Ian McShane

Ian McShane
McShane in December 2006
Born	Ian David McShane (1942-09-29) 29 September 1942 (age 74) Blackburn, Lancashire, England
Residence	Venice Beach, California, United States
Nationality	British
Other names	Ian Mcshane
Alma mater	Royal Academy of Dramatic Art
Occupation	Actor, voice artist
Years active	1962–present
Spouse(s)	Suzan Farmer (m. 1965; div. 1968) Ruth Post (m. 1970; div. 1976) Gwen Humble (m. 1980)
Children	Henry McShane, Jessica McShane, Oran McShane
Parent(s)	Harry McShane (father)

Ian David McShane (born 29 September 1942) is an English actor and voice artist. He is known for his television roles, particularly Lovejoy (1986–1994), Al Swearengen in Deadwood (2004–2006), Blackbeard in Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides and Winston in John Wick. He is set to portray Mr. Wednesday in the upcoming Starz series American Gods.

McShane was born in Blackburn, Lancashire, the son of Irene (née Cowley; b. 1921) and Scottish footballer Harry McShane (1920–2012). His father was Scottish and his mother, who was born in England, was of Irish and English descent. McShane grew up in Davyhulme, Manchester, and attended Stretford Grammar School. He studied at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and was still a student there when he appeared in his first film, 1962's The Wild and the Willing. McShane was a member of the National Youth Theatre.

In the United Kingdom, McShane's best known role may be antiques dealer Lovejoy in the series of the same name. He also enjoyed fame in the United States as British film director Don Lockwood in Dallas and as a British cockfighting aficionado in Roots. Even before Lovejoy, McShane was a pin-up as a result of appearances in television series, such as Wuthering Heights (1967, as Heathcliff), If It's Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium (1969, as Charlie), Jesus of Nazareth (1977, as Judas Iscariot), and Disraeli (1978)—as well as films like Sky West and Crooked (1965) and Battle of Britain (1969).