Jamie Bell (born 14 March 1986, Billingham, England) is a British actor.

Jamie comes from a family of dancers including his grandmother, mother, aunt and sister. It was at his sister's dance practices that he would stand outside the door and imitate the movements of the dancers inside. At age six, he was encouraged to step inside the door and thus his dance career began. His own story parallels that of Billy Elliot in that Jamie kept his dancing a secret from his mates at school. His mother had him when she was 16, and unfortunately, he never knew his father.

When he met Stephen Daldry, director of Billy Elliot, Jamie adopted him as his father. Once the word about his dancing got out, he was harassed, but this only made him more determined to prove that dancing wasn't just for girls. He has proven a lot by landing the role of Billy Elliot (2000), winning the role in an audition that included more than 2000 lads from the northeast of England. His ensuing performance certainly justified the selection as he has not only won the hearts of moviegoers all over the world, he has also been nominated for, and won a number of awards including a Best Newcomer Award and then a Best Male Performance at the BAFTA awards. As a star on the rise, we should expect to hear more from Jamie in years to come, but first he needs to finish his homework.

Facts

• Started dancing when he was six. Dancers have been in his family for ages. His sister, his mother, grandmother, and aunt all danced before him.
• First decided to act when he was nine.
• First acting performance is reported to be part of the London stage production of Bugsy Malone in Christmas 1998.
• Was teased by classmates when they found out that Jamie took ballet, and called him "Ballerina Boy."
• When he won Best Actor at the 2001 British Academy Awards, not only did he beat the Best Actor Oscar winner of that year, Russell Crowe, but the other three nominees he beat out - Tom Hanks, Michael Douglas, and Geoffrey Rush -- also had won the Best Actor Oscar in past years.
• Lives in Billingham with his mother, Eileen, and older sister, Cathryn. He has no contact with his father, John, whom his mother divorced before Jamie was born.
• Was chosen out of 2000 boys to play Billy Elliot over a series of seven auditions. Criteria that the casting director was looking for were acting ability, dancing ability, and the right Northern English accent.
• Only the second actor ever to be awarded Outstanding Performance by a Young Actor from the National Board of Review of Motion Pictures. The first was fellow Brit Christian Bale in 1987 (titled Outstanding Juvenile Performance then).
• Prefers tap dancing over ballet. Has been in many tap-dancing competitions and won many awards.
• Was Honorary Jury President of the 2001 Giffoni Film Festival.
• A former student at the Stagecoach Theater School.
• He became interested in baseball when he visited the United States for the first time, and he began collecting all of the teams' jerseys.

Quotes

(on why he continued pursuing ballet despite the mockery) "The other boys called me 'poof,' 'ballerina boy,' "Get on your tutu, Jamie." It gave me more determination to prove it wasn't just for girls. It was for boys as well."

(on winning awards, after he won the British Academy award) "It's just an award, although it is a big one. It is no good getting too big-headed. I've been very busy and I'm very tired. I've been given advice, you know, on speech-making and things like that. It's kind of weird that the other guys didn't win because they're such big guys."

"(It's true that) most British movies are emotional and I agree that most American actors look manufactured. It's a shame."

"Ballet is very hard. It takes a lot of practice to get to a certain standard. You have to know a lot about the steps because when you take examinations, they'll ask you all about it."

"(Billy Elliot) got that (R-rating) because of the swearing. But it wouldn't be what it was without the swearing; kids need to swear."

"I'm a hard-mouthed north-eastern lad. That's me - the Eminem of Northeast England."

"You probably won't see me dance in the movies again unless there's a 'Moulin Rouge 2' or 'Chicago Returns'."

"I hate maths. I can't stand it. Circumferences of circles and stuff - it's horrible."