RONAN VIBERT

Birthplace: Cardiff, South Wales, UK
Height: 5'9"
Hair colour: brown
Eyes: green

Attended RADA 1983-1986. Parents David Vibert and Dilys Jackson, both artists. Brother Cevn, a computer systems engineer. (IMDb)

Do you have more information to donate? Then please send me.

ARTICLE

icWales provided an article about Ronan.

ALMOST FAMOUS

THE name Ronan Vibert may not be one you instantly recognise. But even if the his name isn't familiar you will certainly recognise the face - and not just because he looks like Alan Rickman's sexier younger brother.

In fact he even sounds like Alan Rickman's sexy younger brother with his deep, refined voice. But he is in fact a home-grown talent, coming from Penarth.

But back to that face, one you know but can't quite place.

An interviewer once remarked that he recognised Ronan from 1,001 different places, a fact which the actor acknowledges as being probably true and he's cropped up on stage and screen many times in his career which spans two decades.

He's starred in works as varied as West End play Antartica with Jason Flemyng ,TV comedy Gimme Gimme Gimme alongside Kathy Burke , in Roman Polanski's Oscar-winning film The Pianist and most recently Tomb Raider II, which was partly filmed in Wales.

Currently he's on stage at the Bristol Old Vic in Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream as fairy King Oberon, and the ruler of Athens, Theseus. It's a story which he describes as being about "love, desire and an ass."

He says, "It is going to be very exciting. It's set in the Victorian ere which seems to suit the play very well.

"Theseus' court is a very formal place. The world of Athens is buttoned up, just like it was in Victorian times. But there are lots of undercurrents going on. When everyone goes to the woods, people get drugged and there is confusion with the lovers.

"It's a great production, and not at all gimmicky, like some productions can be."

The play, Shakespeare's famous romance of mistaken identities, is a popular choice for actors. Most recently, it was turned into a film featuring Calista Flockhart, the feisty namesake in the Channel 4 series, Ally McBeal.

Ronan thinks its appeal lies in its timelessness and in a certain character's similarity to Ricky Gervais's character in the comedy, The Office, David Brent.

"It's definitely not just for the arty group," he smiles. "It's very fast-moving, very funny, so I can see why it has been so prevalent over the years.

"It's so contemporary. Mistakes are made, like in modern comedies. And Bottom, the character, is just like a latter-day David Brent, the modern buffoon.

"The mechanicals are very funny. You could almost imagine them as the characters in Dad's Army getting together to put on a play."

Although he's famed for his high-profile roles, even if you might not be able to put a name to his face, Ronan, now 37, made his acting debut in Cardiff and took lessons in the craft at Llanover Hall in Canton.

Although he's used to exotic locations, when making Tomb Raider II: The Cradle of Life with Angelina Jolie he wasn't as fortunate as the rest of the cast in shooting scenes in faraway locations.

"The film had locations all over the world - Greece, Africa, even Wales - but I ended up filming my part just off the M25," he laughs.

But in Tomb Raider II, he says his role is even more important than that of Angelina Jolie, who plays the scantily clad heroine Lara Croft.

"The action takes place in Croft Mansions where I give Lara her task so I set up the plot of the movie," he said. "An added plus was working with the beautiful Angelina. That was a reason to turn up to work in the mornings."

He even has the prestigious bonus of featuring in the trailer for the film, making sure that face (and that silky voice) get known to even more people around the world.

Tomb Raider II is his first Hollywood blockbuster, although his name has been mentioned in relation to the character of Renus Lupin in the next Happy Potter film, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, about which he's staying schtum at the moment.

His versatility means that he's just as at home in light-hearted films like this as he is in more heavyweight ones such as Polanski's, The Pianist. Although his role, as actor and Polish resistance member Andrzej Bogucki was so small that you could have blinked and missed it, he says he was honoured to be involved in the film.

"Roman Polansky is a film legend. This was an amazing film, and because of the subject matter it was such a personal film for him to make.

"He was a lovely man, very generous."

In Tomb Raider II Ronan plays Agent Calloway, an M16 agent, but admits this is the closest he will ever come to playing the world's greatest secret agent.

"This is as near as I will get to being James Bond," he says. "I think it's more likely that I would be the villain than the main man himself.

"But it would be good if it could be someone Welsh, now that we've had English and Scottish Bonds. I think it's time for another Celt."

More film work is on the way for Ronan, as he joins the Welsh acting brigade trying to make it big in Hollywood.

"This is a great time for the arts for Wales," he said. "It has always been a great place for artists and there is a great tradition of acting, but it's now coming to the fore even more.

"There are big groups of us now, not just the token Welsh person every now and again.

"The whole thing started off with music but is now moving to the acting world, with success stories like Catherine Zeta Jones. It's a nice feeling to be popular and respected and to be Welsh."

His next film project is Gladiatress, with Smack the Pony actresses Fiona Allen, Sally Phillips and Doon Mackichan. Ronan plays Julius Caesar, and describes the film as "a cross between Asterix and The Life of Brian."

He has also made a television adaptation of Mary Shelley's life, playing Victor Frankenstein.

As such a hard-working and versatile actor, he has worked with some of the film world's greatest talents. But, in typical luvvie style, Ronan says that it would be impossible to single out the actor he admires the most.

"I have worked with lots of great people, so it would require too much to think about to have to choose just one.

"But saying that, working on Shadow of the Vampire with Eddie Izzard, John Malkovich and William Defoe was a fantastic experience. They are all fantastic actors - very diverse but very talented at the same time."

With all this acting work, it's not surprising that Ronan doesn't have very much spare time at the moment. And on top of the stresses of rehearsals and opening night, he has to worry about moving house as well as performing to a full one.

"Any spare time I have has to be spent on the move," he said. "So I have been getting very interested in settees all of a sudden.

"It's strange the things moving house does to you. You get very obsessed with the shape of a doorknob and discussing the intricacies of different styles of lampshade."

This time the move is only across London, not across the Atlantic.

But he hasn't ruled out a move to America entirely.

"I do like Hollywood and I spend a lot of time there," he said. "It's a great place and there's always something going on, and everyone is so positive there."

But for the moment he's more than happy to stay close to home and is glad of the chance to be so near to his parents in Cardiff while he is performing in Bristol.

"I regularly visit and when the play opens here I'll be popping over the water as its not very far and it's always good to go back home."

Although you never know where Ronan will be going next with his career, one thing is certain.

His name won't be unfamiliar for long.