Biography

Hugh Laurie was born in Oxford, England, and educated at Eton College and Cambridge University, where he took a degree in anthropology. He rowed in the Cambridge and Oxford Boat Race of 1980 and was elected president of the venerable Footlights Revue. Along with Stephen Fry and Emma Thompson, Laurie produced "The Cellar Tapes," which won the Perrier Award at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe of 1981 and propelled the trio into a number of groundbreaking British television shows, including four seasons of "A Bit of Fry and Laurie," which Laurie co-wrote for the BBC with Stephen Fry; three seasons of "Blackadder"; and three seasons of "Saturday Live." In addition, four seasons of "Jeeves and Wooster," based on the novels of P.G. Wodehouse, aired on "Masterpiece Theatre" from 1990-1995.

On the big screen, Laurie's credits include the upcoming release "The Oranges" opposite Catherine Keener and Leighton Meester; the animated feature "Monsters vs. Aliens" opposite Reese Witherspoon and Seth Rogen; "Street Kings" opposite Forest Whitaker and Keanu Reeves; "Flight of the Phoenix" opposite Dennis Quaid; "Peter's Friends" directed by and co-starring Kenneth Branagh; "Sense and Sensibility" with Emma Thompson and Kate Winslet; "Cousin Bette" with Jessica Lange; "The Man in the Iron Mask"; "101 Dalmatians"; and the "Stuart Little" movies with Geena Davis.

On American television, Laurie portrayed "Vincente Minnelli" opposite Judy Davis in the network telefilm "Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows." He also appeared in "Tracey Takes On... " and "Friends." His voiceover credits include "Family Guy" and the "The Simpsons" Treehouse of Horror XXI episode.

Laurie has directed television programs and commercials, including the HOUSE Season Six episode "Lockdown," composed and recorded numerous original songs and written articles for London's The Daily Telegraph newspaper. Four volumes of "A Bit of Fry and Laurie" scripts have been published by Mandarin, and his first novel "The Gun Seller" was published in both the U.K. and the U.S. to critical acclaim and has been adapted into a screenplay.

Laurie's performance as "Dr. Gregory House" has garnered him two Golden Globe Awards for Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series, five Emmy nominations for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series and two Screen Actors Guild Awards for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series. He has twice been honored by the Television Critics Association with TCA Awards for Individual Achievement in Drama.

Having recently signed a record deal, Laurie will record a New Orleans blues album this fall. The musical and vocal collaboration will be produced by two-time Grammy Award winner Joe Henry.

While filming HOUSE, Laurie lives in Los Angeles.