Early life

McKay was born in Bury

Bury

Bury is a town in Greater Manchester, England. It lies on the River Irwell, east of Bolton, west-southwest of Rochdale, and north-northwest of the city of Manchester...

, Lancashire

Lancashire

Lancashire is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in the North West of England. It takes its name from the city of Lancaster, and is sometimes known as the County of Lancaster. Although Lancaster is still considered to be the county town, Lancashire County Council is based in Preston...

. His mother is a hairdresser and his father is a railway worker. He studied piano as a youth, and had performed the Rachmaninoff

Sergei Rachmaninoff

Sergei Vasilievich Rachmaninoff was a Russian composer, pianist, and conductor. Rachmaninoff is widely considered one of the finest pianists of his day and, as a composer, one of the last great representatives of Romanticism in Russian classical music...

 Piano Concerto No. 3

Piano Concerto No. 3 (Rachmaninoff)

The Piano Concerto No. 3 in D minor, Op. 30, composed in 1909 by Sergei Rachmaninoff is famous for its technical and musical demands on the performer...

 at age 21. McKay subsequently halted his concert career and enrolled at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art

Royal Academy of Dramatic Art

The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art is a drama school located in London, United Kingdom. It is generally regarded as one of the most renowned drama schools in the world, and is one of the oldest drama schools in the United Kingdom, having been founded in 1904.RADA is an affiliate school of the...

 to study acting.

Career

In the theatre, McKay has portrayed Orson Welles

Orson Welles

George Orson Welles , best known as Orson Welles, was an American film director, actor, theatre director, screenwriter, and producer, who worked extensively in film, theatre, television and radio...

 in the one-man play Rosebud: The Lives of Orson Welles at a number of venues, including the Edinburgh Festival

Edinburgh Festival

The Edinburgh Festival is a collective term for many arts and cultural festivals that take place in Edinburgh, Scotland each summer, mostly in August...

 and King's Head (London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

). He subsequently reprised the role in the US at the 2007 "Brits Off Broadway" festival.

McKay's television appearances include portraying conductor Pierre Monteux

Pierre Monteux

Pierre Monteux was an orchestra conductor. Born in Paris, France, Monteux later became an American citizen.-Life and career:Monteux was born in Paris in 1875. His family was descended from Sephardi Jews who came to France in the wake of the Spanish Inquisition. He studied violin from an early age,...

 in the BBC TV production Riot at the Rite (2005). His first film appearance was in Abraham's Point (2008).

After seeing a performance of Rosebud at the 2007 "Brits Off Broadway" festival, Richard Linklater

Richard Linklater

-Early life:Linklater was born in Houston, Texas. He studied at Sam Houston State University and left midway through his stint in college to work on an off-shore oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico. While working on the rig he read a lot of literature, but on land he developed a love of film through...

 cast McKay as Welles in his film Me and Orson Welles

Me and Orson Welles

Me and Orson Welles is a 2009 period-drama film directed by Richard Linklater and starring Zac Efron, Christian McKay, and Claire Danes. Based on Robert Kaplow's novel of the same name, the story, set in 1937 New York, tells of a teenager hired to perform in Orson Welles's stage production of...

, retaining McKay over the subsequent producer objections to his casting. In this, his second film, McKay received critical praise for his performance as Orson Welles.

