A butler in the White House Butler's Pantry.

A butler is a domestic worker in a large household. In great houses, the household is sometimes divided into departments with the butler in charge of the dining room, wine cellar, and pantry. Some also have charge of the entire parlour floor, and housekeepers caring for the entire house and its appearance.^[1] A butler is usually male,^[2] and in charge of male servants, while a housekeeper is usually a woman, and in charge of female servants. Traditionally, male servants (such as footmen) were better paid and therefore rarer and of higher status than female servants. The butler, as the senior male servant, has the highest servant status.

In modern houses where the butler is the most senior worker, titles such as majordomo, butler administrator, house manager, manservant, staff manager, chief of staff, staff captain, estate manager and head of household staff are sometimes given. The precise duties of the employee will vary to some extent in line with the title given, but perhaps more importantly in line with the requirements of the individual employer. In the grandest homes or when the employer owns more than one residence, there is sometimes an estate manager of higher rank than the butler.

Background[link]

The word "butler" derives from the Old French bouteleur (cup bearer), from bouteille, (bottle), and ultimately from Latin. The role of the butler, for centuries, has been that of the chief steward of a household, the attendant entrusted with the care and serving of wine and other bottled beverages which in ancient times might have represented a considerable portion of the household's assets.

In Britain, the butler was originally a middle ranking member of the staff of a grand household. In the 17th and 18th centuries, the butler gradually became the usually senior male member of a household's staff in the very grandest households, though there was sometimes a steward who ran the outside estate and financial affairs, rather than just the household, and who was senior to the butler in social status into the 19th century. Butlers used to always be attired in a special uniform, distinct from the livery of junior servants, but today a butler is more likely to wear a business suit or business casual clothing and appear in uniform only on special occasions.

A Silverman or Silver Butler has expertise and professional knowledge of the management, secure storage, use and cleaning of all silverware, associated tableware and other paraphernalia for use at military and other special functions. See also Silver (household).

Origin and history[link]

The modern role of the butler has evolved from earlier roles that were generally concerned with the care and serving of alcoholic beverages.

Ancient through medieval eras[link]

From ancient through medieval times, alcoholic beverages were chiefly stored first in earthenware vessels, then later in wooden barrels, rather than in glass bottles; these containers would have been an important part of a household's possessions. The care of these assets was therefore generally reserved for trusted slaves, although the job could also go to free persons because of heredity-based class lines or the inheritance of trades.

The biblical book of Genesis contains a reference to a role precursive to modern butlers. The early Hebrew Joseph interpreted a dream of Pharaoh's שקה (shaqah) (literally "to give to drink"), which is most often translated into English as "chief butler" or "chief cup-bearer".^[3]

In ancient Greece and Rome, it was nearly always slaves who were charged with the care and service of wine, while during the Medieval Era the pincerna, usually a serf, filled the role within the noble court. The English word "butler" itself derives from the Middle English word boteler (and several other forms), from Old French bouteillier ("bottle bearer"), and before that from Medieval Latin butticula. "Butticula", in turn, came down to English as "butt" from the Latin buttis, meaning a large cask. The modern English "butler" thus relates both to bottles and casks.

Eventually the European butler emerged as a middle-ranking member of the servants of a great house, in charge of the buttery (originally a storeroom for "butts" of liquor, although the term later came to mean a general storeroom or pantry).^[4] While this is so for household butlers, those with the same title but in service to the Crown enjoyed a position of administrative power and were only minimally involved with various stores.

In a large house, the butler (centre-left) is traditionally head over a full array of household servants. This is the servant staff at the Stonehouse Hill of Massachusetts, the estate of F. Lothrop Ames, 1914.

Elizabethan through Victorian eras[link]

The Steward of the Elizabethan era was more akin to the butler that later emerged.^[5] Gradually, throughout the 19th century and particularly the Victorian era, as the number of butlers and other domestic servants greatly increased in various countries (including America), the butler became a senior male servant of a household's staff. By this time he was in charge of the more modern wine cellar, the "buttery" or pantry (from French pan from Latin panis, bread) as it came to be called, which supplied bread, butter, cheese, and other basic provisions, and the ewery, which contained napkins and basins for washing and shaving.^[6] In the very grandest households there was sometimes an Estate Steward or other senior steward who oversaw the butler and his duties.^[7] Mrs Beeton's Book of Household Management, a manual published in Britain in 1861, reported:

The number of the male domestics in a family varies according to the wealth and position of the master, from the owner of the ducal mansion, with a retinue of attendants, at the head of which is the chamberlain and house-steward, to the occupier of the humbler house, where a single footman, or even the odd man-of-all-work, is the only male retainer. The majority of gentlemen's establishments probably comprise a servant out of livery, or butler, a footman, and coachman, or coachman and groom, where the horses exceed two or three.^[8]

Glanusk Park in Powys County, U.K., in 1891. The residence had 17 servants in residence. The largest stately houses could have 40 or more.

Butlers were head of a strict service hierarchy and therein held a position of power and respect. They were more managerial than "hands on"—more so than serving, they officiated in service. For example, although the butler was at the door to greet and announce the arrival of a formal guest, the door was actually opened by a footman, who would receive the guest's hat and coat. Even though the butler helped his employer into his coat, this had been handed to him by a footman. However, even the highest-ranking butler would "pitch in" when necessary, such as during a staff shortage, to ensure that the household ran smoothly, although some evidence suggests this was so even during normal times.^[9]

The household itself was generally divided into areas of responsibility. The butler was in charge of the dining room, the wine cellar, pantry, and sometimes the entire main floor. Directly under the butler was the first footman (or head footman), who was also deputy butler or under-butler that would fill in as butler during the butler's illness or absence. The footman—there were frequently numerous young men in the role within a household—performed a range of duties including serving meals, attending doors, carrying or moving heavy items, and they often doubled as valets. Valets themselves performed a variety of personal duties for their employer. Butlers engaged and directed all these junior staff and each reported directly to him. The housekeeper was in charge of the house as a whole and its appearance. In a household without an official head housekeeper, female servants and kitchen staff were also directly under the butler's management, while in smaller households, the butler usually doubled as valet. Employers and their children and guests addressed the butler by last name alone; fellow servants, retainers, and tradespersons as "Mr. [Surname]".

Butlers were typically hired by the master of the house but usually reported to its lady. Beeton in her manual suggested a GBP 25 - 50 (USD 2,675 - 5,350) per-year salary for butlers; room and board and livery clothing were additional benefits, and tipping known as vails, were common.^[10] The few butlers who were married had to make separate housing arrangements for their families, as did all other servants within the hierarchy.

Butlers in early America[link]

From the beginning of slavery in America, in the early 17th century, African Americans were put to task as domestic servants. Some eventually became butlers. Gary Puckrein, a social historian, argues that those used in particularly affluent homes authentically internalised the sorts of "refined" norms and personal attributes that would reflect highly upon the social stature of their masters or mistresses. One of the first books written and published through a commercial U.S. publisher by an African American was by a butler named Robert Roberts. The book, The House Servant's Directory,^[11] first published in 1827, is essentially a manual for butlers and waiters, and is called by Puckrein "the most remarkable book by an African American in antebellum America". The book generated such interest that a second edition was published in 1828, and a third in 1843.^[12]

European indentured servants formed a corps of domestic workers from which butlers were eventually drawn. Although not the victims of institutionalised slavery, many of them had not volunteered for domestic service, but were forced into it by indebtedness or coercion. As with African American slaves, they could rise in domestic service, and their happiness or misery depended greatly on the disposition of their masters.

