Wednesday, 1 July 2009
Skandar Keynes
Biography
Keynes was born in London, the son of Zelfa Cecil Hourani and author Randal Keynes. His maternal grandfather, the Lebanese Cecil Fadlo Hourani, is a former advisor to the late Tunisian president Habib Bourguiba, as well as a famous cook; Cecil Hourani is also the brother of Albert Hourani, a major historian of the Middle East. The Hourani family were immigrants to England from Southern Lebanon (Deir Mimas, Lebanon.) On his father's side, Keynes is the great-great-great grandson of the famous biologist Charles Darwin, through whose paternal grandmother Mary Howard he is descended from Thomas Howard, 4th Duke of Norfolk (uncle to both Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard) and thus from King Edward I. Keynes is also the great-great nephew of the economist John Maynard Keynes and the nephew of the historian and Cambridge professor Simon Keynes. He is also related to the poet Ruth Padel and, through his ancestral connection to the Wedgwood family, to socialist politician Tony Benn. Through his great-grandmother, Hester Adrian, Baroness Adrian – the wife of Nobel Prize laureate Edgar Adrian, 1st Baron Adrian – he is also related to the Scottish philosopher David Hume. He has an older sister, Soumaya Keynes, (born 1989), who has appeared in various productions for BBC Radio 4. Keynes has stated that he is an atheist.
Keynes attended the Anna Scher Theatre School from 2000 to 2005, having attended Thornhill Primary school from 1996-2002. He currently attends the all-boys City of London School. He sat his GCSEs in May and June 2008 and started Sixth Form and his first year of his A-level studies the following September. He is doing biology, chemistry, maths, further maths and history at A-level. He currently writes as a "film critic" for the review section of The Citizen, the City of London School weekly school newspaper. He is a fan of English football club Arsenal.
In the summer of 2006, Keynes and his grandfather, mother, and sister were forced to flee from Beirut, Lebanon, where the family was holidaying when the 2006 Lebanon War began.
Keynes currently resides in Highbury, London. He studies Tae Kwon Do and plays the cornet, the cello, the tuba, the flute, and the guitar.
He auditioned (successfully) for The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe at the same time as he auditioned (unsuccessfully) for the role of Simon Brown in Nanny McPhee. His voice broke during the filming of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, leaving his sister Soumaya to voice some of his lines.
To film The Voyage of the Dawn Treader he goes to Australia over the summer vacation and beyond.
Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Worldwide Gross |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | Ferrari | Enzo Ferrari at the age of 8 | Television movie | NA |
| 2005 | The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe | Edmund Pevensie | $744,783,957 | |
| 2008 | The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian | Edmund Pevensie | $403,264,159 | |
| 2010 | The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader | Edmund Pevensie | pre-production | NA |
See also
References
- ^ "Narnia Voyage Postponed to 2010". E! Entertainment. 2007-09-21. http://www.comcast.net/entertainment/index.jsp?fn=2007/09/20/233317.html. Retrieved on 2007-09-21.
- ^ a b Anderson, Jon Lee (2006-07-24). "Change of Plans". The New Yorker. http://www.newyorker.com/talk/content/articles/060731ta_talk_anderson. Retrieved on 2006-10-18.
- ^ "Notes on the Rendall family". http://74.125.39.104/search?q=cache:9udZsivk8sQJ:www.manfamily.org/PDFs/NOTES%2520ON%2520THE%2520RENDALL%2520FAMILY.pdf+%22Hume+Chancellor+Pinsent%22+%22david+hume%22&hl=nl&ct=clnk&cd=3. Retrieved on 2008-05-29.
- ^ Martin, Paul (2006-03-25). "Exclusive Interview with Skandar Keynes". Narnia Fans. http://www.narniafans.com/?id=813. Retrieved on 2008-06-18. "I am an Atheist. I know the film's really Christian and everything and it does really affect me. Oh and you know I'm related to Charles Darwin."
- ^ Savage, David (2006-06-19). "William Moseley and Skandar Keynes Interview!". Popcorn. http://www.popcorn.co.uk/page.asp?partid=786. Retrieved on 2008-06-25. "So apparently I'm an atheist, I'm into Darwin..."
- ^ Gadelrab, Roisin (2009-03-13). "Evolution of screen heartthrob Skandar". Islington Tribune. http://www.thecnj.co.uk/islington/2009/031309/inews031309_09.html. Retrieved on 2009-03-22.
- ^ Skandar Keynes, Georgie Henley, and Andrew Adamson. (2006). The Chronicles of Narnia:The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe [Ca