Benedict Cumberbatch - interesting facts. Benedict Cumberbatch's Untold Facts Cumberbatch Likes Extreme Sports

On January 12, Russia will show the 3rd and final episode of the Sherlock series. The episode will be titled "His Last Vow." The British series about the most famous detective is incredibly popular all over the world, as well as the leading actor - Benedict Cumberbatch, for whom the role of Sherlock Holmes has become the most stellar in his career. Here are 9 facts about Benedict Cumberbatch.

Fact one.

Benedict admits that at one time he used his surname to practice diction. By the way, Cumberbatch is not a typical British surname.

“Someone asked me if it was a pseudonym,” says Benedict. “No, Cumberbatch is my real name and, yes, I am aware that some people associate these sounds with flatulence in the bath.”

And although he had suffered a lot of ridicule from his peers in childhood (who even gave him the nickname "cucumber"), he did not want to change his name to a more harmonious one, although there was such an opportunity.

“I only want to be Benedict Cumberbatch,” he once said, as he considered his name, although old-fashioned, but very “cosy”.

Fact two.

Benedict's natural hair color is blond with a red tint. Interestingly, before each role, the directors insisted that the actor be repainted in a darker tone.

Fact three.

His parents are also representatives of the acting profession. Mom - actress Wanda Ventham, dad - comedian Timothy Carlton Cumberbatch. By the way, they can be seen in the first episode of the third season of Sherlock, they played Holmes's parents.

Benedict with his parents and half-sister Tracy.

Fact four.

At one time, parents made every effort to get Benedict into one of the most prestigious private schools in the country - Harrow, in northwest London. The school was old-fashioned, only for boys. Therefore, when Shakespeare's comedy A Midsummer Night's Dream began to be staged on the stage of the school theater, Benedict was offered the female role, which became his acting debut.

“I played Titania - the queen of fairies and elves. And then puberty hit and I stopped playing women because of the voice."

Fifth fact.

After graduating from a prestigious school, Benedict decided to leave for Tibet. And all because he became ashamed of his education and with his trip he tried to make amends to the world for a prosperous life. In Tibet, he spent a year teaching English to monks in a monastery for shelter and food.

“Being with these people, I realized that in order to engage in spiritual searches from morning to night, you need an incredible sense of humor.”

Fact six.

Benedict deprived his compatriot Hugh Laurie of the title of the most popular TV actor on the planet, but this did not affect the friendly relations between Cumberbatch and Hugh Laurie, which arose in 2003 on the set of the series "A Little Over Forty": in it, Benedict played one of the character's three sexually horny sons Lori.

“I hate being called a sex symbol,” he once admitted to Radio Times. “God curses my beauty and success. No, I really think it's very funny, just a laugh."

Fact eight.

Once on the set of a film in South Africa, Benedict Cumberbatch and his colleague were the victims of armed robbers who wanted to steal a car. The criminals tied the actor and wanted to push him into the trunk.

“I was just trying to explain to them,” the actor recalls. “I have problems with my heart and brain, so if you leave me here, I will die due to lack of air or tightness, and this will be a big problem for you. You'll have a dead Englishman in your car, and that's definitely not good."

Fact nine.

As a teenager, Benedict dreamed of being a doctor.

“I wanted to be a neurosurgeon. This desire appeared after reading the book "Saturday" by Ian McEwan. It would be great to do something useful and responsible, requiring a lot of effort, when you understand that something really important is in the balance, ”said Benedict Cumberbatch in an interview.

Benedict Cumberbatch is without a doubt one of the most talented British actors. We all remember him from the Sherlock series. He played an excellent agent in the classic detective "Spy Get Out." He has many outstanding roles to his credit. However, there are facts in his life that fans could not even guess about.