The modern butler[link]

Beginning around the early 1920s (following World War I), employment in domestic service occupations began a sharp overall decline in western European countries, and even more markedly in the United States. Even so, there were still around 30,000 butlers employed in Britain by World War II. As few as one-hundred were estimated to remain by the mid-1980s.^[13] Social historian Barry Higman argues that a high number of domestic workers within a society correlates with a high level of socio-economic inequality. Conversely, as a society undergoes levelling among its social classes, the number employed in domestic service declines.^[14]

Following varied shifts and changes accompanying accelerated globalisation beginning in the late 1980s, overall global demand for butlers since the turn of the millennium has risen dramatically. According to Charles MacPherson, vice chairman of the International Guild of Professional Butlers, the proximate cause is that the number of millionaires and billionaires has increased in recent years, and such people are finding that they desire assistance in managing their households. MacPherson emphasises that the number of wealthy people in China have increased particularly, creating in that country a high demand for professional butlers who have been trained in the European butlering tradition.^[15] There is also increasing demand for such butlers in other Asian countries, India, and the petroleum-rich Middle East.^[16][17]

Higman additionally argues that the inequality/equality levels of societies are a major determinant of the nature of the domestic servant/employer relationship.^[18] As the 21st century approached, many butlers began carrying out an increasing number of duties formerly reserved for more junior household servants. Butlers today may be called upon to do whatever household and personal duties their employers deem fitting, in the goal of freeing their employers to carry out their own personal and professional affairs. Professional butler and author Steven M. Ferry states that the image of tray-wielding butlers who specialise in serving tables and decanting wine is now anachronistic, and that employers may well be more interested in a butler who is capable of managing a full array of household affairs—from providing the traditional dinner service, to acting as valet, to managing high-tech systems and multiple homes with complexes of staff. Whilst in truly grand houses the modern butler may still function exclusively as a top-ranked household affairs manager,^[19] in lesser homes, such as those of dual-income middle-class professionals,^[17] they perform a full array of household and personal assistant duties,^[20] including mundane housekeeping.^[21] Butlers today may also be situated within corporate settings, embassies, cruise ships, yachts, or within their own small "Rent-a-Butler" business or similar agency.^[22]

Along with these changes of scope and context, butlering attire has changed. Whereas butlers have traditionally worn a special uniform that separated them from junior servants, and although this is still often the case, butlers today may adorn more casual clothing geared for climate, while exchanging it for formal business attire only upon special service occasions. There are cultural distinctivenesses, as well. In the United States, butlers may frequently don a polo shirt and slacks, while in Bali they typically wear sarongs.^[23]

In 2007, the number of butlers in Britain had risen to an estimated 5,000.^[24]

Training[link]

Butlers traditionally learned their position while progressing their way up the service ladder. For example, in the documentary The Authenticity of Gosford Park, retired butler Arthur Inch (born 1915) describes starting as a hall boy.^[25] Whilst this is still often the case, numerous private butlering schools exist today, such as The British Butler Institute, the International Institute of Modern Butlers, the Guild of Professional English Butlers, and The International Guild of Butlers & Household Managers; top graduates can start at US$50,000-60,000 (£25,350-30,400).^[26] Additionally, major up-market hotels such as the Ritz-Carlton offer traditional butler training, while some hotels have trained a sort of pseudo-butler for service in defined areas such as "technology butlers", who fix guests' computers and other electronic devices, and "bath butlers" who draw custom baths.^[27][28][29]

Starkey International distinguishes between the "British butler" prototype and its American counterpart, often dubbed the "household manager". Starkey states that they train and promote the latter, believing that Americans do not have the "servant mentality" that is part of the British Butler tradition. They stress that their American-style butlers and valets are educated and certified,^[30] although some students, numerous former Starkey employees, and several wealthy clients have criticised the programme and its owner.^[31] Magnums Butlers, a school based in Australia, conducts training after the British model at sites in Asia and the Pacific, Australia, the United Kingdom and the Middle East.^[32] The International Institute of Modern Butlers provides on-site training in various places around the world as well as via correspondence. In 2007, City & Guilds, the U.K.'s largest awarder of vocational credentials, introduced a diploma programme for butlers.^[33]

In addition to formal training, a few books have been published recently to assist butlers in their duties, including Arthur Inch's and Arlene Hirst's 2003 Dinner is Served. Moreover, websites, as well as a news publication, Modern Butlers' Journal, help butlers to network and keep abreast of developments within their field.

Ferry argues that what he calls a "butler mindset" is beneficial to all people within all professions. He states that an attitude of devoted service to others, deference, and the keeping of confidences can help all people succeed.

Gender and butlering[link]

Butlers have traditionally been male, and this remains the norm. Probably the first mention of a female butler is in the 1892 book Interludes being Two Essays, a Story, and Some Verses by Horace Smith. In it Smith quotes a certain Sydney Smith who had apparently run into lean times:

A man servant was too expensive, so I caught up a little garden girl, made like a milestone, christened her Bunch, put a napkin in her hand, and made her my butler. The girls taught her to read, Mrs. Sydney to wait, and I undertook her morals. Bunch became the best butler in the country.^[34]

Today, female butlers are sometimes preferred,^[35] especially for work within Middle and Far Eastern families where it may be religiously problematic for males to work closely with females in a household.^[36] Western female celebrities may also prefer a female butler,^[37] as may households where the wife is driving the decision to hire a butler.^[17] In 2004, Buckingham Palace announced it was actively recruiting females for the position.^[38] Despite these trends, the Ivor Spencer School asserts that female butlers are not easily placed, on the whole.

In ancient times, the roles precursive to butlering were reserved for chattel or those confined within heredity-based class structures. With the advent of the medieval era, butlering became an opportunity for social advancement—even more so during Victorian times. Although still based upon various antecedent roles as manifested during different eras, butlering today has frequently taken over many of the roles formerly reserved for lower ranking domestic servants. At the same time it has become a potentially lucrative career option.^[39]

Historically important butlers[link]

• Paul Burrell, butler to Diana, Princess of Wales
• Ivor Spencer, toastmaster and etiquette specialist, head of the Ivor Spencer International School for Butler Administrators/Personal Assistants and Estate Managers
• Leslie Bartlett, butler, toastmaster and founder of The London School of British Butlers.

Alonzo Fields[link]

Alonzo Fields

Page from Alonzo Fields's personal papers. This one describes his conduction of a service-event that resulted in Truman's decision to enter the Korean War.

By nature of their position and its requisite staunch discretion, it is exceptional when a butler achieves historical importance. One butler who did is Alonzo Fields (1899–1993), who served as a White House butler for twenty-one years, all but his first year as chief butler, under presidents Hoover, Roosevelt, Truman, and Eisenhower. After his retirement in 1960, Fields published My 21 Years in the White House, in which he wove together his private papers and cryptic journals, written while serving, with his recollections. Although restrained, his memoir nonetheless provides a uniquely intimate primary source account of the U.S. presidents he served, several who came to trust Fields as a close personal friend. Fields reports, for example, that he was present when Roosevelt was first informed of the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor and that Roosevelt "broke down completely" during that moment, and also emoted racial slurs against the Japanese before gaining control. Truman was especially close with Fields and even related with him as an emotional confidant at times, and the two at one point sat together for a portrait.

When Fields began his tenure at the White House, senators from the U.S. South frequently addressed him with the racially condescending term "boy", and an obvious racial hierarchy existed between white and black White House house staff, with whites dominating. Whilst the attitudes of most southern U.S. senators would not begin to change until the advent of U.S. Civil Rights Movement, Roosevelt took it upon himself to remove racial tensions among the house staff by making it all black.^[40][41][42]

More than a decade after Fields's death in 1994, his story was cast into a one-man theatrical performance, Looking Over the President's Shoulder.^[43][44] Historians, such as David McCullough in his 2003 biography Truman, continue to consult Fields's memoirs when constructing accounts of the presidents he served.^[45]

Surname[link]

As a surname, “Butler” was originated by Theobald le Botiller FitzWalter (Lord of Preston). Lord FitzWalter accompanied King John to Ireland to help secure Norman areas. When men whom Walter led killed Dermot MacCarthy, prince of Desmond, Walter was granted land holdings of Baggotrath, County Dublin, and the Stein River lands around what is now Trinity College Dublin. He was also given an important fief, on which Walter both founded an abbey and established his Irish seat. Upon returning to England, King John endowed Walter with the hereditary office "Butler to the Lord of Ireland" in 1177; some evidence indicates that he was also dubbed "Butler of Ireland". As such, he had the right to pour the King's wine. This title can be defined as Governor by today's standards. His son, Theobalde Butler, was the first to hold the name and pass it to his descendants. Walter's grandson was James Butler, 1st Duke of Ormonde.^[46] Kilkenny Castle was the main seat of the Butler family.

