Rowan Atkinson celebrates his 66th birthday: Mr. Bean doesn't seem to me like a likeable bloke

He didn't think about a career of a comedian at first

Rowan Atkinson was born January 8, 1955 in Stockfield, England, in a farmer's family. He'd been able to make people laugh since early childhood, but at first it didn't occur to him that he could become a comedian. On the contrary, he wanted a stable income career. But his fate was sealed and after his studies at Newcastle and Oxford, he became a comedian anyway. His career began at the Oxford Playhouse theater, where he worked as a comedian and a comedy writer.

Not the Nine O'Clock News and Bond role

In 1979, he appeared on TV as an actor and a screenwriter for BBC's Not the Nine O'Clock News. The series was a huge success and Atkinson received a British Academy Award for it. He also became the BBC Person of the Year in 1980. In 1983, he starred in a short film Dead on Time, followed by a role in the Bond film Never Say Never alongside Sean Connery, and in the comedy series Black Adder, in which he was involved as a screenwriter. However, his most famous role was yet to come.

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The fateful role of Mr. Bean

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Rowan Atkinson's first appearance as the famous Mr. Bean was in 1990. The role full of grimaces of the crazy Mr. Bean who mainly likes himself, and is being cursed by a disaster after disaster, has fit him perfectly. The stories without dialogue were loved by the whole world. In total, the series aired in 245 countries and 15 episodes of 45 minutes were recorded. The sitcom was broadcast until 1995, some television stations continue to air reruns. Atkinson himself is grateful for the role, but at the same time he realizes that he received a forever label because of it. And what does he actually think about the role?

"Mr. Bean doesn't seem like a nice guy to me. It seems like everything revolves around him. I'm not a fan of this obsession with oneself. Deep down, Mr. Bean is an anarchist. And part of me wants to revolt against it, too,"

Rowan Atkinson said.

From films to the royal order

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In the following years, Atkinson starred in a number of films, Four Weddings and a Funeral, Blackadder Back and Forth, Rat Race, Love Actually, Johnny English, Keeping Mum, Maigret's Dead Man and the Mr. Bean's films (Bean and Mr. Bean's Holiday). His last role was in the short comedy from 2019, One Red Nose Day and a Wedding.

In 2013, Atkinson received a British Empire Order from Queen Elisabeth II. He earned the prestigious order for his lifelong career in entertanment. As such, he can boast with the title Sir in front of his given name.

Father of three

Are you wondering about the comedian's personal life? Since 1990, he was married to the make-up artist Sunetra Sastry, with whom he had 2 children - a daughter Lily and a son Benjamin. The couple divorced in 2015, though. Since 2014, his partner has been a British comedian and actress Louise Ford. The couple had a daughter named Isla in 2017.

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Passionate car collector

What does Rowan Atkinson do when he's not spending time with his family or working? He admires his luxury car collection or drives them fast through the streets. In the past, he was the proud owner of the burgundy McLaren F1 from 1997, which he crashed twice, but got away almost unscathed. He sold the car for almost 300 million CZK in 2015! You can find other exclusive cars such as Rolls-Royce Phantom Drophead from 2011, Bentley Mulsanne Birkin-Edition from 2014, a rare BMW 328 from 1939 or Aston Martin V8 Vantage from 1977 in his car park.