Rupert James Hector Everett ˈɛvərɪt (born 29 May 1959) is an English actor. He first came to public attention in 1981, when he was cast in Julian Mitchell

Julian Mitchell

Julian Mitchell FRSL , full name Charles Julian Humphrey Mitchell, is an English playwright, screenwriter and occasional novelist...

's play

Another Country (play)

Another Country is a play written by English playwright Julian Mitchell that premiered in 1981 at the Greenwich Theatre in south-east London and later transferred to the West End in March 1982. In the summer of 2000 the play was revived at The Oxford Playhouse. From 4 September 2000 until 28...

 and subsequent film Another Country as an openly

Coming out

Coming out is a figure of speech for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people's disclosure of their sexual orientation and/or gender identity....

 gay student at an English public school

Public School (UK)

A public school, in common British usage, is a school that is neither administered nor financed by the state or from taxpayer contributions, and is instead funded by a combination of endowments, tuition fees and charitable contributions, usually existing as a non profit-making charitable trust...

, set in the 1930s. He has since appeared in many other films including My Best Friend's Wedding

My Best Friend's Wedding

My Best Friend's Wedding is a 1997 romantic comedy film directed by P. J. Hogan. It stars Julia Roberts, Cameron Diaz, Dermot Mulroney, Rupert Everett, and Philip Bosco.The film received mostly positive reviews from critics...

, An Ideal Husband, The Next Best Thing

The Next Best Thing

The Next Best Thing is a soundtrack album released by Maverick Records on February 21, 2000. It was released to accompany and promote the 2000 film, The Next Best Thing. It reached number 34 on the US Billboard 200 album chart....

and the Shrek sequels.
Everett was born in Norfolk

Norfolk

Norfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast and to the north-west the county is bordered by The Wash. The county...

, England to Major Anthony Michael Everett (1921–2009), who worked in business and served in the British Army

British Army

The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...

, and wife (m.