The Great Gambon

Sir Michael Gambon was one of the greatest actors of the last 50 years, with a career that began as second spear carrier in Hamlet, alongside Anthony Hopkins (he had to lift Peter O'Toole - Hamlet - out of Ophelia's grave and was told he would never work again if he kept dropping him). He went on to star in plays by Harold Pinter and Samuel Beckett, as well as Dumbledore in the Harry Potter films .
When Michael Gambon's memory began to fade, he found it increasingly difficult to remember his lines. Ultimately the job fell to Milly Ellis, to be his 'earwig', which she did for fifteen years, giving him his lines through an earpiece.
This gave her the opportunity to see and hear him deliver some his most outstanding performances. As well as having chameleon-like abilities as an actor, Gambon was a legendary self mythologiser and this book celebrates the many outlandish stories he told about himself, as well as from those of his friends and fellow actors. Milly Ellis has woven the best of these - from the likes of Tom Hollander, Daniel Craig, Robert de Niro, Judi Dench and Eileen Atkins - into an affectionate tribute to this extraordinary man.

A specialist voice coach for 20 years, Milly Ellis has worked alongside some of Britain's finest actors, including Sir John Gielgud, Sir Michael Gambon and Dame Helen Mirren. Since 2004 she has been coaching business leaders and managers in the UK, Europe and the Far East through her company Be Heard. She has also collaborated on projects with John Malkovich, Willem Dafoe, Nicholas Cage, Miranda Richardson, the Royal Ballet and Sadler's Wells as well as directing several documentaries for C4 and the BBC.