Gabriel Byrne

Gabriel Byrne was born in Dublin in the 1950s and was educated by the Irish Christian Brothers. He married and eventually divorced Jewish American actress Ellen Barkin, having two children together, Jack and Romy Byrne.

Gabriel discovered his passion for acting later in his life. Before becoming an actor, he did work as everything from an archaeologist to a cook, to a Spanish schoolteacher. When he finally found acting, he began his career on stage with The Focus Theatre and the Abbey Theatre in Dublin, later joining the Royal Court and the National Theatre in London.

He came to the fore in the popular Irish television show The Riordans and soon turned his talents to movie acting in Ireland and the US. He made his film debut in 1981 as Lord Uther in John Boorman's classic King Arthur epic, Excalibur.

He currently resides in Beverly Hills, California. His autobiography, Pictures in my Head was published in 1995 by Wolfhound Press.