Sir John Gielgud was a highly distinguished and prolific performer who is considered to be one of the finest actors of his generation. A graduate of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts in London, he played his first Hamlet in 1930, and quickly established himself as one of the most eminent Shakespearean interpreters of his time, as well as a respected director. He made his screen debut in 1924 in Who Is the Man? (1924) and appeared in Alfred Hitchcocks Secret Agent (1936) in 1936, as well as several Shakespearian adaptations such as Julius Caesar (1953) in 1953 and Oliviers Richard III (1955) in 1955.Since the late 1960s he increasingly appeared in character roles. Other film credits include: Becket (1964) (for which he was nominated for an Oscar for his portrayal of King Louis VII of France); The Charge of the Light Brigade (1968); Oh! What a Lovely War (1969); A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man (1977); The Elephant Man (1980); Arthur (1981); Chariots of Fire (1981); Gandhi (1982); Scandalous (1984); The Shooting Party (1984); The Far Pavilions (1984); Plenty (1985); The Whistle Blower (1986); Barbablandugrave;, Barbablandugrave; (1987); Arthur 2: On the Rocks (1988); Prosperos Books (1991); Shining Through (1992); The Best of Friends (1991); The Power of One (1992), and First Knight (1995) with Sean Connery and Richard Gere.Gielguds later television credits include Brideshead Revisited (1981); The Master of Ballantrae (1984); The Theban Plays by Sophocles: Theban Plays: Oedipus the King (1986); War and Remembrance (1988); Screen Two: Quartermaines Terms (1987); A Man for All Seasons (1988); A TV Dante (1989); Scarlett (1994); and Alleyn Mysteries (1990). He also published three novels Early Stages (1939), Stage Directions (1963) and Distinguished Company (1972).