In visual art[link]

Heads of Six of Hogarth's Servants

Butlers have been occasionally depicted in visual art. A famous painting, Heads of Six of Hogarth's Servants (c. 1758), is unique among such works. In it, the 18th-century English artist William Hogarth depicted his household servants, each surrounding the butler. In showing the group in a close-knit assemblage rather than in the performance of their routine household duties, Hogarth sought to humanise and dignify them in a manner akin to wealthy-class members, who were the normal subjects of such portraits. Whilst this was a subversive act that certainly raised many eyebrows in his day—Hogarth conspicuously displayed the work in his estate home in full view of guests—at the same time he had painted his servants' facial expressions to convey the sincerity and deference expected of servant-class members.^[47]

In contemporary art, "The Butler's in Love" series by U.S. artist Mark Stock is especially poignant. In the series, Stock portrays the butler as sick with love, but the possibility of fulfillment is hopeless: the love is a forbidden love, perhaps felt for the lady of the house, and so it must be suffered alone in silent hiddenness. In addition to the ongoing mannerisms and facial expressions of the butler, a seated lady once-appearing in a curtained room and a recurring lipstick-stained absinthe glass over which the butler obsesses provide the interpretive clues. In selecting a butler as his subject, Stock sought to provide a "universal character", a pathos-laden figuration that could be widely related to and that could depict the universality of loneliness felt by someone who can only look in from the outside. Stock began the series in 1985 to express his difficult feelings during a personal experience of unrequited love. One of the paintings was inspiration for a 3-D short film, "The Butler's in Love" by actor/director David Arquette, shot in 2008 at San Francisco's historic Westerfield Mansion.^[48][49][50]

In fiction[link]

The real-life modern butler attempts to be discreet and unobtrusive, friendly but not familiar, keenly anticipative of the needs of his or her employer, and graceful and precise in execution of duty. The butler of fiction, by contrast, often tends to be larger-than-life and has become a plot device in literature and a traditional role in the performing arts. Butlers may provide comic relief with wry comments, clues as to the perpetrators of various crimes and are represented as at least as intelligent and moral, or even more so, than their “betters”. They are often portrayed as being serious and expressionless and in the case that the wealthy hero be an orphan—such as Batman, Chrono Crusade's Satella Harvenheit, or Tomb Raider's Lara Croft—be a father figure to said hero. Regardless of the genre in which they are cast, butlers in fiction almost invariably follow the "British butler" model and are given an appropriate-sounding surname. The fictional butler tends to be given a typical Anglo-Celtic surname and have an English accent. The Asian, African American, or Caribbean houseboy is a variant, but even these major-domos are based on the British icon.

Today, butlers are usually portrayed as being refined and well-spoken. However, in 19th century fiction such as Dracula, butlers generally spoke with a strong Cockney or other regional accent.

"The butler" is integral to the plot of countless potboilers and melodramas, whether or not the character has been given a name. Butlers figure so prominently in period pieces and whodunits that they can be considered stock characters in film and theatre where a catchphrase is "the butler did it!"

The best-known fictional manservant, and the prototype of the quintessential British butler, is himself not a butler at all. Reginald Jeeves, the iconic creation of author P. G. Wodehouse is a "gentleman's gentleman" and general factotum. Probably the best-known fictional butlers are Alfred from the Batman comic and films; Hudson of Upstairs, Downstairs television fame; and, Crichton from J. M. Barrie's The Admirable Crichton. Lesser-knowns include Mr. Belvedere from the novel Belvedere, which was adapted into a feature film with sequels and later a television series; Lurch, from the television series The Addams Family, based on Charles Addams' The New Yorker cartoons; Beach, from the Wodehouse series about Blandings Castle; Niles, the butler at the Sheffield house in American sitcom The Nanny, and Benson from the two series Soap and Benson.

Not all fictional butlers portray the "butler stereotype", however. Alan Bates, who played the butler Jennings in the film Gosford Park, was coached in brooding detail by Arthur Inch, a longtime real-life butler.^[51] Mr. Stevens, the butler played by Anthony Hopkins in the film Remains of the Day, was also acted with remarkable realism. A female butler, Sarah Stevens, is the principal character in Linda Howard's 2002 Dying to Please, a murder/romance novel. Howard gives detailed and generally accurate descriptions of butlering in the work.^[52]

In Eoin Colfer's successful Artemis Fowl series, first released in 2001, the term "Butler" took on a more family tradition. Following the fictional butler stereotype, Domovoi Butler (manservant to master Fowl) inherits the term "butler" from his family's last name. Not surprisingly, the Butler family have served as actual servants and bodyguards to important figures throughout history in the Colfer's fictional world; all of which attended Madame Ko's Bodyguard Academy.

Examples[link]

• Mr. Stevens, the protagonist of Kazuo Ishiguro's Booker Prize winning novel, The Remains of the Day and movie of the same name.
• Angus Hudson, from the television show Upstairs, Downstairs.
• Edmund Blackadder, butler to Prince George the Prince Regent, in the TV Series Blackadder the Third.
• Alfred Pennyworth, Bruce Wayne's butler from Batman is a well known fictional butler.
• Benson DuBois, the Tate butler in the hit 1970's sitcom, Soap
• Geoffrey Butler, the butler for the Banks Family on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.
• James La Croix, the butler of Montgomery Mason appearing in the sitcom Home, James.
• Nestor, the butler of Marlinspike Hall appearing in The Adventures of Tintin.
• Niles the butler in the TV Series The Nanny.
• Wadsworth, the protagonist in the movie Clue.
• Sebastian Michaelis, a demon disguised as an extremely handsome man bound by contract to his young British master, Ciel Phantomhive, in the Black Butler Manga and Anime series.
  • Also from the same series is Claude Faustus. Like Sebastian, he is a demon bound by contract to his master, Alois Trancy.
• Sebastian Beach, from the Blandings Castle stories by P. G. Wodehouse, of intimidating majesty but nonetheless a good soul who frequently co-conspires with the clever Gally Threepwood.
• Butler, the butler for Prince Salde Canarl Shellbrick III off of the puzzle game Puyo Puyo Fever 2.
• Smithers, Veronica Lodge's fictional butler.
• Domovoi Butler, butler (and bodyguard) in the Artemis Fowl series novels by Eoin Colfer.
• Spencer, butler in Power Rangers Operation Overdrive
• Pickering, a bullying, slave-driving butler who was the regular villain of the piece in No Tears for Molly from Tammy, a British comic which ran from 1971 to 1984.
• Hugh Edgar, butler, The Edwardian Country House, 2002 British historical recreation TV series
• Cadbury, butler to Richie Rich
• Higgins, from the sitcom Our Man Higgins and the radio comedy on which it was based, It's Higgins, Sir, which revolve around his character
• Underling, the butler in the 2006 Broadway Musical The Drowsy Chaperone
• The titular protagonist of Hayate the Combat Butler
• Butler Seo / Johann Seo, butler-turned-lover to Lady Kang Hae Na of My Fair Lady
• Mr Carson, butler to the Crawley family in Downton Abbey

See also[link]

• Housekeeper
• Valet
• Domestic worker
• Silverman
• Household

References[link]

