The Lowdown: Things You Never Knew About Ryan Reynolds
July 23, 2009 by Leonie Mercedes
Filed under - Home, Features, The Lowdown
Following his starring role in romcom-you-can-stomach The Proposal opposite Sandra Bullock, Ryan Reynolds has gone from relatively unknown frat boy to the carnal desires of many a lady across the land.
But other than having the enviable position of being the guy Scarlett Johansson comes home to what else do we really know about the dreamboat? OTB ploughs the archives to bring you the nuggets of truth.
1. In order to bulk up for his 2004 film Blade: Trinity, Reynolds endured a trying fitness regime and a diet of “chicken and drywall”, gaining 25lbs in muscle. His burly 6’2” frame meant no body double for him could be found, so he had to do his own stunts.
2. On his right wrist he has a tattoo of the Nine o’Clock Gun, a cannon that goes off nightly in his hometown of Vancouver. Yep, Canadian.
3. He failed his drama class at the age of 12.
4. He has a fear of Read More…
The Lowdown: Thing You Never Knew About John Barrowman
July 8, 2009 by Leonie Mercedes
Filed under - Home, Features, The Lowdown
Scottish-born Broadway star and advocate of Botox, John Barrowman doesn’t appear to be much of an enigma.
His vibrant personality, successful forays into musical theatre, and his role as Captain Jack Harkness in Torchwood have cemented him as a national treasure (though we’ll forget about that car crash Tonight’s the Night).
Behind that Hollywood smile however lurks a past you wouldn’t believe.
In celebration of the new series of Torchwood, showing nightly on BBC1 until Friday, we bring you 10 things you might not have known about him.
1. His first paid role as an actor was as an extra in 1987’s The Untouchables, the bit in the police academy where Sean Connery recruits Andy Garcia. “It was a nightmare because Sean Connery wasn’t very nice and the assistant director shouted a lot and was rude to the extras. I went home early,” he recalls.
2. He made the final three in casting for the role of Will in Will and Grace, but was rejected for What Could It Be? Read More…
The Lowdown: Things You Never Knew About Johnny Depp
July 1, 2009 by Leonie Mercedes
Filed under - Home, Features, The Lowdown
He’s played a scissor-fingered android, an Anna Wintour-bouffanted man-child candymaker, and a serial killer (also scissor-fingered, sort of) but Johnny Depp, now more than two decades in the business, still proves irresistible to at least half of the population (and with the man-crush of everyone here in the office, we’re betting slightly higher).
With his shoot-‘em-up flick Public Enemies about legendary bank robber John Dillinger released today, we bring you 10 things you may not know about the heartthrob.
1. He has twice recorded with mong-rockers Oasis. When Noel Gallagher was (allegedly) too drunk to play lead slide guitar, pal Depp took up the reins and nailed it in one take.
2. A good friend of the late Hunter S. Thompson, Depp financed the writer’s dying wish to have his ashes fired out of a 150 foot cannon, and named one of the beaches on his Caribbean island ‘Gonzo’ in his honour.
3. We know he is a bit partial to our homegrown comedy, making appearances on The Fast Show Read More…
The Lowdown: Things You Never Knew About Amy Adams
June 24, 2009 by OntheBox
Filed under - Home, Features, The Lowdown
We at OTB have to admit that we’re getting a little obsessed with Amy Adams.
Since breaking through with indie hit Junebug in 2005 she’s becoming more and more of a household name. She’s in a shed-load of new films (Night at the Museum 2, Sunshine Cleaning, Doubt) and her sunny disposition never fails to brighten up my life. Ahhh.
Anyway, here are 10 things you might not know about the stunning redhead.
1. Amy was raised in a Mormon family of seven children with four brothers and two sisters.
2. Amy’s a natural redhead joining the ranks of other celebrity gingers like Lindsay Lohan, Nicole Kidman and Isla Fisher.
3. She once worked at Gap. There’s hope for us all yet!
4. She’s a trained dancer and once dreamt of becoming a ballerina. We haven’t seen it in any films so far but she did have a little waltz with Patrick Dempsey at a taping of TRL.
5. Although born to American parents, she first entered this world on a Read On…
The Lowdown: Things You Didn’t Know About Davina McCall
June 8, 2009 by Jack McKay
Filed under - Home, Features, The Lowdown
The arrival of another series of Big Brother brings with it the usual gaggle of fame-hungry freaks happy to degrade themselves in front of the nation in return for a mention in Hello.
As the media frenzy reaches fever pitch, the queen bee herself, Davina McCall, stands astride the spectacle cracking the whip like a ring master keeping the masses entertained.
Men want her and women want her to be their new bessie, but what really makes the McCallster tick? Here’s what we found out.
