Alan Rickman was an English director and actor, best known for his portrayal of Severus Snape in the Harry Potter film series (2001-2011). Although he began his acting career on stage in 1976, he also found widespread popularity in television and film. Rickman’s rich voice quality and slow dialogue style lent a distinctive appeal to all his performances. With a career spanning 40 years, Alan has worked on a variety of memorable characters such as the evil monk Rasputin in the TV movie Rasputin: The Dark Servant of Destiny (1996), which won him several awards, and Vicomte de Valmont in the stage play Les Liaisons Dangereuses(1987). Unfortunately, his career ended on January 14, 2016 when he died of pancreatic cancer. He was married to Rima Horton at the time of his death.

Born name

Alan Sidney Patrick Rickman

nickname

Alan

Alter

Alan was born on February 21, 1946.

Died

Alan died of pancreatic cancer on January 14, 2016 at the age of 69 in London, England, UK.

Sun sign

fishes

Place of birth

Hammersmith, London, England, United Kingdom

nationality

training

Alan studied at Derwentwater Primary School , located in Acton. He also attended Latymer High School on a scholarship and graduated with A-level science.

He also enrolled at Chelsea College of Art and Design from 1965-1968 and the Royal College of Art (1968-1970) to study graphic design. He then decided to pursue an acting career and attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art from 1972 to 1974.

occupation

actor, director

family

• Father – Bernard William Rickman (aircraft builder, factory worker, home decorator and World War II painter) (died 1954 of lung cancer)
• Mother – Margaret Doreen Rose (née Bartlett) (housewife) (died 1997)
• Siblings – David Bernard Rickman (older brother) (graphic artist), Michael Keith Rickman (younger brother) (tennis coach and Leicestershire District Manager), Sheila J. Innes (younger sister)
• Others – Henry/Harry Rickman (paternal grandfather),Mary Kathleen Collins (paternal grandmother), John Bartlett (maternal grandfather), Lily Amelia Tamblyn (maternal grandmother), Kenneth WJ Edginton (stepfather), Christine J. Rickman (née Morrissey) (sister-in-law) (wife of David) , John M. Innes (brother-in-law) (husband of Sheila), Claire L. Innes (niece) (daughter of Sheila), Amelia Margaret “Amy” Innes (niece) (daughter of Sheila), Sarah Melanie Hodges (née Rickman (niece) (daughter of David), Elice Irene “Elsie” Horton (née Frame) (mother-in-law), Wilfrid Horton (father-in-law)

Manager

From 2013 Alan was represented by ICM Partners.

Genre

Soundtrack

instruments

Life

labels

Unsigned

To build

Slim

Height

185,5 cm

weight

78 kg or 172 lbs

girlfriend/spouse

Alan had dated –

1. Rima Horton(1965-2016) – Alan met Rima Horton when they were both students at Chelsea College of Arts in 1965. They quickly fell in love and began dating when Rickman was 19 and Rima was 18. The couple had lived in London since 1977 and Rima worked as a Labor Party councilor and as a lecturer in economics at Kingston University. The longtime partners tied the knot in a low-key ceremony in New York City in 2012. Rickman revealed the details of their secret wedding in 2015, explaining that he presented his wife with a $200 wedding ring and that the super-private couple celebrated their nuptials by walking across the Brooklyn Bridge and having lunch afterwards. The couple stayed together for more than 50 years,

race/ethnicity

White

He was English, Irish and Welsh.

hair colour

Darkblond

However, his hair had turned gray due to his advancing age.

eye color

hazel

sexual orientation

Just

distinguishing features

• Rich, soft voice
• Striking smile

shoe size

12 (US) or 45 (EU) or 11 (UK)

Religion

Alan came from a mixed religious heritage. His father was Roman Catholic and his mother was Methodist.

However, he never spoke about his personal religious affiliations later in life.

Known for

• Portraying memorable villains such as Hans Gruber in Die Hard and Severus Snape in the acclaimed Harry Potter series
• He has a long career in film, television and stage which has helped build his reputation as one of the finest actors of his generation

As a singer

Alan performed the song The Sun Won’t Shine No More in the movie Really Insanely Deep in 1990.

first movie

In 1985, Alan made his big screen debut in the David Hare-directed mystery drama Wetherby . However, his role as a television commentator was uncredited.

His first theatrical performance was in the 1988 action thriller Die Hard where he played German terrorist Hans Gruber against Bruce Willis.

First TV show

He made his television debut as Tybalt in BBC Television’s adaptation of Romeo and Juliet in 1978.

Alan Rickman favorite things

• 1997 film – Chasing Amy

Alan Rickman Fact

1. Before turning full-time to acting, Alan held various jobs including founding the Notting Hill Herald newspaper and opening his own design studio. He also worked as a dresser for Sir Ralph Richardson and Sir Nigel Hawthorne while studying at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in the early 1970s.
2. After graduating as a graphic designer, Rickman started his own graphic studio called Graphiti with the help of his friends. Three years later he gave up his successful business to become a serious actor.
3. Rickman turned down the role of Nottingham Sheriff in Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (1991) twice before accepting the part. After being given full artistic freedom to play the character as he saw fit, he changed his mind.
4. His portrayal of the villain Sheriff of Nottingham in Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves and Hans Gruber in Die Hard earned him two spots on Empire Magazine’s 2018 list of “The Greatest Villains of All Time” at #14 and #4 respectively.
5. An audio engineer, two researchers and a linguist found that a combination of the voices of actor Jeremy Irons and Alan Rickman is the perfect male voice after studying a sample of 50 male voices.
6. Rickman was the godfather of actor Tom Burke, whose father David Burke was good friends with Rickman.
7. He served as best man at the wedding of director Dexter Fletcher (Rocketman celebrity) to Dalia Ibelhauptaite in 1997.
8. In August 2000, he appeared in the music video for Asked by Scottish pop-rock band Texas .
9. Rickman was offered the role of Bond villain Alec Trevelyan in Golden Eye (1995), which he turned down because he didn’t want to play another negative character. The role eventually went to Sean Bean.
10. JK Rowling had written the character of Severus Snape with Rickman in mind. However, that was only after the studio made its preferred choice. Tim Roth turned down the lead role in The Planet of the Apes (2001) when Alan was offered the role.
11. In August 2015, Alan was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and died in London on January 14, 2016. His body was cremated on February 3, 2016 and the ashes received by his wife, Rima Horton.
12. After Alan’s death, many people from the film community came forward to offer their condolences. Among them were actors like Kate Winslet, Ralph Fiennes, Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, Sir Ian McKellen, JK Rowling, Emma Thompson and many more.
13. In honor of him Harry Potter his fans erected a memorial under the “Platform 9” sign at London King’s Cross station.
14. Rickman’s death occurred 4 days after the death of David Bowie, who passed away on January 10, 2016
15. Alan was a member of the Artistic Advisory and Training Committee and the Development Committee, and Vice-Chairman of his alma mater, the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA).
16. He was a Patron of Saving Faces, a facial surgery research foundation in the UK. He was also Honorary President of the International Performers’ Aid Trust, a charity which provides financial support to performing artists around the world.
17. By his will, Alan left £25,000 each4 to charities – Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, Face Saving, International Performers Aid Trust and Sponsored Arts for Education. He also bequeathed £25,000 to each of his three nieces.
18. Alan Rickman wasn’t on social media.