They say that from little things, big things grow. Harrison Ford, for example, started his stellar film career with an uncredited walk-on as a bell hop in the wonderfully titled Dead Heat On A Merry-Go-Round (1966). And Ioan Gruffudd (above) will no doubt be hoping his career can achieve greatness from relatively humble beginnings - he first came to light as the man who plucked a soggy, sobbing Kate Winslet from the water in Titanic.
Gruffudd - who can now be seen playing among the puppies in 102 Dalmations - was born on October 6, 1973, in Cardiff, Wales. His parents taught Welsh and Gruffudd started his performing career playing the oboe in the Glamorgan Youth Orchestra. By the age of 12, he started toying with acting and by 14 had landed a spot in the Welsh TV soap opera, People Of The Valley. There was no looking back. His TV role helped to win him a place at the Royal Academy Of Dramatic Arts, where he studied from 1992 to 1995.
On graduation, Gruffudd landed a role in the BBC's Poldark series and then found his way - in 1997 - into film, playing one of Oscar Wilde's playthings in Wilde. The same year he captured the hearts of many by rescuing Winslet from the water. His brief part brought the tabloids calling, his face was plastered all over the UK and he was being heralded as a star on the rise. Next up came more thrills on the high seas with the lead role in the BBC series Horatio Hornblower and his first film lead in the love tale Solomon And Gaenor.
