As a comedic star in his native England, actor Steve Coogan never had to worry much about his appearance. But once the actor turned to Hollywood blockbusters like “Around the World in 80 Days” (2004), co-starring martial arts guru Jackie Chan, Coogan suddenly found himself doing crunches on his hotel room floor – strange for the creator of the paunched and poorly-dressed Alan Partridge of BBC fame. But like all great comedic talents, Coogan managed to mask his true self, whether through physical appearance, exaggerated personality or dead-on impression. A natural performer since childhood, Coogan lived behind a mask in a world of his own creation, which allowed him to transform himself in such diverse fare like “24 Hour Party People” (2002), “Marie Antoinette” (2006) and “Night at the Museum” (2006), making Coogan one of the most interesting and promising young comedic talents to cross the Atlantic.
Born on Oct. 14, 1965 in Middleton, Greater Manchester, England, Coogan was one of six children raised in a working-class Catholic family. As a member of such a large brood – which also included several foster children throughout the years – Coogan struggled for attention by entertaining his parents, Tony, an IBM engineer, and Kathleen, a housewife, with impersonations of teachers and family members. Graduating to reciting chunks of Monty Python and mimicking public figures like Margaret Thatcher, Coogan brought his inherent talents to train as an actor at the Manchester Polytechnic School. To earn his Equity card, Coogan performed standup comedy which helped perfect his gift for dead-on impersonations of celebrities and world leaders. Coogan began putting his voice talents to work on “Spitting Image” (ITV1, 1984-86), a satirical show that recreated famous characters from British life into grossly exaggerated puppets. This led to being spotted by a talent scout, after which he did impressions on such British shows as “First Exposure,” “A Word in Your Era” and “Paramount City.”
In 1992, Coogan created his most famous and beloved character – the ignorant, arrogant and combed-over Alan Partridge. At the time, Coogan was on Radio 4’s “On the Hour,” a mock radio show that posed as a news program. Asked by the show’s producer, Armando Iannucci, to do the voice of a sportscaster, Coogan just opened his mouth and out came Alan Partridge. The character soon developed into an audience favorite loved for his lame puns and non-sequiturs. Coogan turned Partridge into a million dollar franchise, spinning off the character into its own radio show, “Knowing Me, Knowing You,” which was later turned into the mock television talk show “Knowing Me, Knowing You…with Alan Partridge” (BBC, 2000-01) A second series followed with “I’m Alan Partridge” (BBC, 2000-01), which depicted the fictional character after his talk show gets taken away from him.
Coogan segued into movies, playing the role of Tommy in “The Indian in the Cupboard” (1995). He next landed the lead in “The Wind in the Willows” (1997), a live-action children’s tale about the adventures of Mole and his pal Rat. In “The Parole Officer” (2001), Coogan starred as an honest but naïve parole officer who is framed for murder by a crooked cop. Co-written with business partner, Henry Normal, with whom he formed Baby Cow Productions, the film went on to become one of the UK’s top grossing films of that year. Off this success, Coogan was cast as Tony Wilson, the ambitious and charismatic music manager who helps put the Manchester scene on the map in “24 Hour Party People” (2002). The unconventional biopic was a hit at the 2002 Sundance Film Festival, with special kudos going to Coogan for his performance.
Coogan further raised his profile with “Around the World in 80 Days,” where he played the eccentric London inventor, Phileas Fogg, who makes a bet to circumnavigate the globe in only 80 days. He also appeared as himself in Jim Jarmusch’s “Coffee and Cigarettes” (2004), a series of vignettes where several real-life characters talk about random topics over coffee and cigarettes. He then appeared in the low-budget ensemble comedy, “Happy Endings” (2005), playing a gay restaurateur, and father to the son of his stepsister, who convinces his lover (David Sutcliffe) to donate sperm to a pair of lesbian friends (Laura Dern and Sarah Clarke). He next starred in “Tristram Shandy: A Cock and Bull Story” (2005), a satirical adaptation of Laurence Sterne’s 18th century novel about an obnoxious Englishman who narrates his entire life, starting with his own conception. Directed by Michael Winterbottom, “Tristram Shandy” veers towards the present day, revealing a film crew quarrelling over how to film the supposedly unadaptable novel, with Coogan playing a variation of himself.
Following a small part as the miniature Roman emperor Octavius in “Night at the Museum” (2006), he made an appearance as the Austrian diplomat, Ambassador Mercy, in Sophia Coppola’s divisive take on “Marie Antoinette” (2006). After a cameo in the uproarious comedy “Hot Fuzz” (2007), Coogan returned to British television with “Saxondale” (BBC America, 2006-07), playing a divorced former roadie with anger management issues who runs a pest control business while excelling at alienating everyone around him. Coogan next delivered a fine comic performance as an argumentative psychotherapist in a season six episode of “Curb Your Enthusiasm” (HBO, 2000- ), then returned to the feature world to play a frustrated director making a war film who dumps his three self-absorbed stars (Ben Stiller, Jack Black and Robert Downey Jr.) in the jungle to get a real taste of war in “Tropic Thunder” (2008). He then starred as a failed actor-turned-high school drama teacher who stages a politically incorrect musical sequel to William Shakespeare’s most complex play in “Hamlet 2” (2008).