Simon Pegg

Background
Simon John Pegg was born in Gloucester, England, UK on February 14th, 1970. At the age of 5, he received a miniature drum kit, and his passion for music began to blossom. By 16, he was playing drums in a band called God’s Third Leg. He was also a huge fan of the original Star Wars series, which may have somewhat prepared him for the sci-fi/fantasy roles to come later in life.

In 1991, Simon graduated from the University of Bristol with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Theatre, Film, and Television.

Career
In 1993, he moved to London and pursued a career as a stand-up comedian. This allowed him to eventually break into television comedy. In 1995, he appeared on the show Six Pairs of Pants. This would be especially important to Simon’s career, as this is where he met future collaborators Jessica Stevenson and Edgar Wright.

He followed this up with roles in television series such as Asylum, Is It Bill Bailey?, Faith in the Future, I‘m Alan Partridge, Big Train, and Hippies. In 1999, he created, co-wrote, and co-starred in the sitcom Spaced with Jessica Stevenson. Pegg’s associate, Edgar Wright, would be tabbed to take care of directorial duties.

Spaced
Spaced was a major hit with audiences, and Simon received a British Comedy Award nomination as Best Male Comedy Newcomer. He had finally arrived.Afterwards, Simon continued to appear on television, but also began making the transition to movies. He was seemingly everywhere, appearing in such diverse work as Band of Brothers, Black Books, Brass Eye Special, The Parole Officer, and 24 Hour Party People. He even played mutant bounty hunter Johnny Alpha, the Strontium Dog, is a series of audio plays based on the exploits of the legendary 2000 AD. Comics character.

Shaun of the Dead
Then, Simon started work on the film which would get him noticed around the world. It was called a “romantic zombie comedy” (or “zom-rom-com” by some) and would star Pegg, who also co-wrote the script with Edgar Wright. That film was, of course, Shaun of the Dead. Released in 2004, the movie was met with favorable reviews from both hardcore horror fans and the more casual viewing public, and it forever marked Pegg as an icon in the ever-popular zombie genre. In fact, the movie was so well regarded that zombie godfather George A. Romero invited Pegg and Wright to make a cameo appearance in his latest horror film, Land of the Dead. Not surprisingly, the duo played a pair of zombies.

Other Work
Afterwards, Simon went on to do voice work for a Doctor Who audio story, then portrayed the character of the Editor in a 2005 Doctor Who television episode. He finished up his Who trilogy by narrating part of the documentary series entitled Doctor Who Confidential.

After the success of Shaun of the Dead, Simon was asked whether or not he would be leaving the British film industry for the bright lights and bigger paychecks of Hollywood. He replied, “It’s not like I’m going to run off and do Mission Impossible III!”

In 2006, Simon played the character of Benji Dunn in Mission Impossible III.

He and Edgar Wright have also written a second film called Hot Fuzz, which began shooting in March of 2006. The movie will pay tribute to police action films, and Pegg plays the central role of Nicholas Angel, a London cop who gets transferred to a rural town where horrible events begin to occur.

Personal Life
Simon is married to Maureen McCann and is the godfather of Apple Martin (daughter of Chris Martin and Gwyneth Paltrow).