He might never have become an actor. At the insistence of his parents, Benedict was preparing to become a professional lawyer with might and main. Before joining the drama department at the University of Manchester, he studied for a year at an English Tibetan monastery.
He has the right to enter into same-sex marriages. The Emmy Award winner has received a license that allows him to perform same-sex marriages in countries where it is legal. Now Cumberbatch can safely marry his friends. Moreover, there was such a precedent: last year in Ibiza, he married Seth Cummings and Rob Rinder.
His ancestors were slave owners in the past. We all remember Benedict from the movie 12 Years a Slave. After that, he said that his name was very popular during the time of the slave owners. The actor's ancestors were famous slave owners. Therefore, Cumberbatch's mother asked not to use this surname in her son's acting career, fearing that this could cause a negative public reaction to him.
They tried to kidnap him. The famous Sherlock in one of his interviews told the amazing facts of the kidnapping attempt. A group of people kidnapped him and co-star Denise Black. However, the actors managed to get out of such a difficult situation thanks to Benedict.
His favorite director is Stanley Kubrick. However, it would take him 30,000 words to explain why Kubrick. By the way, he wrote them in his dissertation.
He wants to be "king". When Benedict was asked who he would like to play the most, he answered that Elvis.
Cumberbatch is also a very talented artist. He attended the Harrow Art School during his practice at the university. He painted extensively in oils in his spare time. After he found fame as an actor, he painted several of his own self-portraits, which he sold and donated the proceeds to charity.
He has iris heterochromia. Just like his buddy Kiefer Sutherland, Benedict has different colored eyes. This phenomenon in medicine is known as heterochromia of the iris. The peculiarity of the phenomenon is that the eyes can change their color over time depending on the lighting.
The natural shade of his hair is golden chestnut. For the role in the series "Sherlock" he had to dye his hair black. With his rather lean build, he had to consume 4,000 calories a day to gain weight for his Star Trek role. The most difficult thing for the actor was to lose weight again after finishing work on the picture.
Fans sometimes scare him. Benedict was shocked to the core when he learned that his neighbors describe the actor's every step and post it all on a social network. 38-year-old Cumberbatch admits that such popularity worries him a lot from time to time.
He almost died twice. He was diagnosed with cardiac arrest twice in his life.

Turns 38 years old. Of these, he has been serving in the theater for 11 years and acting in films and TV projects.

His height is 184 centimeters, and his foot size is 44th. Do you understand what we are getting at?

His plump, defined lips are also a subject of special desire. If you look closely, you can see that there is a red line above the upper lip (the impression is that it was drawn with a pencil). This mark appeared after his trip to Africa and seriously worried the actor: he even turned to a dermatologist. But in the end, he was consoled, saying that he had no serious illness.

Not to mention the eyes of an unusual color: blue, green and olive shades are mixed in them. In fact, this is the result of heterochromia, a genetic disorder in which pigmentation appears on the hair and skin.

His funny grimaces and gestures (all this is fully demonstrated in the Sherlock series) make him the main guest of your friend feed, especially before the start of the next season of this very Sherlock.

"Sherlock"

Benedict's voice was voted sexiest by BBC radio listeners last year.

By the way, about sexuality. In the same 2013, Benedict Cumberbatch and Emma Watson were named the sexiest actors according to readers of the British version of Esquire magazine. In the same poll, Ben's most attractive role was named the terrorist Khan in Star Trek. Although Ben himself was always surprised that he was repeatedly awarded the title of a sex symbol.

"Star Trek"

Negative heroes performed by Benedict have incredible energy. Even before fame hit him with all his might, Benedict excelled in Joe Wright's Atonement. He appeared in the film only 4 or 5 times, but thanks to this episode he was noticed by the producers of the BBC, who later called him to audition for Sherlock. Peter Guillem from the Cold War detective thriller “Get Out the Spy!” turned out to be a slippery type, who throughout the film leads the audience by the nose, playing either on the side of British intelligence, or hinting at his connection with the USSR. By the way, Benedict himself considers Sherlock a sociopath and a dangerous genius in his performance and sincerely advises fans not to fall in love with such a hero.

"Redemption"

Benedict has a great sense of humor. Look at his goofy stunt during U2's posing for this year's Oscars. And the guys didn't manage to take a proper picture, without Benedict gesturing behind them.

The eternal attribute of Cumberbatch is a blue scarf, with which he does not part either on the red carpet, or while walking around the city, or on the set of Sherlock.

Benedict is true to his style. A scarf and a wool coat are Sherlock's indispensable partners in any era. Ben presented this image with such elegance that fashion houses and stores, after the release of the first series of the series, rushed to draw sketches of clothes, trying to repeat the image of the hero.

