Orlando Bloom

Orlando Jonathan Blanchard Copeland Bloom was born on January 13, 1977 in Canterbury, Kent, England. His mother, Sonia Constance Josephine Bloom (née Copeland),

was born in Kolkata, India, to an English family then-resident there.

The man he first knew as his father, Harry Bloom, was a legendary

political activist who fought for civil rights in South Africa. But

Harry died of a stroke when Orlando was only four years old. After

that, Orlando and his older sister,

Samantha Bloom, were raised by their

mother and family friend, Colin Stone. When Orlando was 13, Sonia

revealed to him that Colin is actually the biological father of Orlando and his sister; the two were conceived after an agreement by his parents, since Harry, who suffered a stroke in 1975, was unable to have children.

Orlando attended St. Edmund's School in Canterbury but struggled in many

courses because of dyslexia. He did embrace the arts, however, and

enjoyed pottery, photography and sculpturing. He also participated in

school plays and was active at his local theater. As a teen, Orlando

landed his first job: he was a clay trapper at a pigeon shooting range.

Encouraged by his mother, he and his sister began studying poetry and

prose, eventually giving readings at Kent Festival. Orlando and

Samantha won many poetry and Bible reciting competitions. Then Orlando,

who always idolized larger-than-life characters, gravitated towards

serious acting. At the age of 16, he moved to London and joined the

National Youth Theatre, spending two seasons there and gaining a

scholarship to train with the British American Drama Academy. Like many

young actors, he also auditioned for a number of television roles to

further his career, landing bit parts in British television shows

Casualty (1986),

Midsomer Murders (1997) and

Smack the Pony (1999). He also

appeared in the critically acclaimed movie

Wilde (1997).

He then attended the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. It was there,

in 1998, that Orlando fell three stories from a rooftop terrace and

broke his back. Despite fears that he would be permanently paralyzed,

he quickly recovered and returned to the stage. As fate would have it,

seated in the audience one night in 1999 was a director named

Peter Jackson. After the show, he

met with Orlando and asked him to audition for his new set of movies.

After graduating from Guildhall, Orlando began work on the "Lord of the

Rings" trilogy, spending 18 months in New Zealand bringing to life

"Legolas", a part which made him a household name. Today, he is one of

the busiest and most sought-after actors in the industry.