Born in 1933 in Bermondsey, South London, young Maurice Micklewhite grew up in extreme poverty, as one of three children (although he did not know of his elder brother David's existence until the 1980s).
He took up acting after serving in Korean with the British Army. He spent a decade in repertory theatre and playing small roles in TV and films until his first major role in Zulu (1964), where he played an aristocratic British officer. But it was Alfie (1966) that made him a star and he was Oscar nominated for his role as a self-confessed womaniser.
The years that followed brought a string of successes, but following a mid-1970s move to the US, Caine's career became more patchy. A fear of poverty had left him with a need to be constantly working, which pushed him to accept films that he should have turned down.
A BAFTA for Educating Rita (1984) and an Oscar for Hannah and Her Sisters (1986) sparked a small resurgence, but it was short lived. In 1998, however, he had a major comeback with his role as sleazy agent Ray Say in Little Voice. His Golden Globe for that film was followed by an Oscar for his next role, Dr Wilbur Larsh, in The Cider House Rules.
In November 2000, he was knighted by the Queen. "It's the greatest honour I've ever had, or am likely to have, in my life," he commented when it was announced by the Palace, "and I am very quietly but so ecstatically happy."
Sir Michael was briefly married to British actress, Patricia Haynes, the mother of his elder daughter, Dominique, in the late 1950s. Since 1973, he has been married to Shakira Baksh, a former Miss Guyana (whom he had first spotted in a TV advert for Maxwell House coffee). The couple have a daughter, Natasha.
In addition to acting, Sir Michael is a successful restauranteur and writer. He is currently working on a novel. He has homes in England, Los Angeles and Miami.