Benedict knows how not to be offended by offensive nicknames. A long, unpronounceable (not only in Russian) surname is an excellent reason to take a pseudonym. In addition, the very word Cumberbatch is associated in the British brain with consonant Cucumber ("cucumber"). This fact was noticed at school, for which Ben was often teased. However, neither then nor now the actor did not want to change his name and never took offense at those who ruthlessly distorted him. He himself remarked with humor that he had previously used his surname to train diction.

Cumberbatch is the best modern Holmes we know. "Sherlock" on the BBC channel is a long-known story about a detective, told in a new way and decorated with all the necessary attributes of modernity (gadgets, nicotine patches and newfangled spyware). For his role, Cumberbatch received a UK National Television Award in his native England and nominations for an Emmy and a Golden Globe in the United States, and the British edition of The Telegraph announced that Ben became the best Sherlock of all time. Steven Spielberg (who later cast the actor in his film War Horse) also praised Benedict's talent. And finally, the Sherlock Holmes Society of London also spoke positively about the work of the star.

Cumberbatch never lost faith in himself. "Sherlock" helped Benedict break into the major acting league and become famous not only in Europe but also in America. However, success did not fall on the head of the actor by chance. By the time he was invited to the famous series on the BBC channel, the actor was 34 years old. He, of course, was known in England at that moment, but in very narrow circles of theatergoers. However, diligence and patience did their job, and by a rather late (by the standards of the modern film industry) age, he nevertheless found that very stellar role. By the way, the parents of a celebrity (they are both well-known actors in England) for a long time dissuaded their only son from such a thankless profession, offering him to learn to be a lawyer or a manager. However, Benedict stood his ground and stubbornly starred. Mother and father had to give up after the incredible popularity of Sherlock (in one of the episodes of which they starred with pleasure).

Benedict took part in many famous Hollywood films: in Steven Spielberg's War Horse, in Star Trek, in the Oscar-winning film 12 Years a Slave, in the controversial biopic thriller The Fifth Estate. And the moment you finish reading this sentence, he's probably signed a new contract with an American studio.

" 12 years of slavery"

Cumberbatch played great people of his own and past generations. He has roles of physicist Stephen Hawking, artist Vincent van Gogh, poet Thomas Eliot and Wiki Leaks creator Julian Assange.

And, of course, all these roles require grandiose transformations. For the sake of one of the episodes of Sherlock, Cumberbatch learned to play the violin for a week, before filming Star Trek, he spent 2 hours a day in the gym and studied combat choreography (thus, from the 38th he came to the 42nd size) . But more often than not, the actor was asked to change his color from his native red to dark hair color (or even light, as happened in The Fifth Estate).

"The Fifth Power"

Benedict is one of the few modern actors who feel good both on the stage, in TV projects, and in films. He began his career at the Royal National Theater and received several prestigious awards for his roles. A little later, he began to win his place in TV shows and films, which did not alienate him from the theater. Recently it became known that the star will play in the play "Hamlet" at the London Barbican Theater for three months. Since Ben already has an incredible amount of projects, this will only happen in August next year.

"After the Dance" (After the Dance)

A talented person is talented in everything, so in addition to acting, Benedict is fond of drawing. He sells some of his masterpieces at charity auctions, and leaves other opuses right next to autographs for the delight of fans.

Ben admires the beauty of Russian girls. And although he did not admit it (natural modesty interfered), he was in love with the Saratov model Ekaterina Elizarova, who moved to England. The novel lasted only a few months in 2013, but the girl always spoke positively about her boyfriend, who was happy to prepare her for admission to theater courses and shared her favorite books.

Benedict is still single and has never been considered a womanizer. His most serious relationship was with actress Olivia Poulet, whom he met at the University of Manchester. This is where the list of his love victories ends. Or Benedict just doesn't want to tell us anything.

Benedict loves children and has said more than once that he is going to put an end to the status of an inveterate bachelor in the near future.

When talking about family values, Benedict always talked breathlessly about his parents and other relatives. And when asked about who his idol is, he did not name famous actors or scientists, but his aunt and her boyfriend.

Benedict is a true gentleman. At the beginning of this summer, he stood up for the honor of Keira Knightley, whose game one of the journalists called "wooden". Benedict did not fail to approach the reporter and even lightly hit him on the arm, asking him to speak less about his colleague.

