Denis Lawson Bio - Denis Lawson Biography

Denis Lawson: Biography

Denis was born in Scotland in 1947. He attended drama school with fellow Star Wars Trilogy actor Ian McDiarmid. His nephew is Ewan McGregor.

He achieved cult status following his appearance in the original Star Wars Trilogy as Captain Wedge Antilles, though he was unable to return for the prequels.

Denis married actress Sheila Gish in March 2004. He met her when they worked together on That Uncertain Feeling in the early 1980s.

Denis has a son, Jamie, with actress Diane Fletcher.

Theatre Awards

Olivier Awards
Actor of the Year in a Musical for Mr. Cinders (1983) (Won).(edit)
Denis contributed a Doodle to the National Doodle Campaign (2008), which auctions off celebrity doodles for charity (The Neurofibromatosis Association). (edit)
Denis' first foray into acting was on stage in The Metamorphosis, in 1969, in London's West End.(edit)
Denis directed Sheila Hancock in the play The Anniversary in 2004, and it was very well received.(edit)
Denis narrated the feature A New Body at Last on the Doctor Who, New Beginnings DVD, focusing on the changeover to Peter Davison.(edit)
Denis is a director of The Skillset Film Lab, which is a series of workshops as part of the UK Film Skills Strategy.(edit)
Denis narrated the audio novel Star Wars: Heir To The Empire.(edit)
In 1999 he directed his nephew Ewan McGregor in the play Little Malcolm and His Struggle Against the Eunuchs, in the West End of London.

He also directed him in the Channel 4 production of Ian McKewan's Solid Geometry.(edit)
Denis recreated his character Wedge Antilles for the Star Wars Video Game, Rogue Leader: Rogue Squadron II.(edit)
So keen was Denis to play the character of John Jarndyce well in Bleak House that he asked the writers to create a back story that would explain his current circumstances.(edit)
Denis' stepchildren Kay Curram and Lou Gish are actors.(edit)
Denis' wife Sheila Gish passed away in March 2005. Though only married a year, they had been together since the mid 80s.(edit)
His name was misspelled in the Star Wars credits.(edit)
TV Awards

BAFTA Awards
Best Actor for Bleak House (2006) (Nomination).

Emmy Awards
Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie for his performance in Bleak House (2006) (Nomination).(edit)
He is 5'8" (1.73 m) tall. (edit)
Denis Lawson entered the Who's Who Almanac for the first time in 2007.(edit)

(on "Sensitive Skin", the series he stars in with Joanna Lumley)
Denis: There are moments that make you die laughing, and then suddenly it�s very sad. I�ve never come across anything like it.(edit)
(on what brought him to "Jekyll")
Denis: It was the writing that really attracted me to the part � I mean they are really exceptional scripts � very witty, really scary, sometimes both at the same time, which makes it a phenomenal drama.(edit)
(on "The Skillset Film Lab")
Denis: This is an opportunity to get information about the film-making process across to actors - and information is power.(edit)
(on playing Wedge Antilles in the "Star Wars films.
Denis: They were the least important jobs I've ever done. I just sat in a chair and talked. It's ludicrous, but people tell me it changed their lives. I find it bewildering.(edit)
(on his philosophy of life)
Denis: Go forward. I live in the present and I go forward into the future with a very optimistic, open mind.(edit)