A couple of sketches of Daniel Radcliffe, from Equus on West End and Broadway, and also one from How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, which was Broadway only.
Daniel signed for me at the London premiere of The Woman in Black in 2012
My other Daniel Radcliffe sketch is here.
Jeff Fahey has starred in many indie classics, including the title role in the cult sci-fi hit The Lawnmower Man opposite Pierce Brosnan and Quentin Tarantino’s Grindhouse. Other films include Clint Eastwood’s White Hunter Black Heart; Silveradd and Wyatt Earp, both with Kevin Costner.
Jeff’s extensive television career includes playing the title role in The Marshal and most recently, the hit series Lost playing helicopter pilot Frank Lapidus. His humanitarian work involves assisting the establishment of the American University of Afghanistan, projects to assist orphans in Kabul and is a Global Ambassador on the US Committee for refugees and immigrants.
Jeff is part of a stellar cast in the latest West End revival of the classic courtroom drama Twelve Angry Men. He plays the estranged third juror – the last one to vote not guilty (Lee Jacob’s role in the 1957 movie). He signed and dedicated my sketch before yesterday’s matinée at the Garrick Theatre.
Australian comedian, satirist, artist, author and icon Barry Humphries is on his ‘Farewell Tour’ with Eat, Pray, Laugh, marking his retirement form live entertainment after more than fifty years in the business. Barry’s forte is always his one-man satirical revues in which he appears as a number of his character creations.
My sketch of Barry and his alter egos – acid-tongued gigastar housewife Dame Edna Everage, the inebriated cultural attaché Sir Les Patterson and the gentle ‘returned gentleman’ Sandy Stone. Barry signed it for me at the London Palladium where Eat, Pray, Laugh opened in the UK in November. Prior to a national provincial tour.
English actress Lesley Manville has an illustrious career in film, theatre and television. She frequently collaborates with director Mike Leigh, including Another Year (2010), Secrets and Lies (1996) and Vera Drake (2004).
For her role in Another Year she was nominated for a BAFTA, British Independent Film Award and Chicago Film Critic’s Award, and won her second London Film Critics Circle Award and the National Board of Review for Best Actress.
In theatre, Lesley was nominated for a 2012 Olivier Award for her role as the widowed Dorothy in Mike Leigh’s new play Grief at the National.
She is currently in Ghosts, which transferred to the Trafalgar Studios from the Almeida Theatre after winning director Richard Eyre an Evening Standard Theatre Award. Lesley was also nominated for Best Actress. She signed my sketch at the Old Vic in February 2010. while performing in Six Degrees of Separation.
Model, actress and TV presenter Kelly Brook signed this quick sketch for me at the Noël Coward Theatre stage door during her season in Calendar Girls in November 2009. It would be fair to say that the costume crew weren’t overly worked during their production…
Following on from yesterday’s Pickup Lines, I also produced sketches of the other main characters from Samuel Beckett’s absurdist tragicomedy Waiting for Godot in a similar ‘elemental’ style – like the play itself.
Sir Ian McKellen as Estragon and Simon Callow as Pozzo also signed their respective renderings at the Theatre Royal Haymarket in August 2009.
Distinguished thespian Ronald Pickup worked with Sir Laurence Olivier at the National, namely Three Sisters and Long Day’s Journey Into Night, and was nominated for an Olivier Award in 1998 for his supporting role in Amy’s View.
He played the role of ‘Lucky’ alongside Ian Mckellen, Patrick Stewart and Simon Callow in Sean Mathias production of Samuel Beckett’s Waiting for Godot at London’s Theatre Royal Haymarket. He signed my sketch after I was lucky enough to see a Saturday matinée in August 2009.
Pat Rafter and Goran Ivanisevic contested the 2001 Wimbledon Men’s single’s final. The former was one of the top seeds, the latter was ranked 125, although he had been runner-up in three previous occasions, in 2001 he went one better.
I accidentally placed a $5 bet on the Ivanisevic to win and considered it money not well spent, given the huge odds. Actually I meant to back 4th seed Marat Safin, but not being an experienced gambler I selected the wrong number when filling in the betting slip. Ironically Goran beat Marat in the Quarterfinals and went on to turn my fiver into a wad of cash.
With back to back US Open titles in 1997-98 briefing holding the World Number One ranking, Pat was favoured. Goran became the champion, winning 9-7 in the fifth set, and becoming the only person to win with a wild card and the lowest ranked player to win in history.
He did have a career high Number Two ranking in 1994 behind Pete Sampras and won bronze medals in both singles and doubles at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics.
Both players were part of the ATP Champions Tour Masters’ Tournament at the Royal Albert Hall this week and they signed their respective sketches for me. For the record, Pat won this time.
Stefan Edberg (or Iceberg as he was called in jest) along with Boris Becker, dominated Wimbledon in the latter part of the 1980s. The diffident Swede’s style was made for the lawns of the All England Club, his deportment complementing the ambience of the sport’s traditional theatre, as impressively as his strokes.
The 6’2″ right hander was one of the major proponents of the serve-and-volley, arguable the greatest of all time. He reached 11 Grand Slam singles finals, winning six, twice claiming victory at Wimbledon, The Australian and US Opens. In his ATP World Tour profile, Bud Collins describes him as a stylistic misfit among the Swedish legion that rose in Björn Borg’s sneaker steps and image, Stefan Edberg was an extraordinarily graceful attacker.”
Along with John McEnroe, they are the only players to reach World No. One in both singles and doubles. Stefan also won all four Junior Grand Slam titles in 1983 – the only person to do so.
The French Open evaded him, but only just! He reached the final in 1989, losing in a close five setter to Michael Chang. He also won three Grand Slam men’s doubles titles.
Unfortunately, knee surgery sidelined him at this years Statoil Master’s Tennis Tournament on the ATP Champions Tour. But, luckily for me, he did turn up yesterday to watch and even more luckily, I had my sketch of him with me and he was happy to sign.
Mats Wilander is one of the main reasons I began to follow tennis in the 1980s. In fact it was three Swedes – Mats, Stefan Edberg and the legendary Björn Borg that galvanised my attraction for the sport. Mats was a great fighter. He didn’t possess big weapons, but would grind out victories, plus he was an all round good guy.
He won his 4th Grand Slam title at the age of 20 – the youngest in history to achieve that feat and is one of only 5 men (Connors, Agassi, Nadal and Federer) to have won Grand Slam singles titles on grass, hard and clay courts. (Two of his Australian victories were when the tournament was still played on grass). He did collect a Wimbledon title in 1986, partnering Joakim Nyström in the men’s doubles.
1988 was a defining year. He won three out of the four Slams, losing to Miloslav Mecir in the Wimbledon quarter, finishing the year ranked number one. He was booked on Pan Am Flight 103 in December – had he boarded he would have died ranked number one. The plane exploded over Lockerbie from a terrorist bomb, killing all on board. And I would not have been able to meet him last night at London’s Royal Albert Hall after his match at the Statoil Masters’ Tournament. He had to wait for his car, so I was lucky enough to have a brief chat while he signed this sketch and my World Number One’s book.
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