Benedict hates the paparazzi constantly chasing him, but he treats his fans around the world with love. By the way, fans called themselves "Cumberbitch" for a long time, which upset Benedict, who considered this word disrespectful to women and urged his army to change its name. Thus, the actor's supporters became "Camber's people".

Love for Benedict is recognized even by the stars. So, Harrison Ford on the British TV show Graham Norton, without embarrassment, said that he could not tear himself away from watching Sherlock.

"Another Boleyn Girl"

Another touching fact from the biography: as a child, Ben wanted to become a doctor. The fact is that his mind was strongly captured by the novel of the modern British writer Ian McEwan "Saturday", which tells about the difficult and at the same time noble work of a surgeon. Ben dreamed of growing up and helping people.

He has been friends with Michael Fassbender and James McAvoy since their university days. With both actors, he managed to work on the set (with Michael - in the American film "12 Years a Slave", with James - in the British films "Top Ten" and "Atonement").

Benedict does not know how to envy. Almost all of his acting friends became famous much earlier than he did. However, this did not interfere with their communication. In 2003, on the set of the TV series A Little Over Forty, Benedict met Hugh Laurie, who was famous at that time thanks to comedy shows starring Stephen Fry. A year later, Lori became Doctor House, and Cumberbatch was happy for his friend and quietly waited in the wings. In 2010, when the fame of the medical series began to fade, "Sherlock" confidently took his place, and Ben beat off the title of the main television actor in England from his friend.

Cumberbatch takes criticism calmly. The path to glory was not paved with flowers, and Benedict knows the price of success. Early in his career, critics often doubted his ability to become a great actor because of his "horse face" and "idiotic last name." However, this did not upset Benedict at all, but on the contrary, it helped to play villains and crazy geniuses. Having become a star, he again faced unpleasant remarks. So, the creator of Wikileaks, Julian Assange, wrote him letters in which he asked him to refuse to shoot in the film "The Fifth Estate", and after the release of the picture on the screens, he accused Cumberbatch of lying. Ben's reaction to these messages was a noble silence.

To the Internet and TV (although he can't find the strength to refuse while watching The X-Factor), Cumberbatch prefers the book. By the way, he does not conduct social networks because he feels sorry for his time.

Cumberbatch volunteered in Tibet for 6 months immediately after graduation. First, he wanted to find himself there and understand what he would do in the future. Secondly, the childhood dream of helping people did not go away.

Cumberbatch is also a fan of outdoor activities and sports. In his old-fashioned habit, he does not drive a car, but he walks a lot and rides a bicycle. During his stay in Tibet, where he taught English, Cumberbatch joined the Bikram yoga, which he does not leave to this day. His hobbies also include rugby, snowboarding, swimming, tennis and skydiving.

Despite the busy schedule, he tries to enjoy the cities he visits thanks to filming. As an avid outdoorsman, Cumberbatch is not shy about photographing views with his phone, and his favorites include New York, San Francisco, Marrakech, Berlin, Paris and, of course, London.

Benedict Cumberbatch was born on July 19, 1976 in London, the son of actors Timothy Carlton and Wanda Ventham. He graduated from the University of Manchester with a degree in drama, and having played the title role in the TV series Sherlock, he became one of the most popular actors on the planet. However, you probably know about this. And now you will learn something new about your favorite actor - something that will surely surprise you.

Cumberbatch is a football fan

Although Benedict doesn't look like a sports guy, he is a real football fan. In recent years, he has been spotted more than once at Stamford Bridge, home of London's Chelsea. However, he does not support Chelsea, but for another London team, Chelsea's permanent rival in the Premier League - London's Arsenal. The fan community even honored him with the title of "gunner" - that is, a true and devoted fan. And during the 2016 European Football Championship, Cumberbatch, who was filming at that time in Sherlock in Wales, enthusiastically supported the Welsh national team, which sensationally made it to the semi-finals.

Cumberbatch loves extreme sports

Cumberbatch is not only a fan, he is an active athlete, and you will be surprised to find out exactly what sports he is interested in. He does not go to the football field, preferring more extreme activities. Skydiving, ballooning, skiing, motorcycle racing - this is an incomplete list of his sports experiments. So if, watching Cumberbatch famously slicing through space in the movie Star Trek: Into Darkness, you thought that in real life the actor is not capable of anything like that, you were very wrong!