Filmography

Year	Film	Role	Notes
2008	Abraham's Point	Robert
2009	Me and Orson Welles Me and Orson Welles Me and Orson Welles is a 2009 period-drama film directed by Richard Linklater and starring Zac Efron, Christian McKay, and Claire Danes. Based on Robert Kaplow's novel of the same name, the story, set in 1937 New York, tells of a teenager hired to perform in Orson Welles's stage production of...	Orson Welles Orson Welles George Orson Welles , best known as Orson Welles, was an American film director, actor, theatre director, screenwriter, and producer, who worked extensively in film, theatre, television and radio...	Austin Film Critics Association Award for Breakthrough Artist Austin Film Critics Association Awards 2009 The 5th Austin Film Critics Association Awards honored the best filmmaking of 2009.-Top 10 Films:#The Hurt Locker#Star Trek#Up#A Serious Man#Up in the Air#Avatar#Inglourious Basterds#District 9... San Francisco Film Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting Actor San Francisco Film Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting Actor The San Francisco Film Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting Actor, given by the San Francisco Film Critics Circle, honors the finest achievements in filmmaking.-2000s:-2010s:... Utah Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor Utah Film Critics Association The Utah Film Critics Association is an organization of cinema journalists affiliated with publications, broadcasting stations and online media based in Utah... Nominated — BAFTA Award for Best Supporting Actor BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role Best Actor in a Supporting Role is a British Academy Film award presented annually by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding supporting performance in a film... Nominated — British Independent Film Award for Most Promising Newcomer British Independent Film Awards 2009 The 12th British Independent Film Awards, held on 6 December 2009 at The Brewery in West London, honoured the best British independent films of 2009.-Best British Independent Film:* Moon* An Education* Fish Tank* In The Loop... Nominated — Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor Nominated — Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor The Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor is an annual award given by the Chicago Film Critics Association.-1980s:-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:-References:... Nominated — Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Most Promising Performer Chicago Film Critics Association Awards 2009 The 22nd Chicago Film Critics Association Awards, given by the CFCA on December 21, 2009, honored the best in film for 2009.-Best Actor:Jeremy Renner – The Hurt Locker*Jeff Bridges – Crazy Heart*George Clooney – Up in the Air... Nominated — Chlotrudis Award for Best Supporting Actor Chlotrudis Award for Best Supporting Actor The Chlotrudis Award for Best Supporting Actor is an award given by the Chlotrudis Society for Independent Film to the actor or actors whose winning performance is voted by participating members. The Chlotrudis Awards is an annual ceremony where the best of the previous year's independent and... Nominated — Detroit Film Critics Society Award for Best Supporting Actor Detroit Film Critics Society The Detroit Film Critics Society is a film critic organization in Detroit, Michigan, United States.-2007 Awards:The nominees for the Detroit Film Critics Society Awards 2007 were announced on 15 December and the winners were announced on 21 December 2007.-Best Actor:**George Clooney - Michael... Nominated — Houston Film Critics Society Award for Best Supporting Actor Houston Film Critics Society The Houston Film Critics Society is a film critic organization in Houston, Texas, United States. The group presents an annual set of film awards for "extraordinary accomplishment in film" in a ceremony held at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston... Nominated — Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Male Nominated — London Film Critics Circle Award for British Actor of the Year London Film Critics Circle Awards 2009 The 30th Critics' Circle Awards, will be given by the London Film Critics Circle on 18 February 2010, honouring the best in film for 2009.-Actor of the Year:*Michael Stuhlbarg – A Serious Man*Jeff Bridges – Crazy Heart... Nominated — San Diego Film Critics Society Award for Best Actor San Diego Film Critics Society Award for Best Actor The San Diego Film Critics Society Award for Best Actor is an award given by the San Diego Film Critics Society to honor the finest male acting achievementes in filmmaking.-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:... Nominated — Toronto Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor Toronto Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor The Toronto Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor is one of the annual awards given by the Toronto Film Critics Association.-2000s:-2010s:... Nominated — Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Award for Best Breakthrough Performance Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Awards 2009 The 8th Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Awards 2009 were given in December 2009.-Winners and nominees:*Best Film:**Up in the Air*The Hurt Locker*Inglourious Basterds*Precious*Up*Best Director:...
2010	You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger is a 2010 English-language Spanish-American co-production comedy-drama film written and directed by Woody Allen. It features Antonio Banderas, Josh Brolin, Anthony Hopkins, Gemma Jones, Freida Pinto, Lucy Punch, Naomi Watts, Roger Ashton-Griffiths and Pauline...	Poker Friend
	Mr. Nice Mr. Nice (film) Mr. Nice is a 2010 crime film directed by Bernard Rose, and starring Rhys Ifans with Crispin Glover and Chloë Sevigny. The film tells the story of Howard Marks, a notorious Welsh drug smuggler; the screenplay was adapted by director Rose from Marks' autobiography of the same name...	Hamilton McMillan
	The Road to Coronation Street The Road to Coronation Street The Road to Coronation Street is a British drama first broadcast on BBC Four documenting the journey of Coronation Street, the UK's longest-running television soap opera, from conception to its first transmission in December 1960...	Harry Elton	TV Movie
2011	I Melt With You I Melt with You (film) I Melt with You is a 2011 American thriller film directed by Mark Pellington. It completed filming in September 2010. It premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January 2011.-Plot:...	Tim
	Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy (film) Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy is a 2011 English-language espionage film directed by Tomas Alfredson, from a screenplay written by Bridget O'Connor and Peter Straughan based on the 1974 novel Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy by John le Carré...	Mackelvore
	Borgia	Cardinal Sforza	TV Series: 6 Episodes

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