Happy Birthday Bill ! Silksoundbooks Ambassador and founder audiobook reader Bill Nighy celebrates his birthday on December 12th.

With such an amazing career it's hard to know where to begin, so lets start in 1949 when Bill was born in Caterham, Surrey in England. After leaving school he spent some time as a messenger boy with a magazine publisher but then went on to train at The Guildford School of Dance and Drama.

Bill's theatre career started in Liverpool and was followed by many appearances in London's National Theatre productions. Radio and television dramas have also given him many starring roles, but lately the Movies have been where we've seen and heard Bill the most.

Love Actually, Shaun of the Dead, The Hitchhikers Guide, Pirates of the Caribbean, Valkyrie and The Boat That Rocked.. are just a few of our favourites here at Silksoundbooks. We're really looking forward to his appearance in the next Harry Potter movie - as Bill himself said 'I am no longer the only English actor not to be in Harry Potter and I am very pleased ! '

Bill was the brilliant founder reader at Silksoundbooks and it was his enthusiasm for the project that really made it a reality. And that's not just my opinion! Sue Arnold, writing in the Guardian, said of his unabridged audiobook The Dupin Mysteries written by Edgar Allan Poe :

'Whoever chose to combine Poe's ghoulishly gory and violent script with Nighy's famously low-key, deadpan delivery knew what they were doing - it's a powerful brew.'

Exactly!

Happy Birthday Bill - from all of us here at Silksoundbooks.