| James Fox | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | William Fox |
| Born | May 19 1939 London, England |
| Years active | 1950 - present |
| Spouse(s) | Mary Elizabeth Piper (1973 - present) |
James Fox OBE (born 19 May 1939) is an English actor.
Contents |
Biography
Early life
James Fox was born in London to theatrical agent Robin Fox and actress Angela Worthington. He is the brother of actor Edward Fox and film producer Robert Fox. He is also a paternal half-brother of Daniel Chatto and a brother-in-law of Lady Sarah Chatto. The actress Emilia Fox is his niece and the actor Laurence Fox is his son. His grandfather was playwright Frederick Lonsdale.
Acting career
James Fox first appeared on film in the The Miniver Story in 1950. His other early film appearances were made under the name William Fox. During the 1960s he gained popularity and appeared to be heading for stardom. His roles in films such as The Servant (1963), Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines (1965), King Rat (1965), Thoroughly Modern Millie (1967), Isadora (1968) and Performance (1970) (alongside Mick Jagger), as well as his relationship with actress Sarah Miles, had made him a media personality.
Spiritual life and break from acting
After finishing work on Performance, and following his father's death, Fox suspended his acting career. The strain of filming, his father's death and smoking the hallucinogen DMT led to a nervous breakdown.[1] On his break from acting, Fox has commented that:[1]
| “ | People think Performance blew my mind... my mind was blown long before that. | ” |
He has also said that:[1]
| “ | Performance gave me doubts about my way of life. Before that I had been completely involved in the more bawdy side of the film business. But after that everything changed. | ” |
He became an evangelical Christian, working with The Navigators and devoting himself to the ministry.[2] During this time, the only film in which Fox appeared was No Longer Alone (1978), the story of a suicidal woman saved by Christianity.
Return to acting
After an absence of almost ten years from mainstream cinema, Fox gradually returned to the screen, appearing in A Passage to India (1984) and playing Anthony Blunt in the acclaimed BBC play by Alan Bennett, A Question of Attribution (1992). More recently, he has appeared in Agatha Christie's Poirot - Death on the Nile (2004) as Colonel Race and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005) playing Mr. Salt, Veruca Salt's father. He appeared in the Doctor Who audio dramas Shada and on television in the series Waking the Dead.
Personal life
In the 1960s, Fox had a relationship with actress Sarah Miles.[1] James Fox is married to Mary Elizabeth Piper (1973 - present) and has five children.[1] He is the father of Laurence Fox, also an actor.[1]
Selected film and television appearances
- The Miniver Story (1950) - as Toby Miniver
- The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner (1962) - as Gunthorpe
- The Servant (1963) - as Tony
- King Rat (1965) - as Peter Marlowe
- The Chase - as Jason 'Jake' Rogers
- Thoroughly Modern Millie (1967) - as Jimmy
- Duffy (1968) - as Stephane Calvert
- Performance (1970) - as Chas
- Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes (1984) - as Lord Charles Esker
- A Passage to India (1984) - as Richard Fielding
- Absolute Beginners (1986) - as Henley of Mayfair, Dressmaker to the Queen
- The Mighty Quinn (1989) - as Thomas Elgin
- The Russia House (1990) - as Ned
- Patriot Games (1992) - as Lord William Holmes
- A Question of Attribution (1992) (TV) - as Sir Anthony Blunt
- The Remains of the Day (1993) - as Lord Darlington
- Heart of Darkness (1994) - as Gosse
- The Choir (1995) - as the Dean, Hugh Cavendish
- Gulliver's Travels (1996) - as Dr. Bates
- Anna Karenina (1997) - as Karenin
- Jinnah (film) (1998) - as Mountbatten
- Mickey Blue Eyes (1999) - as Philip Cromwell
- Up at the Villa (2000) - as Sir Edgar Swift
- Sexy Beast (2000) - as Harry
- The Golden Bowl (2000) - as Colonel Bob Assingham
- The Lost World (2001) - as Prof. Leo Summerlee
- Cambridge Spies (2003) - as Lord Halifax
- The Prince and Me (2004) - as King Haraald
- Agatha Christie's Poirot - Death on the Nile (2004) - as Colonel Race
- Marple: The Body in the Library (2004) - as Colonel Arthur Bantry
- Colditz (2005) - as Lt. Colonel Jimmy Fordham
- Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005) - as Mr. Salt
- Absolute Power - The Nation's Favourite (2005) - as Gerald Thurnham
References
- ^ a b c d e f IMDB.com, James Fox: Biography.
- ^ Biography at British Cinema Greats. Retrieved on 2006-07-31.
