Ian McDiarmid is a veteran Scottish actor who is most renowned worldwide for playing the role of the evil Emperor Palpatine in the Star Wars trilogy.
Ian McDiarmid is not only an accomplished movie, stage and television actor but Ian McDiarmid is also a successful stage director as well. Although Ian McDiarmid was inspired to become an actor from a very early age, he decided to pursue conventional studies to please his father. After earning his Master’s degree from St. Andrews, Ian McDiarmid finally decided to pursue a career in acting and soon made his stage debut in 1972.
Today, Ian McDiarmid is highly popular in the Scottish theater industry as being a highly-talented method actor as well as an accomplished stage director as well.
About Ian McDiarmid
Bio | |
Real Name | Ian McDiarmid |
Nickname | Ian |
Date of Birth | 11th August, 1944 |
Age | 80 years |
Nationality | Scottish |
Religion | Atheist |
Place of Birth | Carnoustie (Scotland) |
Education | Graduated with Master of Arts (MA) degree in Psychology from University of St. Andrews (Fife, Scotland) |
Physical Stats | |
Height | 5 ft 10" (178 cm) approximately |
Weight | 176 lbs (80 kg) approximately |
Hair Color | White |
Eye Color | Blue |
Family & Relationships | |
Father | (not known) |
Mother | (not known) |
Marital Status | Unmarried |
Spouse | (none) |
Career | |
Profession | Actor/Stage Director |
Net Worth | INR 71,00,00,000 (USD 10 Million) |
Famous for | MOVIES - The Likely Lads (1976), The Awakening (1980), Dragonslayer (1981), Return of the Jedi (1983), Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (1988), Restoration (1995), Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace, Sleepy Hollow (1999), Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones (2002), The Empire Strikes Back (2004), Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith (2005), The Lost City of Oz (2016) TELEVISION - Red Letter Day - "Amazing Stories" (1976), Macbeth (1979), The Nation's Health (1983), Pity in History (1985), Chernobyl: The Final Warning (1991), Heart of Darkness (1993), Anni: A Royal Adventure! (1995), Karaoke (1996), Touching Evil (1997), Great Expectations (1999), Crime and Punishment (2002), Charles II: The Power and The Passion (2003), Our Hidden Lives (2005), City of Vice (2008), Margaret (2009), Utopia (2014), Britannia (2018) STAGE - - As Actor - Hamlet (1972), In the Jungle of Cities (1973), Destiny (1976), The Days of the Commune (1977), The Worlds (1981), The Party (1985), The Danton Affair (1986), The King Goes Forth to France (1987), The Black Prince (1989), The Rehearsal (1990), Lulu (1991), The School for Wives (1993), Hated Nightfall (1995), The Government Inspector (1997), The Doctor's Dilemma (1998), The Jew of Malta (1999), Faith Healer (2001), Lear (2005), Jonah and Otto (2008), Be Near Me (2009), The Prince of Homburg (2010), The Faith Machine (2011), Timon of Athens (2012), Life of Galileo (2013), Merchant of Venice (2014), What Shadows (2016) - As Director - Venice Preserv'd (1986), Don Juan (1988), The Possibilities (1988), Scenes from an Execution (1990), The Rehearsal (1990), Volpone (1990), Lulu (1991), Hippolytus (1991), A Hard Heart (1992) |
First Movie | The Likely Lads (1976) |
Favorite Actor | Tommy Morgan |
Hobbies | Loves traveling and acting |
Ian McDiarmid is an extremely talented actor who is easy to recognize for his soft-spoken dialogues which usually have a slight accent to them. Ian McDiarmid’s portrayal of Emperor Palpatine in the earliest Star Wars movie trilogy was voted as one of the best method acting by critics and fans alike. Ian McDiarmid is a regular feature in the British and Scottish theater industry, as an actor and stage director too.
Ian McDiarmid’s age is around 80 years, as Ian McDiarmid was born on the 11th of August, 1944 in Carnoustie, Scotland. Ian McDiarmid’s height is around 5 ft 10 inches (178 cm). Ian McDiarmid’s weight is around 80 kg (176 lbs). Ian McDiarmid’ hobby is traveling while Ian McDiarmid’s passion is acting.
We currently do not have details about Ian McDiarmid’s parents and Ian McDiarmid’s siblings, if any. Ian McDiarmid’s relationship status remains single as Ian McDiarmid has not been married till date.
Thanks to his success as a theater artist and stage director, Ian McDiarmid’s net worth is estimated around INR 71 crores (USD 10 Million).
Ian McDiarmid’s acting talent has earned Ian McDiarmid several prestigious awards as well as numerous award nominations too.
The list of Ian McDiarmid’s award-wins include winning the:
- Gold Medal from the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama in 1968
- Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in a New Play for his performance in ‘Insignificance’ (1982)
- 2 Time Out Comedy Awards – Time Out Comedy Award for Directing for ‘Scenes from an Execution’ (1985) and the Time Out Comedy Award for Directing for ‘Volpone’ (1990)
- Manchester Evening News Award for Best Actor for his performance in ‘Hated Nightfall’ (1995)
- Critics Circle Theater Award for Best Theater Actor for his performance in ‘Faith Healer’ (2001)
- Clarence Derwent Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in ‘Faith Healer’ (2002)
- Manchester Evening News Award for Best Actor for his performance in ‘Henry IV’ (2004)
- Theatregoers’ Choice Award for Best Actor for his performance in ‘Henry IV’ (2004)
- Theatregoers’ Choice Award for Best Actor for his performance in ‘King Lear’ (2005)
- Theater World Award for Outstanding Debut Performance for his acting in ‘Faith Healer’ (2006)
- Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play for his performance in ‘Faith Healer’ (2006)
Apart from having won over 13 awards Ian McDiarmid has also had numerous award nominations in his career as well.
Interesting Facts About Ian McDiarmid
- Although he was inspired to become an actor since when he was around 5 years old Ian McDiarmid decided not to earn his father’s ire and continued with his studies till he earned his Master of Arts (MA) in Psychology from the University of St. Andrews and later went to pursue acting courses from the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Arts, where he was also awarded the Gold Medal for his incredible performance.
- Ian McDiarmid is one of the most popular stage actors and directors in the British theater industry today.
- Ian McDiarmid surprisingly played the role of an older and disfigured Emperor Palpatine before he re-appeared as a comparatively younger Senator Palpatine in the later Star Wars movies.
- Ian McDiarmid’s makeup for playing Emperor Palpatine in Star Wars reportedly took over 2 hours to get done every day before the shoot.
- Ian McDiarmid is the only actor to play the character and also provide the voice of a Sith lord in the Star Wars movie franchise.
Ian is a former Presbyterian and current atheist. And his eyes are blue!