Cumberbatch almost died at the hands of robbers

In 2005, while filming in South Africa for the mini-series Journey to the Ends of the Earth, Cumberbatch went scuba diving with actress Denise Black and his South African friend in St. Lucia, a place in the northeast of the country, near the border with Mozambique. . But on the way back, a deadly trap lay in wait for them: bandits attacked the car. The actor was tied up and tried to put in the trunk. He was sure that he would not get out of the alteration alive, but still he won freedom for himself, saying to the robbers: “If you close me here, lack of air is not a problem, but a small space is. I will have heart and head problems. Maybe I'll get hit and die. And that will cause you problems. A dead Englishman in a car is no good!” In the end, he was tied up with his comrades, and they were all thrown to the side of the road together.

Cumberbatch has eyes like David Bowie

Both Cumberbatch and Bowie have been diagnosed with a condition called heterochromia, in which the irises of the right and left eyes have different colors. Simply put, Cumberbatch has eyes of different colors: they combine three shades in different ways - blue, green and gold. And in general, many people say that Cumberbatch is very similar to Bowie in his younger years. This, however, is probably not the only reason why Cumberbatch loves Bowie and was even seen wearing a T-shirt with a portrait of his favorite artist and singer on his chest.

Cumberbatch hates Downton Abbey

It would seem that, as a British actor of the classical school, Cumberbatch should have a penchant for historical dramas and the like, but nothing like that! The opposite is true, at least according to the comment Cumberbatch made to Reader's Digest about Downton Abbey. “Our culture is experiencing some kind of admiration, or nostalgia, for the times of the early twentieth century,” he says. “And although they sacrificed sentimentality in the last episodes, we will not talk about these episodes, because he is ... just a damn nasty!” In addition, he called the series "banal". The whole thing is especially strange when you consider that Downton Abbey creator Julan Fellows is a close friend of the Cumberbatch family.

Cumberbatch is Robert Rinder's best friend

Lawyer Robert Rinder is known throughout Britain as "Judge Rinder" - the author and host of the court television show of his name, which is called - "Judge Rinder". But this is not quite like the traditional friendship of two celebrities who met somewhere on the set at the zenith of fame. Benedict Cumberbatch and Robert Rinder have been friends since they were young. Benedict was the host of Rinder's initiation ceremony, and Robert, in his time, became one of the three best man at the wedding of Cumberbatch and Sophie Hunter. By the way, it was because of Cumberbatch in his distant youth that Rinder abandoned his acting career and preferred law, because, as Robert himself admitted, “Benedict was too good an actor” to try to get to his level.

Cumberbatch went to the police because of the harassment

In 2015, an unknown but apparently mentally ill woman began to besiege the actor's house in north London, where he lived with his wife and child. She constantly wandered around the building, making the actor and his family nervous. Cumberbatch's nerves faltered when she started leaving signs for him in the form of red ribbons taped to the window of his car. After that, he turned to the police - and handed over the unfortunate fan to justice. According to the official statement, the lady received an official warning of the inadmissibility of harassment, forbidding her to seek contact with Cumberbatch or appear anywhere near him, his house and his relatives. However, after the incident, as the actor admitted, his entire family was “shaking with fear” for a long time.

Cumberbatch's ancestors were slave owners

Cumberbatch comes from a respected and wealthy family. But this does not always mean a clean reputation. During the days of legal slavery, his ancestors owned black slaves - which is somewhat ironic when you remember that Benedict played a slave owner in the 2013 drama 12 Years a Slave. The actor spoke in numerous interviews about how his name became widely known among families of immigrants from the Caribbean, as well as the fact that his mother recommended that he abandon his last name in favor of a pseudonym, because she was afraid that her son's family slave past would come back to haunt. Fortunately, he did not listen - and it is quite logical: after all, he did not have time to catch the times of slavery, so it is clearly not his fault.

Cumberbatch is a great impersonator

Check out how great Cumberbatch parodies the famous actor Aan Rickman! He showed this number in 2011 on the popular "The Jonathan Ross Show" on British television - and subsequently, to the surprise of many, proved that he parodies the host of the Jonathan Ross show just as well. But that's not all! Sean Connery, Jack Nicholson, Owen Wilson and even Cheubbuck from Star Wars - all of them Cumberbatch portrays with the same mastery. And that's just what the audience has already seen with their own eyes! Who, in whom else, can this wonderful actor reincarnate?

