Sir Ian McKellen has appeared in theatres around the country and on television and film screens since the 1960s. Now, with his parts in the first two X-Men films and the phenomenally successful The Lord of the Rings trilogy, he is known worldwide. This fully up-to-date biography includes new interviews and covers McKellen's childhood, his time at Cambridge University with, among others, Trevor Nunn and Derek Jacobi, roles in plays such as Henry V and The Seagull, Macbeth at the RSC, Broadway, running The Actors' Company and the McKellen/Petherbridge Company. Also covering McKellen's advocacy of gay issues and his opinions against war, it gives a well-rounded view of one of Britain's greatest stage and screen actors.