1. Far from being born a model of perfection, McCall was heavily dependent on Cookies? Gummy Bears? Erm….
The Lowdown: Things You Didn’t Know About George Clooney
May 27, 2009 by Jack McKay
Filed under - Home, Features, The Lowdown
By George! Now there’s a real man!
Old salt and pepper head Clooney has been literally tugging at our heartstrings ever since performing his first triple heart bypass on ER 15 years ago.
Since leaving the hospital drama George hasn’t let up on his quest to become a Hollywood great – and with four Oscar nominations under his belt you might say he’s not doing too badly.
Hailed as an eternal bachelor George has been a constant fixture in countless ‘Sexiest Man Alive’ lists and has been romantically linked with a trailer full of beauties, and, of course the odd pig.
There’s really no escaping one of the most famous film actors on the planet so here’s a few things that you’ve prob… definitely not read Read on for more Cloontastic facts…
The Lowdown: Things You Didn’t Know About Ben Stiller
May 21, 2009 by Sally McIlhone
Filed under - Home, Features, The Lowdown
There was a time when Ben Stiller was everywhere.
Shortly after the release of seminal comedy classic There’s Something About Mary (we said ’seminal’, not….) he was like a walking swine flu.
You just couldn’t escape him, his own brand of infectious humour relentlessly sweeping throughout moviedom until he’d conquered box offices, hearts and curmudgeonly objectionists alike.
After a brief hiatus, he’s back on our screens, recently with Tropic Thunder and now with his follow-up to kiddies favourite Night at the Museum (see what we thought of Night At The Museum 2 with our review here or an Interview with him and Gervais here).
So what’s he been up to these last few years? And before that? You’d be surprised…. We’re really not kidding. Click here for more…
The Lowdown: Things You Didn’t Know About Flight Of The Conchords
May 13, 2009 by Sally McIlhone
Filed under - Home, Features, The Lowdown
Whereas The Mighty Boosh took musical comedy to strange and dark new places with their third series (The Crack Fox was clearly a step too far – I mean, really, needles for fingers?!); Flight of The Conchords remain as cuddly and wholesome as ever.
The heady combination of Jemaine’s goofy teeth and porn eyebrow, with Bret’s sultry pout and Brillo-pad-sponsored stubble, makes me want to strip down to my greying panties on a Wednesday night in a Team Building Exercise ‘99 T-shirt ready for some series Business Time.
But under their cute librarian-like exteriors, who are these musical mavericks? What is the source of their melodic mojo? Will I ever get the chance to stroke them? Umm probably not…but my love for New Zealand’s finest will go on, as Buzz Lightyear would say, to infinity and beyond. And when has Buzz EVER been wrong? Read on…
The Lowdown: Things You Didn’t Know About J. J. Abrams
May 7, 2009 by Jack McKay
Filed under - Home, Features, The Lowdown
Step aside, James Bond, there’s a new international man of mystery in town. Yes, he may be a vertically challenged Jewish nerd from New York, but when it comes to plot twisting, cliff-hanging and suspense mongering, J. J. Abrams is the man of the moment.
Best known as one of the creators of ‘what the fa..?’ mystery drama Lost, he has also written, produced and directed a number of film and TV hits including Alias, Mission Impossible III, Fringe, hand-held monster movie Cloverfield, Asteroid-exploding blubbfest Armageddon, and, most recently, added his own take to legendary science fiction series Star Trek. Quite a CV.
Fortunately, unlike his screen creations, Abrams isn’t quite so secretive, so here’s the low down on the inspired nerd that made Sci-Fi cool again. We loves us the nerds. Read on for more…
The Lowdown: Things You Didn’t Know About Daniel Mays
April 21, 2009 by Jack McKay
Filed under - Home, Features, The Lowdown
Thank the Lord for actors like Daniel Mays!
While some young British talent will leap at the chance to appear in any old dross that comes their way (I’m sorry Mathew Horne but did you not read Lesbian Vampire Killers before filming began?) there is another breed of young British actor that has forged a career in tough, uncompromising character driven roles that earn them critical acclaim, the respect of their peers and a sound night’s sleep.
Mays is a face that has consistently popped up in a diverse range of film, television and theatre roles over the past ten years and what’s more he’s a thorough lovely chap to boot! However, on closer inspection, the words ‘hard hitting’ seem to feature so frequently in Mays’ choice of roles that we wonder if he’s not a borderline masochist….
1. Like the recently departed and much missed Tony Hart, Mays loves to paint and has lots of oil paintings in his home. Unlike Hart, however, he doesn’t own a hilarious little plasticine man that lives in a box. Or so he tells us…. Click here for more fascinating facts….