His female fans call themselves "Cumber Witches"

Cumberbatch himself grimaces at this name and has repeatedly suggested to his fans that they choose a more positive name for themselves - for example, "cumber company". But the girls stubbornly continue to use the crude self-name they invented, although many accuse them of infringing on the rights of women and leveling the achievements of feminists in terms of the fight for gender equality.
By the way, to become a “cumberwitch”, you need to meet fairly strict criteria - to have high intelligence, be able to use the Internet, love complex films and noisy parties, be interested in politics and history, have a sense of humor, patience and meticulous attention to detail.

Cumberbatch was almost the real Doctor Strange

Many people know that Cumberbatch played a major role in the Doctor Strange comic film, which is about to hit the world's screens. But few people know that he had a chance to play a similar role in real life. No, he did not study magic and such wild things, but in his youth he seriously considered a career as a neurosurgeon - and this is the area Dr. Strange from the comics specialized in before he became the Supreme Earth Mage. In addition, Cumberbatch thought about a career as a lawyer - but to our general joy, he still preferred the acting path.

Cumberbatch had very unusual cameo roles

Everyone knows the list of Cumberbatch's main roles - "Sherlock", "Atonement", "Spy Get Out!", "War Horse", "Sartrek: Retribution", "12 Years a Slave", "The Imitation Game", "The Hobbit" ... But how many people know about his lesser-known works? Meanwhile, among the episodic roles played by the actor are appearances in the series “Heartbreak” (three times), “Silent Witness” (twice), “Ghosts”, “The Simpsons” (he voiced the British Prime Minister and Professor Severus Snape) and even Sesame Street. In addition, he participated a lot in radio shows and played a lot on the stage, including the main roles in Hamlet and Frankenstein. So Cumberbatch is a very busy actor!

Chocolate statue of Cumberbatch

Perhaps it was the strangest PR stunt of all time. To promote its new channel Drama, UKTV commissioned a pure Belgian chocolate statue of Benedict Cumberbatch, 1.83 meters tall and weighing around 20 kilos. The hollow chocolate monument was immediately given the name "Chocobatch". A team of 250 people, led by chocolatier Jen Lindsey-Clark, worked on its manufacture. For the role of the prototype for the chocolate statue, Cumberbatch was chosen by popular vote. TV viewers had to answer the question: which of the British TV actors is the most appetizing? In this vote, Cumberbatch beat David Tennant, Idris Elba and even Sean Bean.

When the statue was ready, it was displayed in a busy London supermarket to see how visitors would react to it - just take a picture against it, lick it, or take a bite out of it? It turns out that, and another, and the third. Someone took pictures, someone pointedly licked the actor's thigh, and the most hooligans, unable to resist, broke off the actor's fingers and quickly ate them.

Cumberbatch sings

Recently, namely, on September 28, 2016, the whole world learned that Cumberbatch also sings well. During a concert by former Pink Floyd member David Gilmour at the Royal Albert Hall in London, Cumberbatch took the stage and performed the famous composition 'Comfortably Numb' from the great album The Wall. According to critics, the debut was successful. However, this was not a full debut: back in 2013, Cumberbatch recorded a song for the film August: Osage County. And he, by the way, took a week-long violin course!

Cumberbatch was the only candidate for the role of Doctor Strange

Among the candidates for the role of Doctor Strange, called by the press, were Joaquin Phoenix, and Patrick Gmpsi, and Jared Leto, and Ryan Gosling, and even Johnny Depp. But in reality, Cumberbatch was the only candidate that Marvel Studios considered. Director Scott Derrickson really wanted to get the actor. Finding out that Cumberbatch would not be able to act because he already had filming scheduled for the right time, Derrickson convinced the studio management to reschedule production so that Cumberbatch would still take part in the project. Such persistence even embarrassed the actor, who later said: “I already thought that I had said goodbye to this role forever. Sometimes you don't have time to jump on the bandwagon of a departing train - well, this happens. But their return was the best compliment for me. It made me put in extra effort to justify the trust placed in me.”