1. ^ Post, Emily (2007). Emily Post's Etiquette. Echo Library. ISBN 1-4068-1215-3. 
2. ^ http://www.butlersguild.com/index.php?subject=5
3. ^ Genesis 39-40.
4. ^ This was most likely from a loss of the original Latin meaning and the mistaken belief that buttery related to "butter".
5. ^ Lord Montague's Book of Rules and Orders, 1595.
6. ^ Nancy Scanlon (2006). "The Development of the Kitchen in the English Country House 1315–1864". Journal of Culinary Science and Technology 4 (2/3): 79–92. 
7. ^ Beeton, Isabella (1861) (2000). Mrs Beeton's Book of Household Management. Oxford University Press. pp. 393. ISBN 0-19-283345-6. http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=89404824. 
8. ^ Beeton (1861), 393.
9. ^ Carrolyn Steedman, "The servant’s labour: the business of life, England, 1760–1820", Social History, Vol. 29 No. 1, (Feb., 2004).
10. ^ D. Marshall, "The Domestic Servants of the Eighteenth Century", Economica, No. 25, (Apr., 1929), pp. 15–40. Available online with subscription.
11. ^ http://digital.lib.msu.edu/projects/cookbooks/html/books/book_05.cfm
12. ^ Gary Puckrein (Oct/Nov 98). "The Science of Service". American Visions 13 (5). 
13. ^ J. Lee (1988). "Steady, Jeeves—you've got company!". U.S. News & World Report 104 (17). 
14. ^ Higman, Barry (2002). Domestic Service in Australia. Melbourne University Publishing. ISBN 0-522-85011-1. 
15. ^ Scott Simon (10 Feb 2007). "By Jeeves, We're Having a Butler Shortage—Interview with Charles MacPherson" (Streaming Audio). Weekend Edition Saturday. NPR News. http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=7338550. Retrieved 2007-08-13.  Also see Sheelah Kolhatka, "Inside the Billionaire Service Industry". The Atlantic, Sept 2006, 97-101. Archived by WebCite.
16. ^ See for example Chadha, Monica. "Royal tips for Indian butlers", BBC News, 17 Feb 2003. Available online. Archived by WebCite.
17. ^ ^{a b c} "Butlers: A Jeeves of my very own", The Daily Telegraph, 15 Nov 2007. Available online. Archived by WebCite.
18. ^ Higman (2002).
19. ^ Ferry, Steven M. Butlers & Household Managers: 21st Century Professionals. BookSurge Publishing. pp. 14. ISBN 1-59109-306-6. 
20. ^ William Loeffler (15 April 2007). "The butler does it". The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, Lifestyle. 
21. ^ James Woodford (October 5, 2002). "Move over, Jeeves, a new breed of butler is working her way up". The Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on 2007-08-13. http://www.webcitation.org/5R4MfrgUq.  Elizabeth Camille, a butler in Sydney, states, "I still make beds, clean toilets and peg out washing.... It's not all as glamorous as people perceive it to be." Additionally see "Desperately seeking Jeeves", The Globe and Mail (Canada), 20 July 2007. Lynda Reeves, president of the Toronto-based House & Home Media, says that the term "butler" today is just "a pretentious name for a housekeeper".
22. ^ Jones, Harvey. "More money than time? Rent a butler". The Independent (UK), 15 Dec 2001. Available online. Archived by WebCite. Also see http://www.rentabutler.de and http://www.rentabutler.nl/.
23. ^ Patrao, Michael. "The alter ago of Jeeves". The Deccan Herald, 27 July 2007. Available online. Archived by WebCite.
24. ^ Sapstead, David. "Shortage of Butlers Has World's Wealthy Facing a Crisis", New York Sun, 30 May 2007. Available online. Archived by WebCite.
25. ^ The Authenticity of Gosford Park, Documentary featurette in Gosford Park Collector's Edition DVD, Universal Studios, 2002.
26. ^ Simon (10 Feb 2007).
27. ^ Witchel (2000). "At Hotels, the Butlers Are Doing It". New York Times 149 (51486): 2.  Ferry, as quoted in "Desperately seeking Jeeves", The Globe and Mail (Canada), 20 July 2007, was quoted as saying that hotel butlers are not rooted in the European tradition of butlering. He states that some hotels essentially rename their pool attendants as "pool butlers" and this is not a real butler so much as a marketing gimmick.
28. ^ Rouvalis, Cristina. "Butler provides the perfect pampering", Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 6 May 2007. Available online. Archived by WebCite.
29. ^ Hotels are rated by the International Institute of Modern Butlers according to their butler service offerings, which can range from the one-on-one personalized butler (a 5-Butler rating) to the "pool butler (a 0-Butler rating). See http://www.modernbutlers.com/html/butler-rating-system.html
30. ^ Starkey does lay claim to understanding the British butler tradition; however, her general approach seems to be that American domestic staff are better suited to American families.
31. ^ Joel Warner (9 Aug 2007). "At Your Disservice". Denver Westword News. http://www.westword.com/2007-08-09/news/at-your-disservice.  Archived by WebCite.
32. ^ See Magnums Butlers, accessed 12/31/2007. Archived by WebCite.
33. ^ See http://www.cityandguilds.com/cps/rde/xchg/SID-7D78108B-8F23F7DA/cgonline/hs.xsl/12341.html
34. ^ Smith, Horace; Joel Lehtonen (translator) (1892). Interludes being Two Essays, a Story, and Some Verses. MacMillan & Co. ISBN 1-4069-1965-9. Available online (full text). Archived by WebCite.
35. ^ James Woodford (October 5, 2002). "Move over, Jeeves, a new breed of butler is working her way up". The Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on 2007-08-13. http://www.webcitation.org/5R4MfrgUq. 
36. ^ See "Unique Rosewood Ladies Floor could start trend in Saudi, Middle East Hotels", 12 Oct 2007. Available online. Archived by WebCite. Also, for interesting background see Elizabeth Warnock Fernea, Guests of the Sheik: An Ethnography of an Iraqi Village. Anchor, 1995. ISBN 0-385-01485-6.
37. ^ See The International Guild of Professional Butlers, accessed 12/31/2007. Archived by WebCite.
38. ^ Milne, Meg. "The Royal butlerettes", The Financial Mail, 31 Oct 2004. Available online. Archived by WebCite.
39. ^ In Loeffler (15 April 2007), Nathalie Laitmon of The Calendar Group in Stamford, Connecticut, states that skilled butlers within the grandest households can make USD 200,000 (GBP 101,500). She states, "The bigger the lifestyle of the family, the more they can earn".
40. ^ Fields, Alonzo. My 21 years in the White House, New York: Coward-McCann, 1960.
41. ^ Sam Stiegler, "When Speaking About Me, 'Don’t Talk too Long and Don’t Tell the Truth': A Biography of Mr. Alonzo Fields (1900–1994), West Medford Afro-American Remembrance Project, 2005. Available online. Archived by WebCite.
42. ^ U.S. News & World Report, "Alonzo Fields diary, Truman's butler", 16 July 2007. Available online. Archived by WebCite.
43. ^ Burlingham Ellis, Caroline. "Review of 'Looking Over the President's Shoulder'", Theatre Mania, 8 Dec 2003. Available online. Archived by WebCite.
44. ^ Bales-Sherrod, Lesli. "Serving up a slice of history", The American Observer, Vol. 9, No. 3, 24 Feb 2004. Available online. Archived by WebCite.
45. ^ McCullough, David. Truman, Simon & Schuster, pp 472, 473, 502, 623, 931. ISBN 0-7432-6029-5.
46. ^ "Butler", Encyclopædia Britannica, 1911 edition. Available online. Also see The Carey Estate BCM/H [n.d.], Berkeley Castle Muniments, U.K. National Archives, available online. Archived by WebCite.; National Archive Record MS 613, f. 21; National Archive Record MS 613, f. 30.
47. ^ Waterfield G., A. French and M. Craske, Eds. (2003). Below stairs, 400 years of servants' portraits. London: National Portrait Gallery. ISBN 1-85514-512-X. 
48. ^ Croft, Karen. "Butlers in Love", Salon, 24 May 2001. Available online: Page 1, Page 2, Archive 1, Archive 2.
49. ^ Stock, Mark. Correspondence with Stephen Ewen, stephenewen.org. Also see http://www.theworldofmarkstock.com.
50. ^ Garchik, Leah. San Francisco Chronicle, 14 May 2008. Available online. Archived by WebCite. Also see http://www.wayfaring.com/waypts/show/32050 for a brief history of the mansion.
51. ^ "The man who got it right for Gosford Park and told Richard E Grant what was wrong", Mid Sussex Times, 2002. Available online. Archived by WebCite. Also see The Authenticity of Gosford Park.
52. ^ For a synopsis of Howard's book, see http://www1.epinions.com/content_64617352836.

• This article incorporates material from the Citizendium article "Butler", which is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License but not under the GFDL.
• This article incorporates material from "A Brief History of Butlers and Butlering" by Stephen Ewen, which is licensed under the Creative Common Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License.

