Kevin McKidd

Born: 9 August 1973
Where: Elgin, Scotland

Despite appearances in notable films including Topsy Turvy and Regeneration, McKidd has never emulated the success of his Trainspotting co-stars Ewan McGregor and Robert Carlyle.

Straight after Danny Boyle's gritty 1996 drama of drugs and desperation he found himself skint and out of work and and was forced to became a bicycle courier.

The lanky Scot was born on the north coast of Scotland and joined his local youth theatre troupe before heading off to university in Edinburgh where he continued to walk the boards.

After getting heavily involved in the university's theatre company, he decided to opt out of his engineering degree and concentrate on acting.

He landed the lead role in the stageplay The Silver Darlings, produced by Robert Carlyle's Rain Dog Theatre Company.

After this he made his screen debut as the vicious gangleader, Malky Johnson in Gillies MacKinnon's Small Faces in 1996.

Then came the massive success of Trainspotting in which his character, Tommy, dies of AIDS.

After the brief quiet spell, McKidd has been working constantly ever since, turning in impressive performances in hits such as the cult horror movie Dog Soldiers and John Cusack's thriller Max.

He also starred in Hideous Kinky with Kate Winslet and Topsy-Turvy with Timothy Spall and Jim Broadbent.

Stage work has included 'Tis Pity She's A Whore at The Young Vic Theatre, alongside Jude Law in 1999, as well as numerous other productions.

TV-wise he appeared in Anna Karenina and North Square both in 2000.

Recent big screen work has included Nicholas Nickleby and the Scottish comedy thriller One Last Chance with Jamie Sives.

He also took the lead in Richard Jobson's semi-autobiographical debut feature 16 Years of Alcohol