Anthony Mark O'Brien was born on May 25th 1975, coinciding with a total lunar eclipse, in Newcastle under Lyme, Staffordshire and placed into voluntary foster care shortly after his first birthday. His foster parents, Peter & Helen, teachers of physics and geography were also enthusiastic members of a woodcraft movement, throughout his childhood the whole family would attend camps instilling a creative freedom set in the fields, forests, mountains & caves of the United Kingdom. Raised on a healthy dose of Westerns, featuring Clint Eastwood, John Wayne and the ultimate spy James Bond, he would perform imaginative plays with his sisters & brothers and took part in theatrical productions within the scout movement and school. A happiness found in the performing arts that he would rediscover later in life. A musical director once scolded the nine year old for his solo performance of, "The Sparrow" for singing out of tune, Anthony was already showing signs of developing his character and staying true to clues given in the dialogue. Returning to live with his mum during his high school years he excelled in many subjects yet it was English and drama that left an indelible impression on the young student, this was mainly due to the teacher of the subjects, who was also his form tutor, Mrs Hambley. They say you'll always remember the good and bad teachers from your school years and thankfully she was one of the former, who also offered Anthony parts in school productions. An enduring memory of the tweed wearing, bicycle riding English teacher who gave him an escape will always be treasured, Anthony states that his mother also played a key part in his love for acting, at a young age she introduced him to Bruce Lee amongst others and he will always remember his Mum's reaction the day after watching Daniel Day Lewis's performance as Christy Brown in My Left Foot. As the Rave scene of the early nineties began to dominate Anthony found himself becoming an observer, employed as a trainee butcher on a YTS in Kwik Save, he found himself out priced and under-paid to attend but sat after work and watched as clubs in his hometown of Longton became the stalwarts of the rave generation as the ecstasy flooded in. He joined the army in 1995. Awarded 'Top Recruit' and 'Best at Physical Training' at his passing out parade he went on to complete the All Arms Commando Course receiving the much coveted Green Beret, travelling extensively, yet choosing to leave just before the start of a new millennium. Sitting at a crossroads in his life, a broken first marriage, he knew he would have to find another career, something that he loved, as does with hindsight, he looked to his younger years and decided to take different direction. This is where he rediscovered his love for acting, through Glasgow College of Nautical Studies, introduced to Susan C Triesman of The Strathclyde Theatre Group, his first role in front of a paying audience was as three minor characters within Shakespeare's 'Scottish Play', a chance for him to watch others from the wings, to soak up and learn. Beginning his foundation in theatre he found himself drawn to film and took on many roles on a voluntary basis, to fine tune his craft. Learning of many things, positive, negative, comedic and tragic but always with an eye for detail. - IMDb Mini Biography By: Clayton Harrington
