Martin Freeman

Career

Freeman has appeared in at least 18 TV shows, 14 theatre productions, and several radio productions. His most famous role remains that of Tim Canterbury inThe Office. He also appeared in the sitcomHardware. Additionally Freeman has appeared in several films , including Sacha Baron Cohen 'sAli G Indahouse(2002) and Richard Curtis 'Love Actually(2003). As well as his various comic roles, Freeman has also appeared in serious dramatic parts. His most prominent dramatic role to date has been as Lord Shaftesbury in the 2003 BBC historical dramaCharles II: The Power and The Passion. He can also be seen making a brief appearance in the first episode of the second series ofThis Life, helping himself to £30 from Milly and Egg's bedside table before unknowingly swigging a mouthful of Egg's urine from a lager can. Freeman also starred in the BBC's television seriesThe Robinsons. Freeman also had a cameo performance in episode 1 ofBlack Books.

He had a cameo inHot Fuzz(2007), a film written byShaun of the Deadwriters Simon Pegg and Edgar Wright , and had a brief non-speaking role inShaun of the Deadas Yvonne's boyfriend, Declan. He is in the 2007 filmThe All Togetherwritten & directed by Gavin Claxton . He also appeared along side Roger Lloyd Pack, Jamie Hogarth and Christopher Mellows in the 2007 Bill Kenwright theatre production ofThe Last Laugh.

He also features in the video for Faith No More 's cover of " I Started a Joke ". He has recently covered a few shows on BBC 6 Music . In May 2009 he starred in a comedy, calledBoy Meets Girl- a four part drama that charts the progress of characters Veronica and Danny after an accident which causes them to swap bodies.

Freeman plays Dr. John Watson inSherlock, the BBC contemporary adaptation of the Sherlock Holmes detective stories. The first episode, " A Study in Pink ", was broadcast on 25 July 2010 to critical acclaim. Following some uncertainty regarding scheduling conflicts, he has been cast in the role of Bilbo Baggins in the upcoming two-part Peter Jackson prequel toThe Lord of the Ringsfilm trilogy , titledThe Hobbit.

Personal life

Born to Geoff and Philomena R. Norris, Freeman is the youngest of five children. He is married to actress Amanda Abbington ,who has appeared alongside Freeman in several productions, such asMen Only,Picking Up The Pieces,The Debt,The Robinsonsand the feature film comedyThe All Together. He has two children: a son Joe, born in 2005, and a daughter, Grace, born in 2009. Freeman is left handed .

In an edition ofWho Do You Think You Are?aired on 19 August 2009, he discovered that his grandfather, Leonard Freeman, was a member of the Royal Army Medical Corps during World War Two . Private L W Freeman, a Territorial Army volunteer in the 150(N) Field Ambulance Regiment, was killed in Northern France on 24 May 1940 in a Stuka dawn attack. His unit was evacuated from Dunkirk two days later. Freeman is a lifelong fan of Motown music and interviewed Smokey Robinson in an edition ofThe Culture Showaired in October 2009. He still buys a lot of vinyl albums from the Retrobloke.com shop in Hendon, North London.

Education

Freeman was raised Catholic and was educated at Cardinal Newman school, a Roman Catholic Primary school in Hersham. He also attended Salesian School , a Voluntary Aided Roman Catholic comprehensive school in the town of Chertsey in Surrey , followed by the Central School of Speech and Drama in London.

Films

.

Television

1. Hardy, Rebecca (20 November 2009)."'People care more about X Factor than homelessness:' The Office star Martin Freeman on the things that tick him off" .Daily Mail. . Retrieved 19 October 2010.
2. ^
"Martin Freeman to play Bilbo Baggins in The Hobbit" .BBC News. 2010-10-22. . Retrieved 2010-10-24. "Martin Freeman as Bilbo Baggins, a match made in Hobbit heaven" .Guardian. 2010-10-22. . Retrieved 2010-10-24. Paton, Maureen (17 July 2010).Daily Mail(London). . 
3. ^
4. ^^{a b} ,Big Pond News, October 22, 2010