`European Oscar` award for Sir Sean Connery

10-Sep-2005 • Actor News

Sir Sean Connery is to follow in the footsteps of the actor Sir Alec Guinness and legendary director Ingmar Bergman in earning a major award at the "European Oscars" - reports The Scotsman.

Sir Sean, who turned 75 this August, is to receive the prestigious lifetime achievement award from the European Film Academy, it was announced yesterday.

Previous winners in the last 18 years range from the Spanish director, Carlos Saura, to the legendary Italian screenwriter, Tonino Guerra, and the Polish-born writer and director, Billy Wilder.

Sir Sean may have made his name as the world's most famous secret agent, James Bond, but the academy cited a string of 70 films in his 50-year career, working with the world's top directors.

They ranged from The Untouchables, for which he won the Oscar for best supporting actor, to The Wind and the Lion.

As William of Baskerville, in The Name of the Rose, he worked for the French director Jean-Jacques Annaud in a film based on a book by the Italian writer, Umberto Eco.

Sir Sean is patron of the Edinburgh International Film Festival, although he did not attend the event this year. While working on his biography, he has strenuously denied rumours that he has retired from the film industry.

The festival's managing director, Ginnie Atkinson, said she was extremely pleased. "It's a reminder that Connery is not just a movie star in Hollywood terms, but has always been a versatile actor with an interest in a broad range of cinema."

Sir Sean and his wife will be among the guests at the European Film Awards Ceremony on 3 December, in Berlin, when 19 awards will be presented.

Sir Sean was awarded a knighthood in 1999, and earlier this year a TV poll saw him voted best British actor of all time.

Thanks to `JP` for the alert.