Further reading[link]

• Cyrus Redding Every Man His Own Butler. London: Whittaker & Co., 1839 OCLC 25057151

Gerard Butler
Gerard Butler at the Berlin Film Festival 2011
Born	Gerard James Butler (1969-11-13) 13 November 1969 (age 42) Paisley, Scotland
Occupation	Actor/singer
Years active	1997–present

Gerard James Butler (born 13 November 1969) is a Scottish actor who has appeared on film, stage, and television. A trained lawyer, Butler turned to acting in the mid-1990s with small roles in productions such as the James Bond film Tomorrow Never Dies (1997), which he followed with steady work on television, most notably in the American miniseries Attila (2001). He garnered critical acclaim for his work as the lead in Joel Schumacher's 2004 film adaptation of the musical The Phantom of the Opera. In 2007, Butler gained recognition through his portrayal of King Leonidas in the film 300. Since then, he has appeared in projects including P.S. I Love You (2007), Nim's Island (2008), RocknRolla (2008), The Ugly Truth (2009), Gamer (2009), Law Abiding Citizen (2009), The Bounty Hunter (2010), and as a voice actor in How to Train Your Dragon (2010).

Early life[link]

Butler was born in Paisley, which is in Renfrewshire, Scotland,^[1] the youngest of three children of Margaret and Edward Butler, a bookmaker.^[2][3][4] Of Irish descent,^[5] he was brought up in a strict Roman Catholic family.^[6] Butler spent the first few years of his life in Montreal, Quebec,^[7] before the family returned to live in Scotland.^[8]

His mother Margret Butler returned from Quebec when her marriage broke down, when Gerard was aged 18 months.^[9] He attended High School in Paisley, achieved respectable grades - good enough to win a place at Glasgow University to study law - and rose to position of Head Boy at St Mirin's High School. He also attended Scottish Youth Theater whilst a teen. He did not see his father again until he was 16 years old, when Edward Butler called to meet him at a Glasgow restaurant. After this meeting, Butler cried for hours, and recalled of it later:

"That emotion showed me how much pain can sit in this body of yours; pain and sorrow that you don’t know you have until it is unleashed."^[9]

Butler came close to his father after this reunion, and accepted his offer to study law at Glasgow University. During his time as a student, he became the convener of the Law Society^[10] and sang in a rock band called Speed.^[11][12] He would ultimateley graduate with a 2-2 LLB degree in 1991.

Whilst a 22 year old student, his father was diagnosed with cancer, and died. This caused Butler's lifestyle to spiral out of control. He would say of this period in his life:

"I had gone from a 16-year-old who couldn’t wait to grasp life to a 22-year-old who didn’t care if he died in his sleep."^[13]

Upon graduation, he won a position as a trainee lawyer at an Edinburgh law firm. However, his lifestyle remained unrestrained and he frequently missed work due to his partying antics. One week before he qualified as a lawyer, he was fired.

Now, aged 25, and an unqualified lawyer, Butler moved to London to pursue his dream of becoming famous. He admitted,

"When I started out, I'm not sure I was actually in it for the right reasons. I wanted very much to be famous."^[9]

Unable to win any acting roles immediately, he was forced to accept blue collar jobs, which included being a waiter, a telemarketer and a demonstrator of how toys work at fairs. Whilst in London, he met an old friend from his teenage days in the Scottish Youth Theater, who was now a London casting agent, and was for a time her boyfriend and her assistant. She took him to an audition for Steven Berkoff's play of Coriolanus.^[10] The director said of Butler's audition:

"When he read, he had such vigour and enthusiasm – so much that it made the other actors seem limp – that I decided to cast him in the ensemble."^[13]

Now aged 27, Butler had his first professional acting job. Less than a year later, he won a part in a theater adaptation of Trainspotting, which he performed at the Edinburgh Festival. By age 30, Butler decided to move to Los Angeles to make it in the big league; where he won parts in Dracula 2000, Tomb Raider 2, Dear Frankie, and Phantom of the Opera. The director Vadim Jean said:

"I have never seen anybody work so hard to make their career happen."^[13]

Despite the early yearnings for fame, Butler would tell London's Daily Telegraph in a 2009 interview, when aged 39:

"I did expect to succeed and I did have faith that I would. In reality, though, it has turned out to be something very different to what I wanted. It’s the work and not the adulation that has proved to be the most fulfilling."^[13]

Career[link]

In London, Butler held a series of odd jobs until being cast by actor and director Steven Berkoff (who later appeared alongside him in Attila (2001)) in a stage production of Coriolanus. He was cast as Ewan McGregor's character Renton in the stage adaptation of Trainspotting, the same play that had inspired him to become an actor. His film debut was as Billy Connolly's character's younger brother in Mrs. Brown (1997).

His film career continued with small roles, first in the James Bond film Tomorrow Never Dies (1997) and then Russell Mulcahy's Tale of the Mummy (1998). In 2000, Butler was cast in two breakthrough roles, the first being Attila the Hun in USA film Attila (2001/I) (TV). The film's producers wanted a known actor to play the part but kept coming back to Butler's screen tests and decided he was their man. He was cast as Dracula in Dracula 2000 (2000).

He then appeared in Reign of Fire (2002) as Creedy and Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life (2003) as Terry Sheridan, alongside Angelina Jolie. In the role of Andre Marek in the big-screen adaptation of Michael Crichton's novel Timeline (2003), Butler played an archaeologist who was sent back in time with a team of students to rescue a colleague.

In 2003, director Joel Schumacher was deciding on the principal casting for the film The Phantom of the Opera, a film adaptation of the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical of the same name, and thought of Butler, whom he had seen earlier in the film Dracula 2000, to play the title character. Butler, who had had no musical experience other than singing in a rock band while he was studying to be a lawyer, was surprised at the interest, but immediately began taking singing lessons with a vocal coach.^[14] He then did an acting audition with Schumacher, and a singing audition with Lloyd Webber, both of whom were impressed by his performance.^[15] Despite the film receiving mixed reviews, Butler was praised for his performance.

Other projects that followed include Dear Frankie (2005), The Game of Their Lives (2005) and Beowulf & Grendel (2005).

In 2007, he starred as Spartan King Leonidas in the Warner Bros. production 300, which is often described as his breakthrough role.^[16] Butler, who said he "wanted to look really strong" in the film, trained with a high-intensity workout for four months prior to the film's shooting.^[17]

Gerard Butler on the set of the film, The Bounty Hunter, 2010

In 2007, he also appeared in Butterfly on a Wheel co-starring Pierce Brosnan and Maria Bello, which aired on network TV under the title Shattered, and in the romantic comedy P.S. I Love You with Hilary Swank. In 2008, he appeared in Nim's Island and RocknRolla. In 2009, he starred in the Mark Neveldine/Brian Taylor film Gamer, The Ugly Truth and Law Abiding Citizen, which he also co-produced. In 2010 he starred in the action/comedy The Bounty Hunter with Jennifer Aniston, and did a voice-over in the 2010 animated film How to Train Your Dragon as Stoick the Vast.

On 15 and 16 October 2010, thanks to the popularity of his role as Spartan King Leonidas and the use of his lines during athletic events at Michigan State University, he was a guest at their Midnight Madness and homecoming football game, respectively.

On 18 December 2011, while filming Of Men and Mavericks, Butler was hospitalised after he was pulled under big waves. A safety patrolman spotted Butler and quickly rushed to his aid. He was taken to Stanford University Medical Center where he was observed and then later released.^[18]

Personal life[link]

Butler has been open in interviews about struggling with alcoholism. In February 2012, Butler's publicist announced that Butler had completed a course of treatment for substance abuse of pain killers, at a rehab-centre.^[19] This was after Butler was concerned he was too reliant on prescribed pain relief medication which escalated when he was involved in a surfing incident before Christmas 2011.^[19][20][21]

A fan of the Glasgow football club Celtic F.C. and played a charity match with them in 2011, Butler regularly attended Celtic Park as a supporter, but has found that moving to Hollywood can be a problem when trying to keep up with the results due to the time difference between Los Angeles and Glasgow.^[22]

Despite his sometimes turbulent personal life and the often violent characters he plays, Butler is well known to be a kind and very nice person in real life. He is known to be very friendly with fans and co-workers, and socializes with everyone on set.

