Ridley Scott

Born: 30 November 1937
Where: Tyne and Wear, England

The three-times Oscar nominee - now Sir Ridley - has proved himself one of film's most innovative, influential and versatile stylists.

He created a whole sci-fi chiller sub-genre with Alien, revelled in the girl buddy caper Thelma & Louise and re-invented the cinema epic with Gladiator.

Born in the north east, Scott grew up in London, Cumbria, Wales and Germany before returning north to study graphic design at West Hartlepool College of Art.

He subsequently studied at London's Royal College of Art and branched out into filmmaking with the short, Boy on a Bicycle, which featured his younger brother Tony and their father.

After completing his education, he became a set designer for the BBC in the early 1960s, and was eventually promoted to director of such popular BBC series as the police adventure Z Cars.

With the establishment of his own company, Ridley Scott Associates, he was involved in some of the most inventive European TV adverts of the 1970s.

In a period of around ten years, he directed more than 2,000 adverts marking him as one of the most prolific ad makers.

Having tackled those challenges, he made the transition to the big screen, when he directed 1977's The Duellists, which won the Jury Prize for Best First Feature at the Cannes Film Festival.

Further success followed with Alien, which proved a box-office hit and spawned three sequels with only James Cameron's offering matching the original.

In 1982, the director found himself at the centre of a storm around his production of Blade Runner, which resulted in Scott having to change the ending.

It wasn't until 1993 that the director's cut was finally released on video, and the film - starring Harrison Ford - was recognised as a sci-fi masterpiece.

Black Rain and Someone To Watch Over Me proved efficient if not groundbreaking movies of their type until Scott's next milestone.

He encountered critical and commercial triumph with Thelma and Louise - the film was nominated for six Oscars, including Best Director for Scott.

For the next four years he stopped directing in favour of producing, before returning in 1996 with White Squall.

In 2000, he directed the epic Gladiator, starring Russell Crowe. The film received 12 Oscar nominations, including one for Scott as Best Director.

He was less successful helming Silence of the Lambs sequel Hannibal, which featured a particularly stomach-turning final scene where Ray Liotta literally lost his head.

Black Hawk Down - Scott's recreation of the US debacle in Mogadishu - won him a director's guild award for a stunning looking if suspect drama.

He switched styles completely to make Matchstick Men, a con caper featuring Nicolas Cage and featuring an audacious twist.

In 2005, Scott returned to a historical theme with the Crusades blockbuster Kingdon of Heaven, starring Orlando Bloom and Liam Neeson.