Born in Aberfeldy in 1965, Alan Cumming grew up on the Panmure Estate, near Carnoustie, where his father was head forester, and attended Monikie Primary School and Carnoustie High School.
Cumming began his acting career on the stages of the Royal Lyceum Edinburgh, the Dundee Rep, and Glasgow’s Tron Theatre – earning his first Olivier nomination when the Traverse’s production of Conquest of the South Pole transferred to the Royal Court in London.
He’s continued to act on stage throughout his career, most famously as the MC in Cabaret (for which he won a Tony Award), and has performed with the Bristol Old Vic and the Royal Shakespeare Company.
Other notable roles include a one-man Macbeth which premiered in Glasgow, a production of The Bacchae at the Edinburgh International Festival and Accidental Death of an Anarchist, for which he won an Olivier. Most recently he peformed Burn, a one-man show about Robert Burns, at the Edinburgh International Festival and across Scotland.
On the small screen, early outings included in Scottish soap opera Take The High Road and crime drama Taggart, coming to wider prominence in BBC sitcom The High Life alongside drama school friend Forbes Masson. While he’s appeared in numerous British television programmes since then, it's in America that he has become an international star, first in hit political drama The Good Wife, then in crime drama Instinct and comedy musical Schmigadoon.
Cumming has also had a successful movie career, with a critically-acclaimed and award-winning first feature film appearance in 1992’s Prague, which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival. Notable films since have included Circle of Friends, Golden Eye, Emma, Romy and Michele's High School Reunion, Eyes Wide Shut, X-Men 2 and the Spy Kids trilogy. Most recently he appeared in My Old School, a documentary about a 32-year-old man who pretended to be 17 to attend Bearsden Academy, just outside Glasgow. He lip syncs to an interview with Lee in the film which received a premiere at the Glasgow Film Festival attended by Cumming alongside director Jono McLeod and Scottish singer Lulu.
Away from acting he’s a successful author, both of best-selling autobiographies and novels.
Here are 13 interesting and funny things Alan Cumming has said over the years.
1. Alan Cumming on...Scotland
"I come more to Scotland than I ever used to, so I feel more connected to it, more part of the zeitgeist. You know when you realize you have a choice and I'm choosing my homeland. It's funny: when you get older these things creep up to you." Photo: Steven Ryan
2. Alan Cumming on...being open about his sexuality
"It's about how you exist as a person in the world, and the idea that your work is more important than you as a person is a horrible, horrible message. I always think about a little gay boy in Wisconsin or a little lesbian in Arkansas seeing someone like me, and if I cannot be open in my life, how on earth can they?" Photo: Eugene Gologursky
3. Alan Cumming on...his upbringing
"My mum always told me I was precious, while my dad always told me I was worthless. I think that's a good grounding for a balanced life." Photo: Vivien Killilea
4. Alan Cumming on...his upbringing
"My mum always told me I was precious, while my dad always told me I was worthless. I think that's a good grounding for a balanced life." Photo: Gabriel Olsen