Robbie coltrane biography

His imposing build - 6'1" and heavy with it - might perhaps have limited his choice of parts over the years, but Robbie Coltrane has shown himself to be among the most versatile of the generation of performers who came to prominence with the alternative comedy boom of the early 1980s.

With the exception of Hugh Laurie, none of his contemporaries has so successfully made the leap into 'straight' roles and Hollywood favour.

Born Anthony Robert McMillan in Rutherglen, Glasgow on 30 March 1950, the son of cultured Scottish Calvinists, at the age of 23 he won a Scottish Education Council award for a documentary about mental health.

During his twenties he became involved with a number of theatre companies, including John Byrne's Traverse Theatre, while at the same time developing his skills in improvisational comedy and stand-up. His earliest screen work further demonstrates the diversity of work that has characterised his career since - he made his television debut in the Play for