Filmography[link]

Butler at the 2011 Toronto International Film Festival

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Gerard Butler

• Gerard Butler at the Internet Movie Database

Caron Butler

Butler during his tenure with the Wizards
No. 5 – Los Angeles Clippers
Small Forward
Personal information
Born	(1980-03-13) March 13, 1980 (age 32) Racine, Wisconsin
Nationality	American
High school	Washington Park (Racine, Wisconsin) Maine Central Institute (Pittsfield, Maine)
Listed height	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)
Listed weight	228 lb (103 kg)
Career information
College	Connecticut (2000–2002)
NBA Draft	2002 / Round: 1 / Pick: 10th overall
Selected by the Miami Heat
Pro career	2002–present
Career history
2002–2004	Miami Heat
2004–2005	Los Angeles Lakers
2005–2010	Washington Wizards
2010–2011	Dallas Mavericks
2011–present	Los Angeles Clippers
Career highlights and awards
NBA Champion (2011) 2× NBA All-Star (2007–2008) NBA All-Rookie First Team (2003) Big East Player of the Year (2002)
Stats at NBA.com
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com
Medals Men’s basketball Competitor for  United States FIBA U21 World Championship Gold 2001 Saitama Team competition

James Caron Butler, widely known as Caron Butler (born March 13, 1980), is an American professional basketball player who plays for the Los Angeles Clippers in the NBA.

Early life[link]

Butler was born and raised in Racine, Wisconsin, where he suffered through a rough childhood; he was a drug dealer at age 11 and arrested 15 times before the age of 15.^[1] Caron discovered his love for basketball while at the detention center.^[2] Butler played in AAU basketball in '98 and '99.^[3] After a brief career at Washington Park High School,^[4] he enrolled at Maine Central Institute where he was successful enough to receive a scholarship to play at UConn for coach Jim Calhoun for two years.

Personal life[link]

He lives in Centreville, Virginia with his wife, Andrea, and daughter, Mia. He has another daughter, Camary, and son, Caron Jr., who live in Racine. He has a habit of chewing on straws which he picked up back in AAU ball in '98 or '99.^[3] His straws of choice are from McDonald's.^[3]

Butler attended a surprise birthday party for Anthony Fadel, a 16-year-old in the Washington, D.C. area when invited by the boy's family.^[5] The party was held in May 2007, and the event was primarily reported by Internet blogs, since Wizards PR purposely did not cover the event to preserve the sincerity of Butler's gesture.^[6]

After working at Burger King in his youth, Butler now owns 6 of the fast food restaurants across the US.^[7] He is currently taking Business Management classes at Duke as well.^[7]

College career[link]

At Connecticut, Butler lost 15 pounds off his frame and developed his perimeter game. As a freshman, Butler led the Huskies, only two years removed from a National Championship, in both scoring and rebounding with 15.6 points per game and 7.6 rebounds per game respectively.^[8] The summer after his freshman season he started for the US team that took home gold in the 2001 FIBA World Championship for Young Men.^[9]

Butler followed his spectacular rookie campaign with an even better sophomore season. Butler averaged 20.3 points per game and 7.5 rebounds per game as a sophomore leading the Huskies to both regular season and tournament Big East titles. He was named co-Big East player of the year (along with Pittsburgh's Brandin Knight) and a second-team All American.^[10] Butler led the Huskies to the Elite 8 of the NCAA basketball tournament. Despite 32 points from Butler, the Huskies lost a close game to eventual national champion Maryland Terrapins.^[10] After the season Butler declared for the NBA draft.

NBA career[link]

Butler defends former teammate Kobe Bryant

Butler was a lottery pick in the 2002 NBA Draft, selected with the 10th overall pick by the Miami Heat. He is remembered for his comments on draft day after nine teams passed over him, saying that he was going to make them pay for the rest of his career.^{[citation needed]} In his first season with the Heat, he averaged 15 points and 5 rebounds per game, though during his injury-hampered second season his averages fell slightly to 9 points and 4 rebounds during in 68 games. At the end of the season, the Heat traded Butler, Lamar Odom, and Brian Grant to the Lakers for Shaquille O'Neal, with whom the Heat won their first championship in the NBA Finals.

Before the 2005–06 season, the Lakers traded Butler and Chucky Atkins to the Washington Wizards for Kwame Brown and Laron Profit. Butler later signed a 5-year, $46 million dollar deal with the team. He became part of Washington's new "Big 3", a trio made up of teammates Gilbert Arenas and Antawn Jamison. Butler was nicknamed "Tough Juice"^[11] by coach Eddie Jordan for his aggressive and passionate play,^[12] epitomized by Butler's 20 rebounds in the Game 6 loss of opening-round series against LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers.

On January 17, 2007, Butler converted his first game-winning basket, a dunk following a pass from DeShawn Stevenson with 2.2 seconds remaining against the Knicks to give the Wizards a 99–98 win.^[13] Butler was named Eastern Conference Player of the Week for January 15–21, 2007.^[14] He would have his best season yet, posting career high averages in rebounds, assists, and points. He was also named as a reserve to the 2007 NBA Eastern Conference All-Star team, his first appearance.^[15] However, he broke his hand late in the season attempting to block a shot and was forced to sit out during the playoffs along with the injured Gilbert Arenas as the Wizards were swept in their opening round rematch versus the Cavaliers.

Butler, who was sidelined with a hip injury, was selected as a reserve for the East in the 2008 NBA All-Star Game in New Orleans, Louisiana but was forced to sit out. Due to the injury, Butler missed 20 of the Wizards' last 35 games of the season. He returned to the lineup on March 13 (his 28th birthday), when the Wizards hosted the Cavaliers. He registered 19 points (8-for-18 field goals) five rebounds in 41 minutes played in the Wizards' 101–99 win over the Cavs.^[16]

On February 13, 2010 Butler was traded to the Dallas Mavericks along with Brendan Haywood and Deshawn Stevenson for Josh Howard, Drew Gooden, James Singleton, and Quinton Ross. The Mavericks would qualify for the 2010 NBA Playoffs as the second seed in the Western Conference, but would be upset in six games by the San Antonio Spurs. On January 4, 2011, it was announced that Butler would undergo surgery on his knee and would miss the rest of the season.^[17] The Dallas Mavericks dedicated their 2011 playoff run to him, and won the 2011 NBA Finals.

On December 9, 2011, Butler signed a three-year, $24 million deal with the Los Angeles Clippers.

Career transactions[link]

• June 26, 2002: Drafted 10th overall by Miami Heat in 2002 NBA Draft.
• July 14, 2004: Traded by Miami along with Lamar Odom, Brian Grant, a future first-round draft pick and a future second-round draft pick to the Los Angeles Lakers for Shaquille O'Neal.^[18]
• August 2, 2005: Traded by L.A. Lakers along with Chucky Atkins to the Washington Wizards for Kwame Brown and Laron Profit.^[19]
• February 13, 2010: Traded to the Dallas Mavericks along with Brendan Haywood and DeShawn Stevenson for Josh Howard, Drew Gooden, James Singleton, and Quinton Ross^[20]
• December 9, 2011: Signed with the Los Angeles Clippers.

NBA career statistics[link]

Regular season[link]

Playoffs[link]

Notes[link]

External links[link]

Biography portal

• NBA.com Profile - Profile at NBA.com
• Basketball-Reference.com: Caron Butler
• Yahoo! Sports Profile at Yahoo!
• http://www.caronbutlersummercamp.com/

This biographical article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (July 2009)

Graham Norton
Norton in May 2010
Birth name	Graham William Walker
Born	(1963-04-04) 4 April 1963 (age 49) Clondalkin, Dublin, Ireland
Medium	Television, radio, stand-up
Nationality	Irish
Years active	1992–present
Genres	Observational comedy
Subject(s)	Everyday life, pop culture, current events, celebrities, sex
Notable works and roles	So Graham Norton V Graham Norton The Graham Norton Effect Graham Norton's Bigger Picture The Graham Norton Show

Graham William Walker, known by his stage name Graham Norton, (born 4 April 1963)^[1] is an Irish actor, comedian, television presenter and columnist. He is the host of comedy chat programme The Graham Norton Show on BBC One in the UK and BBC America in the US. Hot Press has described him as "the 21st century's answer to Terry Wogan", with both men sharing an Irish background and the common link of being a BBC Radio 2 presenter and the BBC television commentator of the Eurovision Song Contest.^[2] Norton has won the BAFTA TV Award for Best Entertainment Performance on five occassions.

