume maker whose craft turns deadly. The film was released in Germany in September 2006 and in the U.S. in December 2006. In the same year Whishaw worked on [[Pawel Pawlikowski]]'s abandoned ''The Restraint of Beasts''[http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117972465.html?categoryid=1246&cs=1].
Whishaw appears in 2007's ''[[I'm Not There]]'' and in 2008 in ''Criminal Justice'', a [[Tiger Aspect]] series for the BBC.
He appears in the forthcoming films ''[[The International]]'', ''[[Brideshead Revisited (film)|a new adaptation of ''Brideshead Revisited'']] and ''[[Bright Star (film)|Bright Star]]'' In 2008 he will star in ''...some trace of her'', an adaptation of ''[[The Idiot (novel)|The Idiot]]'' at the National Theatre.
==Stage and film performances==
* ''[[The Trench (film)|The Trench]]'' ([[1999 in film|1999]])
* ''[[The Escort]]'' aka ''Mauvaise passe'' ([[1999 in film|1999]])
* ''[[Other People's Children]]'' ([[2000 in television|2000]]) (TV series)
* ''[[Baby (film)|Baby]]'' ([[2001 in film|2001]]) (short film)
* ''[[My Brother Tom]]'' ([[2001 in film|2001]])
* ''[[Ready When You Are Mr. McGill]]'' ([[2003 in television|2003]]) (TV)
* ''[[The Booze Cruise]]''([[2003 in television|2003]]) (TV series)
* ''[[77 Beds]]'' ([[2003 in film|2003]]) (short film)
* ''Hamlet'' [[2004]] (stage play)
* ''[[The Merchant of Venice]]'' [[2004]]
* ''[[Enduring Love (film)|Enduring Love]]'' ([[2004 in film|2004]])
* ''[[Layer Cake (film)|Layer Cake]]'' ([[2004 in film|2004]])
* ''[[Mercury Fur]]'' [[2005]] (stage play)
* ''[[Nathan Barley]]'' ([[2005 in television|2005]]) (TV series)
* ''[[Stoned (film)|Stoned]]'' ([[2005 in film|2005]])
* ''[[The Seagull]]'' [[2006]] (stage play)
* ''[[Look Back in Anger]]'' [[2006]] (radio play)
* ''[[Perfume: The Story of a Murderer (film)|Perfume: The Story of a Murderer]]'' ([[2007 in film|2007]])
* ''[[Leaves of Glass]]'' [[2007]] (stage play)
* ''[[I'm Not There]]'' [[2007]]
* ''[[Criminal Justice (TV Series)|Criminal Justice]]'' ([[2008 in television|2008]]) (TV)
* ''[[Brideshead Revisited (film)|Brideshead Revisited]]'' ([[2008 in film|2008]]) (awaiting release)
* ''[[Bright Star (film)|Bright Star]]'' ([[2009 in film|2009]]) (post-production)
==External links==
*{{imdb name|id=0924210|name=Ben Whishaw}}
*[http://themovie-fanatic.com/spotlights/stars/ben_whishaw/ Ben Whishaw comprehensive profile]
*[http://www.rada.org/grad03/whi.html Ben Whishaw at RADA]
*[http://www.hamiltonhodell.co.uk/page.asp?partid=68 Hamilton Hodell, agent]
{{DEFAULTSORT:Whishaw, Ben}}
[[Category:1980 births]]
[[Category:English film actors]]
[[Category:English television actors]]
[[Category:English stage actors]]
[[Category:Royal National Theatre Company members]]
[[Category:English radio actors]]
[[Category:Shakespearean actors]]
[[Category:Twin people]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Alumni of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art]]
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