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| Hugh Laurie, OBE | |
 at the Actors' Guild Question and Answer, 2005 |
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| Born | James Hugh Calum Laurie 11 June 1959 (1959-06-11) (age 50) Oxford, England |
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| Occupation | Actor, comedian, writer, musician |
| Years active | 1982–present |
| Spouse(s) | Jo Green (since 1989) |
James Hugh Calum Laurie, OBE (IPA: [ˈlɒri], (born 11 June 1959) is an English actor, comedian, writer and musician. He first reached fame as one half of the Fry and Laurie double act, along with his friend and comedy partner, Stephen Fry, and then as a cast member of Blackadder. Since 2004, he has starred as Dr. Gregory House, the protagonist in the Fox television drama House.
Early life and education
Laurie was born in Oxford, England.[1] The youngest of four children, Laurie has a brother (six years older) and two sisters.[2] His mother, Patricia (née Laidlaw), died from motor neurone disease in Oxfordshire aged 73 in 1989; Laurie was 30 at the time. According to Laurie, it took her two years to die, and she suffered "painful, plodding paralysis" while being cared for by Laurie's father, whom he called "the sweetest man in the whole world".[2] He had a somewhat strained relationship with his mother.[1][3] His father, W.G.R.M. "Ran" Laurie, was a medical doctor who also won an Olympic gold medal in the coxless pairs (rowing) at the 1948 London Games.[1][4]
Laurie was raised in the Scottish Presbyterian church,[1][5] although he has since become an atheist: "I don't believe in God, but I have this idea that if there were a God, or destiny of some kind looking down on us, that if he saw you taking anything for granted he'd take it away."[6] He labelled himself as an atheist on an episode of God Almighty in 2003.[7] He was brought up in Oxford and attended the Dragon School. He later went on to Eton and then to Selwyn College, Cambridge, where he achieved a Third-Class Honours degree in archaeology and anthropology.[1]
Like his father, Laurie was an oarsman at school and university;[1] in 1977, he was a member of the junior coxed pair that won the British national title before representing Britain's Youth Team at the 1977 Junior World Rowing Championships. In 1980, Laurie and his rowing partner, J. S. Palmer, were runners-up in the Silver Goblets[8] coxless pairs for Eton Vikings rowing club. Later, he also achieved a Blue while taking part in the 1980 Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race.[9] Cambridge lost that year by 1.5 metres (4 ft 11 in). Laurie is a member of the Leander Club, one of the oldest rowing clubs in the world.
Forced to abandon rowing during a bout of infectious mononucleosis (glandular fever), he joined the Cambridge Footlights, which has been the starting point for many successful British comedians. There he met Emma Thompson, with whom he had a romantic relationship; the two remain good friends.[1] She introduced him to his future comedy partner, Stephen Fry. Laurie, Fry and Thompson later parodied themselves as the University Challenge representatives of "Footlights College, Oxbridge" in "Bambi", an episode of The Young Ones, with the series' co-writer Ben Elton completing their team. In 1980–81, his final year at university, besides rowing, Laurie was also president of the Footlights, with Thompson as vice-president. They took their annual revue, The Cellar Tapes, to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and won the first Perrier Comedy Award. The revue was written principally by Laurie and Fry, and the cast also included Thompson, Tony Slattery, Paul Shearer and Penny Dwyer.