Happy Birthday

February 7th marks the 200th anniversary of the birth of Charles Dickens. It's actually one of those dates that I can always remember - not so much because I like Dickens's novels (which I do) but because I share a birthday with him - although, I might add, I am somewhat less than 200 years old. It's quite interesting to find out that a birthday is shared with someone famous although it isn't as much of a rare coincidence than one might imagine: with 7 billion people on the planet there will be some 19 million who share the same anniversary (obviously this is less if you happen to be born on 29th February). Once you add in famous people from the past there are quite a few to draw from. Aside from Dickens, the following caught my eye:

Thomas More was a statesman and saint, born in 1478, and was probably best known for his book Utopia and his arguments with King Henry VIII (for which he ended up headless). I actually know quite a bit about him from having to study Robert Bolt's A Man for All Seasons whilst at school. I grew to detest this play but I recently saw the Paul Scofield film version and loved it - it's amazing how school English lessons can destroy any appreciation of literature.

 Alfred Adler was an Austrian doctor and psychotherapist. He is probably not as much of a household name as Sigmund Freud or Carl Jung which is a pity, as his ideas were quite interesting. He drew heavily on the philosophy of Friedrich Nietzsche and he coined many familiar phrases such as superiority and inferiority complexes and over-compensation. I suppose, unlike Freud and Jung, his work appeared to be based in common sense observation rather than the somewhat outlandish claims of some early psychotherapists. Whether his ideas would be classed as fully scientific is another thing but he did, at least, appear to be on to something. He was actually in the news just last year as his ashes were discovered at an Edinburgh crematorium and finally returned to Vienna.

Alfred Worden is 80 this year and one of only 24 people to have travelled to the Moon. However, as command module pilot he never actually stepped on the Moon but is one of only 6 people to have journeyed to the far side on his own. I've always been fascinated with space so it's nice that I share a birthday with an Apollo astronaut.

Gareth Hunt is cockney rhyming slang. He was also in some dreadful coffee adverts but I like to remember him Mike Gambit in The New Avengers. Admittedly, it wasn't a scratch on the original Avengers series but it's quite cool that one of the actors had the same birthday as me.

Eddie Izzard is a comedian, actor, raconteur and "executive" transvestite (as opposed to the "weirdo" transvestite). I must admit that when I first saw Eddie I couldn't work out what kind of trip he was on but he is one of those few comedians whose work stands up to repeated viewing - if anything his odd monologues get better the more they are heard. A case of familiarity breeding affection. So... erm... Yes!

Sadly, Pete Postlethwaite died last year but was another 7th February birthday boy. I think part of his appeal is that he always came across as being a quintessentially Northern English actor but his acting rolls were so varied that gritty kitchen sink dramas were about the last thing one would associate him with. Certainly, there are very few actors who can take major roles in films as diverse as Alien 3, In the Name of the Father, The Usual Suspects and Jurassic Park and still remain utterly convincing in them all.

Sammy Lee became a firm favourite at Liverpool Football Club having worked his way into the first team under Bob Paisley. He went on to win a stash of trophies with Liverpool and played a few games for England as well. I think part of the appeal of Sammy Lee is that he was one of the most unlikely looking footballers to have made the big time. He was short and stocky and looked more like he should be running deliveries for his dad's butcher's business than playing football at international level. However, his determination was visible and I suppose part of the appeal is that he typified the "local lad done good" side of football which seems so lacking these days.

Chris Rock is another comedian, actor, writer and all-round show person. Unlike Eddie Izzard he has much more down to Earth humour, often pulling from the antics of his family whilst growing up in New York. In fact, his show Everybody Hates Chris used to constantly crack me up - not so much for Chris but from the actor playing his father, Julius, who reminded me of myself far to much for my own liking.

I was trying to find someone interesting who was born on exactly the same day as me. After doing a quick Google, I managed to find Jazz bassist, Chris Minh Doky:

Happy birthday Chris!