The surprise Oscar nomination received by Gary Oldman for his performance in British spy thriller Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy comes as an overdue recognition of one of the world's most gifted actors. In a career that has spanned more than 30 years Oldman has proved himself again and again to be an actor of immense power and intelligence in films as diverse as Immortal Beloved, State of Grace and Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.

Born in London in 1958 Oldman spent much of his early career in theatre before his role in 1986's Sid and Nancy announced him as a major movie talent. Oldman's portrayal of Sid Viscous the ill-fated, heroin addicted bass player of punk group The Sex Pistols was widely praised (though the movie was not) for its stunning, bleak authenticity.

Oldman moved to Hollywood in the early nineties and soon established himself as the number one go-to guy for big budget American movies who were in need of a great villain. Roles in Dracula, Leon, True Romance, Murder in the First, The Fifth Element and Air Force One all proved one thing: when you wanted a charismatic bad guy, there were few others who could deliver like Gary Oldman. Yet there was always much more to Oldman than just scenery chewing villainy. In fact he is also a terrific director as he proved with his emotional, semi-autobiographical 1997 film Nil By Mouth. That film (which Oldman also wrote) was acclaimed across the board and won a host of awards including a BAFTA for Best British Film. Since then Oldman has put in memorable performances in Christopher Nolan's Batman series, The Hughes Brothers' The Book of Eli and, of course, Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy.