Ones To Watch: Christian McKay

Christian McKay is a Bury born actor who shot to fame last year for his role in Me and Orson Welles and is one that we should all be keeping a beady eye on.

The actor studied his art at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and has juggled television, theatre and film roles.

Like so many British stars he kicked off his career in television with roles in Doctors and Poirot.

It wasn't long before he was treading the theatre boards, funnily enough as Orson Welles, in Rosebud: The Lives of Orson Welles, which was a one man show.

His first movie came in Abraham's Point which came in 2008 starring alongside Mackenzie Crook.

However it was Me and Orson Welles last year that proved to be his breakthrough role, as he once again played Welles.

It was his theatre performances as the filmmaker that secured the film role for the actor after his show was seen by Richard Linklater who went on to cast him.

In a whirlwind week in 1937 in New York City, a young aspiring actor named Richard is thrown into the middle of Orson Welles Mercury Theatre Company on the eve of the opening of Welles historic staging of Shakespeare's Julius Caesar.

During this week he will find romance with a worldly older woman, becomes immersed in a creative experience few are afforded and learn the downside of crossing the imperious, brilliant Welles. Richard is about to grow up fast.

McKay was part of an all star cast that included Zac Efron ad Claire Danes and despite being  virtually unknown McKay's performance was highly praised when the movie was released.

For his performance he has been nominated for Best Supporting Actor at this year's Bafta Awards, winning the same award at the San Francisco Film Critics Circle.

A string of Best Breakthrough Performance nominations have also come his way at the British Independent Film Awards, Chicago Film Critics Association Awards and Washington DC Area Film Critics Association Awards.

And the actor has several projects in the pipeline including Mr Nice, which will see him work alongside Rhys Ifans and David Thewlis.

You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger, which also stars, Naomi Watts, Anthony Hopkins and Josh Brolin and directed by Woody Allen, is currently in post production.

He is also rumoured to be appearing in John Goldschmidt's Virtuoso, which is currently in pre-production.

FemaleFirst Helen Earnshaw