Early life and career[link]

Norton was born in Clondalkin, a suburb of Dublin, but grew up in Bandon, County Cork, Ireland to a Protestant family. He was educated at Bandon Grammar School, in County Cork and then University College Cork but did not complete his studies.

In 1992 his stand-up comedy drag act in the Edinburgh Festival Fringe as a tea-towel clad Mother Teresa of Calcutta made the press when Scottish Television's religious affairs department mistakenly thought he represented the real Mother Teresa.^[3]

His first appearances in broadcasting were in his spot as a regular comedian and panellist on the BBC Radio 4 show Loose Ends, when the show ran on Saturday mornings, in the early 1990s. His rise to fame began as one of the early successes of Channel 5, when he won an award for his performance as the stand-in host of a late-night TV talk show usually presented by Jack Docherty.^[4][5] This was followed by a comic quiz show on Channel 5 called Bring Me the Head of Light Entertainment, which was not well received as a programme, but did further enhance Norton's individual reputation as a comic and TV host. In 1996, Norton co-hosted the late-night quiz show Carnal Knowledge on ITV with Maria McErlane.

In 1996, Norton played the part of Father Noel Furlong in three episodes ("Hell", "Flight Into Terror", "The Mainland") of the Channel 4 series Father Ted. Father Noel Furlong was often seen taking charge of a small youth folk-group.

Channel 4[link]

After this early success, Norton moved to Channel 4 to host his own chat shows including So Graham Norton and V Graham Norton. As a performer who is not only openly gay,^[6] but also camp and flamboyant, it was here that Norton's act was fully honed as a cheeky, innuendo-laden joker.

In 2003, he was the subject of controversy when, on his show on Channel 4, he made a comedic reference to the recent death of Bee Gees singer Maurice Gibb. The Independent Television Commission investigated after complaints about this insensitivity were forwarded to it and eventually Channel 4 had to make two apologies: one in the form of a caption slide before the show, another from Norton in person.

Also in 2003, he was listed in The Observer as one of the 50 funniest acts in British comedy. (Though Norton is Irish, the bulk of his television career has been in the UK.)

In the summer of 2004, Norton moved across the Atlantic to start a new venture in American television. The Graham Norton Effect debuted on 24 June 2004 on Comedy Central, and was also broadcast in the UK on BBC Three. In the midst of controversy surrounding Janet Jackson's Super Bowl performance, Norton was wary of moving into the market.^[7]

BBC[link]

Norton at 2009 BAFTA awards

In 2005, Norton moved to the BBC and began hosting the Saturday evening reality TV series Strictly Dance Fever on BBC One, as well as a new comedy chat show, Graham Norton's Bigger Picture. He also read stories some nights on the BBC children's channel CBeebies as part of Bedtime Hour.

In 2006, Norton hosted the BBC One series How Do You Solve A Problem Like Maria? in which Andrew Lloyd Webber tried to find a lead actress for his West End version of The Sound of Music. Norton has subsequently presented the 3 follow-up series: Any Dream Will Do in 2007, in which a group of males competed to win the role of Joseph in the West End production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat; I'd Do Anything in 2008, in which Andrew Lloyd Webber seeks to find the part of Nancy and Oliver for Sir Cameron Mackintosh's production of Lionel Bart's Oliver!; and Over the Rainbow in 2010, following a similar format to find a new Dorothy for a Wizard of Oz West end Production.

Norton hosted various other shows for the BBC during this time, including When Will I Be Famous? (2007), The One and Only (2008) and Totally Saturday (2009). Since 2007, Norton has also been a regular host of The British Academy Television Awards. On 7 July 2007, Norton presented at Live Earth and undertook a trip to Ethiopia with the Born Free Foundation to highlight the plight of the Ethiopian wolf – the rarest canid in the world. In the same year, he was the subject of an episode of the BBC1 genealogy documentary Who Do You Think You Are?.

Norton's chat show, The Graham Norton Show, began on 22 February 2007 on BBC Two. Although in a format that he had not been involved in for 4 years, it is very similar to his previous Channel 4 shows. On 6 October 2009, the show moved to BBC One, in a new one-hour format.

In May 2010, he stood in for Chris Evans' breakfast show on BBC Radio 2. Later that month, it was confirmed that he would be replacing Jonathan Ross's Saturday morning slot on the same station.

In December 2011, the panel show Would You Rather...? with Graham Norton premiered on BBC America in the time slot immediately following The Graham Norton Show. Recorded in New York, it is one of BBC America's earliest efforts at producing original programming, and is also the first panel game the channel has shown, either of British or American origin.

In January 2012, he called on listeners to his Radio 2 show to help find his car hours after it was stolen. He called it "The Great Car Hunt" and told listeners to “Keep your eyes out for it. It was filthy by the way."

Eurovision[link]

Norton with Josh Dubovie at the Eurovision Song Contest 2010

Norton hosted the first annual Eurovision Dance Contest alongside Claudia Winkleman which was held on 1 September 2007 in London, England. The format was based on the BBC's Strictly Come Dancing and the EBU's Eurovision Song Contest. Norton and Winkleman also hosted the 2008 Contest in Glasgow, Scotland.

In October 2008, it was confirmed by the BBC that Norton would replace Terry Wogan as the BBC's presenter for the UK heats of the Eurovision Song Contest, in a show to be called Your Country Needs You.

On 5 December 2008 it was announced that Norton would also take over from Wogan as the presenter of the main Eurovision Song Contest.^[8] The 54th Eurovision Song Contest was held in the Olimpiyskiy (Olympic) Stadium, Moscow on 16 May 2009.

Norton's jokes during his debut received some positive reviews from the British media. The Guardian noted his comments on Iceland's entry, which finished in second place, had "rooted around in a cupboard and found an old bridesmaid dress from 1987" and the Armenian singers, who finished in tenth place, were sporting traditional dress, "which would be true if you come from the village where Liberace is the mayor."^[9] The Times noted his highlighting of the arrest of thirty gay rights protesters in Moscow – "heavy-handed policing has really marred what has been a fantastic Eurovision."^[9]

His comment “The bad news is you’re about to watch Albania. She’s only 17 so please bear that in mind. Where was her mother? Why didn’t she step in and say no?” which was made just before Albanian singer Kejsi Tola was set to take the stage dubbed an insult by many, sent ripples of outrage through not only Albania, but also the Albanian population in Britain. He then announced that Albania should get no points and that he didn't care what anybody else thought. There was a petition circling the net calling for a formal apology from Norton. The petition, which called his comment “very rude and insulting,” had drawn over 1,000 signatures. He never responded.^[10]

In 2011, he snarked that if Jedward's entry into the competition that year won, the twins would never sleep again. In the end, they were eighth. Earlier in that year's televote, he joked "Quick, someone take a picture", when The British entry that year went temporarily in the lead early on after high votes from Russia(4), Bulgaria(12) and Italy(10). In the end, the song dropped down the 11th, earning 100 points. Very annoyed, Norton claimed 'We were better than Jedward'.

In 2012, Norton joked about the Spanish singer Pastora Soler and the economic situation of Spain. This statements unleashed many bad reviews on the internet. Norton joked about Rona Nishliu (the singer of Albania) too. He said that Rona was a singer that "she shout a lot".

Other[link]

In July 2000 Graham was one of three judges of the Miss Lesbian Beauty Contest 2000 held at The Talk of London, Drury Lane. The contest was won by 42 year old Carol Hutchins who wowed the audience with her sit-down comedy routine from a wheelchair. Graham described Carol as a "very bright, funny lady."

Graham Norton played Mr. Puckov in the 2006 American comedy spoof film Another Gay Movie. In 2007, Norton played Taylor in the romantic comedy film I Could Never Be Your Woman.

Norton was involved in a high-publicity advertising campaign for the UK National Lottery as an animated unicorn, the stooge to a character based on Lady Luck (played by Fay Ripley). He has also advertised McVitie's biscuits.

In 2007, Norton featured in Girls Aloud and Sugababes' Comic Relief video for the single "Walk This Way."

