Biography

Daniel Jacob Radcliffe was born July 23, 1989 in Fulham, England (outside of London).

Daniel was always interested in acting, even at a very early age and began acting in school plays. His first professional acting role was in a made for television production of David Copperfield in 1999. He originally auditioned for the role “as a bit of fun.” He made his movie debut in the Tailor of Panama.

Sometime in 1999, the search for Harry Potter was in full force. The film’s producer, Chris Columbus saw a tape of David Copperfield and wanted to audition Daniel for the part. Co-Producer David Heyman was a business associate of Daniel’s father. He bumped into Daniel’s father at a play (Stones in His Pockets) and they spent half the play talking about Daniel and Harry Potter. Daniel had a meeting with Columbus and Heyman, and soon after they offered him the role.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone was released in 2001 and like the book’s it was based on, was a huge success. Daniel also received praise in his role as Harry and was nominated for many awards, including: the Saturn Award for Best Performance by a Younger Actor, BFCA Award for Best Young Actor/Actress, Empire Award for Best Debut, MTV Movie Award for Breakthrough Male Performance and PFCS Award for Best Newcomer.

The following two movies, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002) was another blockbuster smashes. He was nominated for the Saturn Award for Best Performance by a Younger Actor for his role in the Chamber of Secrets. The cast of this movie was nominated for the Phoenix Award for Best Acting Ensemble (shared with Kenneth Branagh, John Cleese, Robbie Coltrane, Warwick Davis, Richard Griffiths, Rupert Grint, Richard Harris, Jason Isaacs, Alan Rickman, Fiona Shaw, Maggie Smith, Julie Walters, Emma Watson)

Once again, JK Rowling's film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban delighted millions of fans who could not get enough of the series. Daniel and co-stars Emma Watson (Hermione Granger), Rupert Grint (Ron Weasley) and Tom Felton (Draco Malfoy) have become world famous for their characters. For his role in The Prisoner of Azkaban, Daniel was nominated for the Saturn Award for Best Performance by a Younger Actor and the BFCA Award for Best Young Actor.

In 2004, Daniel was reported to be the second richest teenager in England (Prince Harry being the first).

Even with his hectic movie schedule, he had some time to do some acting on a West End stage in the production of The Play What I Wrote.

For his birthday in 2005, he has made a big effort for his fans to give gifts and donations to one of the charities he supports - Demelza House (instead of sending the gifts to him).

Daniel will be starring once again as Harry Potter later this year in Harry Potter Movie, Harry Potter and and the Goblet of Fire. No, this is not the last we will see of Daniel as Harry Potter - he is finishing up Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix due to be released in 2007. He has also taken himself away from the world of magic and will also star in a movie called December Boys slated to be on the big screens in 2006.

It looks like Daniel is excited about continuing as Harry Potter through the seventh movie. Rupert Grint is also very excited about that prospect. However, Emma Watson is having doubts about continuing past the fifth movie.

Daniel took on a much more adult and serious role on the West End in the play Equus, where he plays a mentally ill teenage boy. One of the scenes in the play require him to be naked.

In early March 2007, Radcliffe announced that he has signed a contract for the two remaining Harry Potter movies so now there can be no speculation as to who will fill his part.

Hobbies and interests: Football (soccer) enthusiast [Fulham]; pets (he has two dogs); playing bass guitar, magic; playing video games (Playstation).

Favorites: music = U2, Stereophonics, R.E.M, Jane's Addiction, Rage Against the Machine; movie = 12 Angry Men; actors = Gary Oldman

His Character

• Born: 1997
• Birthplace: Fiction
• Best Known As: Hero of the Harry Potter book series

Harry Potter is the fictional creation of author J.K. Rowling, who featured him in the 1997 book Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. (In the U.S., the book was titled Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.) Potter is a student wizard at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, where he belongs to the house of Gryffindor, plays the odd sport of quidditch and battles the villain Lord Voldemort. Rowling's original book was a smash hit and Potter became an international fad, with parents and children standing in line for the release of sequels. Rowling followed the original with five more Harry Potter books: The Chamber of Secrets (1999), The Prisoner of Azkaban (1999), The Goblet of Fire (2000), The Order of the Phoenix (2003), and The Half-Blood Prince (2005). The seventh and final book in the series, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, has not yet been published. To date, four Harry Potter feature films have been released: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (2001), Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002), Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004) and Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005). All four starred Daniel Radcliffe in the role of Harry Potter, Rupert Grint and Emma Watson as Harry's friends Ron and Hermione and Tom Felton as arch-rival Draco Malfoy.
Potter's forehead bears a scar in the shape of a lightning bolt.