Ian McDiarmid

Ian McDiarmid ( /məkˈdɜrmɨd/; born 11 August 1944) is a Scottish theatre actor and director, who has also made sporadic appearances on television, and appeared in 47 films since 1976. Internationally, he is perhaps most famous for his role as Palpatine in the Star Wars film series. McDiarmid was born in Carnoustie. He became a theatre aficionado when he was five years old, when his father took him to see an act by the name of Tommy Morgan in a theatre in Dundee. In 2004 he stated, "It sort of fascinated me, and it also scared me. All those lights, all that make-up. I said to myself, 'I don't know what this is, but I want it.'" However, fearing his father's disapproval, McDiarmid attended the University of St Andrews, where he received...