In January 2009, Norton made his West End stage debut in a revival of La Cage Aux Folles at the Playhouse Theatre.

Since 2009, Norton has been the host of the comedy game-show Most Popular on US cable television channel WE tv.^[11]

Norton currently writes an advice column in The Daily Telegraph newspaper. In October 2010, these columns were made into a book entitled Ask Graham, published by John Blake Publishing.

Personal life[link]

Norton with a dog in 2006, supporting Crusaid.

Norton has stated that he felt "out of place" growing up in Ireland; his family are Protestant yet the Republic of Ireland is overwhelmingly Catholic. Norton took part in the TV programme, Who Do You Think You Are?, to trace his ancestry. It was discovered that his family were originally planters sent over from England to take over Irish land. Some members of his family had fought for the British Monarchy during the Irish Rebellion of 1798 and taken part in a massacre of Catholics in Carnew Castle. Another member of his family was later killed in battle by the United Irishmen. Norton said he was comforted to find out that his family had resided in Ireland for generations.^[12]

In 1989 while living in London, Norton was mugged, beaten and stabbed by a group of attackers on the street. He says he lost half his blood and nearly died, and he was hospitalised for two and a half weeks.^[13][14]

Norton is openly gay.^[6][15][16]

Norton owns a holiday home in Ahakista, County Cork, which is near to where he grew up, in Bandon. The house has a private beach and overlooks Dunmanus Bay.

TV appearances[link]

Main presenting credits[link]

• Carnal Knowledge (TV series, co-presenter) (1996, 27 one hour shows)
• Bring Me the Head of Light Entertainment
• So Graham Norton (1998–2002)
• V Graham Norton (2002–2003)
• NY Graham Norton (2004)
• The Graham Norton Effect (2004–2005)
• Graham Norton's Bigger Picture (2005–2006)
• Strictly Dance Fever (2005–2006)
• BBC/Andrew Lloyd Webber musical theater talent searches (2006–present)
  • How Do You Solve A Problem Like Maria? (2006)
  • Any Dream Will Do (2007)
  • I'd Do Anything (2008)
  • Over the Rainbow (2010)
• The Big Finish (2006–)
• When Will I Be Famous? (2007)
• The Graham Norton Show (2007–present)
• The British Academy Television Awards (2007)
• Live Earth (2007)
• Eurovision Dance Contest (2007)
• The One and Only (2008)
• Eurovision Dance Contest (2008)
• Eurovision: Your Country Needs You (2009–present)
• Eurovision Song Contest (UK commentator, 2009–present)
• Totally Saturday (2009)
• Most Popular (2009–present)
• Would You Rather...? with Graham Norton (BBC America, 2011–present)

Other television credits[link]

Radio[link]

• Just a Minute

Sitting in for Steve Wright August 2009 BBC Radio 2

Sitting in for Chris Evans May /July 2010 BBC Radio 2

On 2 October 2010, he began his weekly BBC Radio 2 Saturday show taking over from Jonathan Ross. The show airs from 10.00am-1.00pm and combines a mixture of music, chat and celebrity guests.

2011/12 Radio 2 Saturday mornings

Filmography[link]

Stand-Up videos[link]

• Live At The Roundhouse (19 November 2001)

Awards[link]

• 1999 : Gaytime Award for Gay Entertainer of the Year
• 2000 : BAFTA Television Award for Best Entertainment Performance – So Graham Norton
• 2001 : BAFTA Television Award for Best Entertainment Performance - So Graham Norton
• 2001 : RTS Television Award for Best Presenter – So Graham Norton
• 2001 : TRIC Award TV Personality of the Year
• 2002 : BAFTA Television Award for Best Entertainment Perfromance - So Graham Norton
• 2011 : BAFTA Television Award for Best Entertainment Performance – The Graham Norton Show ^[17]
• 2012 : BAFTA Television Award for Best Entertainment Performance - The Graham Norton Show

References[link]

External links[link]

• Graham Norton Radio 2 at BBC Programmes
• The Graham Norton Show at BBC Programmes
• Graham Norton at the Internet Movie Database
• Graham Norton at the British Film Institute's Screenonline

Karen Gillan
Karen Gillan at the San Diego Comic-Con International in July 2011
Born	Karen Sheila Gillan (1987-11-28) 28 November 1987 (age 24) Inverness, Scotland
Occupation	Actress, former model
Years active	2006–present

Karen Sheila Gillan (born 28 November 1987) is a Scottish actress and former model who is mostly known for her portrayal of Amy Pond in the British science fiction series Doctor Who.

Early life[link]

Gillan was born and brought up in Inverness, Scotland.^[1] Her father, Raymond John Gillan, a Day Centre Manager, and mother, Marie Gillan née Paterson, live in Kinmylies. She learned to play the piano when she was seven.^[2] She has no brothers or sisters.^[3] At a young age, she developed a love for acting, joining several local youth theatre groups and taking part in a wide range of productions at her school, Charleston Academy.^[2] When she was sixteen, Gillan decided to use her interest in acting, studying at Edinburgh's Telford College. Later, she got a place at the Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts drama school in London on the BA (Hons) Acting degree course.^[4] Gillan moved to London when she was 18 to study at drama school.^[5]

Career[link]

Modelling[link]

Before Gillan became an actress, she was scouted by a modelling agency.^[6]

Gillan worked as a model in 2007's London Fashion Week for designer Allegra Hicks' autumn/winter catwalk show^[6] and the launch party of Nicola Roberts' Dainty Doll Make-Up Range. This was shown in Roberts' episode of the documentary, The Passions of Girls Aloud^{[citation needed]} which premiered on 4 April 2008. Gillan has said she wouldn't give up her acting career to return back to modelling. She stated that she enjoyed modelling but acting was always her main interest and goal.^[7]

Acting[link]

Karen Gillan with Matt Smith, promoting Series 5 of Doctor Who

Gillan's early television acting career included guest appearances on several drama series, with her first ongoing role being a two-year stint as a member of the ensemble cast of the sketch comedy series The Kevin Bishop Show in which she played multiple characters, as well as celebrities such as Katy Perry and Angelina Jolie. She appeared in Channel 4's 'Stacked'; she had the part of Ginny.^[2] Gillan also appeared on TV in a leading role in a horror project entitled The Well, which was broadcast as a series of episodic short films on BBC Two, and then later also as a web series on BBC.co.uk. Part of the BBC's multimedia "switch" programming, the short episodes interconnect with online games that further explore the environments presented in the series.^[8]

She was cast for the role of the Eleventh Doctor's first companion, Amy Pond, on the British sci-fi series Doctor Who in May 2009. She made her first on-screen appearance as Amy Pond in "The Eleventh Hour" with her cousin Caitlin Blackwood portraying a young Amy Pond.^[9][10][11] She was confirmed in Issue 420 of the Doctor Who Magazine to be appearing in the 2011 series. Gillan had appeared in Doctor Who once before in the 2008 episode "The Fires of Pompeii" in the role of a Soothsayer.^[6]

Gillan made her first theatre appearance playing the role of Shirley in John Osborne's play Inadmissible Evidence along with Douglas Hodge.^[12] The play debuted at the Donmar Warehouse on 16 October 2011.^[12]

During August 2011, it was announced Gillan will star in an indie comedy called Not Another Happy Ending along with Emun Elliott.^[13] Filming will take place some time in 2012.^[13]

During an interview at the 2011 San Diego Comic-Con, Gillan revealed she will be returning to Doctor Who for its seventh series.^[14] On 15 December 2011, it was announced Gillan and Arthur Darvill (Rory Williams) would be leaving Doctor Who during the seventh series in 2012.^[15] On 26 January 2012 Karen Gillan played the part of supermodel Jean Shrimpton in the BBC Four film, We'll Take Manhattan which told the story of Shrimpton's relationship with the photographer David Bailey.^[16][17]

She has also been cast as Brittney in a re-working of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet called Romeo & Brittney by David Baddiel.^[18][19]

Charity work[link]

In 2011 Gillan helped to promote Fashion Targets Breast Cancer (FTBC)^[20] and also helped celebrate the opening of Squirrel Ward in Great Ormond Street Hospital.^[21]

Filmography[link]

Television

Feature films

Theatre

Self

Video games

Awards[link]

References[link]