Had originally aspired to play rugby professionally but caught tuberculosis when he was a teenager which brought ths dream to an end.

Studied at LAMDA as RADA rejected him.

Known for his 'hellraising' behaviour as much as his acting career.  Rather than accept a pair of cufflinks for winning best actor at the Cannes Film Festival in 1963, he grabbed the biggest trophy he could see and ran off stage.

In 1997 he found a photo of himself standing next to a Rolls Royce. Having no memory of owning the car he contacted his accountant who informed him it had been in storage since 1974.

His granddaughter said she would never speak to him again if he turned down the role of Albus Dumbledore in Harry Potter.  Harris committed himself to all seven films saying. "I'll keep doing it as long as I enjoy it, my health holds out and they still want me, but the chances of all three of those factors remaining constant are pretty slim,"

When he turned 70, he decided to live at The Savoy Hotel in London for which he paid a weekly bill of £6000.

Harris became ill with lymphatic cancer when living at the Savoy.  As he was stretchered through the lobby of the hotel to the awaiting ambulance he sat up at said to those who had fallen silent 'It was the food! Don't touch the food!'

Golden Globes

1968 - Best Actor - Camelot

Grammy Awards

1974 - Best Spoken Word - Jonathan Livingston  Seagull