BOLTON has been an incubator for stars of the silver screen, both in front and behind the camera. Ian Savage looks at a few of the most famous:

SIR IAN McKELLEN: Although he was born in Burnley and spent some of his youth in Wigan, Sir Ian acquired his love of acting and theatre during his time living in Bolton and attending Bolton School. He initially wanted to be a journalist and was turned down for a job as a reporter at the Bolton Evening News. He is probably best known to film fans for his iconic role as the wizard Gandalf in Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings and Hobbit trilogy, but he has appeared in a wide range of movies - X-Men and its sequels, Gods and Monsters, Richard III, Apt Pupil, The Da Vinci Code and Beauty and the Beast, plus many more.

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ROBERT SHAW:

Robert didn’t live for too long in Westhoughton, but he spent some of his childhood here before moving to Scotland. He will be best known to movie fans for his iconic role as the grizzled shark hunter Quint in the classic 1975 Steven Spielberg film Jaws, but he also appeared as a hitman in the second James Bond movie From Russia with Love, as a robber in the seventies thriller The Taking of Pelham 123 and as a vicious villain in the Paul Newman/Robert Redford-starring vehicle The Sting.

DANNY BOYLE:

Though from Radcliffe, Danny, born in 1956, was a pupil at Thornleigh Salesian School in Bolton. As a film director he has made some of the best British movies of the past three decades, including Shallow Grave, Trainspotting, The Beach, 28 Days Later, Slumdog Millionaire and 127 Hours. When he won the Oscar for best film and director (two of eight awarded to the film in total) with Slumdog Millionaire in 2008, he brought the gold statuette back to his home town of Radcliffe and went for a pint to his beloved father’s local working men’s club.

CHRISTOPHER ECCLESTON:

Chris, born in 1964, was brought up in Little Hulton and is now a household name in the UK, mainly for his top quality TV work. His break came playing Derek Bentley in the film Let Him Have It in 1991 and he appeared in director Danny Boyle’s debut movie, Shallow Grave, in 1994. Chris also appeared in movies including 28 Days Later, The Others and Elizabeth, and Hollywood blockbusters like Gone in 60 Seconds and GI Joe.

SHIRLEY ANNE FIELD:

Shirley Anne was born in 1938 and spent her early years in Bolton. She came to prominence after appearing opposite Sir Laurence Olivier in The Entertainer and shortly afterwards, aged 22, played the role of Doreen in the film Saturday Night, Sunday Morning which catapulted her into stardom. Shirley Anne also appeared in Kings of the Sun with Yul Brunner and The War Lover with Steve McQueen.

FRANK FINLAY:

Frank was born in Farnworth in 1928 and was an incredibly versatile actor on stage, TV and the big screen. He attended St Gregory’s School in Farnworth and was originally destined to follow in his father’s footsteps and train as a butcher. He was a member of Farnworth Little Theatre and appeared in various stage productions before making his movie debut in 1962 in the film The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner. He appeared in many films, including the seventies version of The Three Musketeers and its sequels. Frank died in 2016.

PETER KAY:

Peter is more famous for his stand-up comedy tours and his hit TV shows like Car Share and Phoenix Nights, but he has appeared in feature films. Early in his career he played a slimy club owner in 24 Hour Party People. Peter also provided a voice in the Aardman animation hit The Curse of the Were-Rabbit in 2005.

BERNARD KAY:

Bernard was born in Bolton in 1928 and became a well-recognised TV and movie actor. Before being trained as an actor he worked for a spell as a reporter at the Bolton Evening News. He is best known for his roles in the classic Dr Zhivago, which starred Omar Sharif and Julie Christie, and in which he played The Bolshevik. He died in 2014.

IAN ASPINALL:

Born in Bolton in 1961, Ian played the character of Nazir Khan in the 1999 film version of East is East and appeared in the 2002 movie Killing Me Softly, which starred Joseph Fiennes and Heather Graham.

TOM GLYNN CARNEY:

The former Canon Slade pupil and local am-dram actor made a splash as one of the stars in Christopher Nolan’s adrenalin-pumping, Oscar-winning World War Two movie Dunkirk. which was released last year.