Attenborough, Richard Attenborough, Baron 1923-
English film actor, producer and director

He was born in Cambridge and trained at RADA before making his first professional appearance in Ah, Wilderness (1941) and film debut in In Which We Serve (1942). At first typecast as weak and cowardly youths, he played the thug Pinkie in Brighton Rock on stage (1943) and on film (1947). He developed into a conscientious character actor, winning British Academy Awards as the kidnapper in S�ance on a Wet Afternoon (1964) and the bombastic sergeant major in Guns at Batasi (1964). He was actor-producer of several feature films in the 1960s before turning director on O What a Lovely War! (1969). A 20-year crusade to film the life of Mahatma Gandhi led to Gandhi (1982) which won eight Academy Awards. His other directorial credits include Cry Freedom (1987), Shadowlands (1993) and In Love and War (1996). After a lengthy absence, he returned to acting in Jurassic Park (1993). The Richard Attenborough Centre for Disability and the Arts was opened in 1997 at Leicester University. A tireless ambassador for the British film industry, he married actress Sheila Sim (1922- ) in 1944 and is the brother of Sir David Attenborough.