Michael Fassbender Read Online Free Page A

stronghold in Munster to hold out against Oliver Cromwell’s forces, eventually succumbing to General Ludlow in 1652.
    Despite Michael’s interest in films, he never even thought about acting at that stage. He admits to being an average student with no real idea what he wanted to do with his life – ‘pretty clueless and irresponsible’. Unlike his academic sister, Catherine, who loved reading and was always asking questions, he was much more interested in his imaginativeworld and doing physical things, such as playing in the park and climbing trees. Sometimes he would ‘skive off’ school with a friend, Ernest Johnson. Whenever Michael got nervous about it, Ernest would take the philosophical approach and ask, ‘What’ll it matter in a hundred years’ time?’ This phrase stuck with Michael and whenever he had concerns about taking certain acting roles he would just remember Ernest’s words and get on with it. The philosophy also chimes with that of director Steve McQueen, who Michael was to meet some 17 years later – ‘We’re all going to die anyway, so we might as well just get on with it’ – a phrase that Michael has often repeated.
    For a time Michael considered a profession in law but, being only an occasional and slow reader, he felt that he would not be able to keep up with the many legal books and documents that he would need to plough through during his studies. Architecture was another idea that evaporated after he failed his technical-drawing exam. His thoughts then turned to journalism and he particularly fancied being a war reporter. He hoped to do well enough at school to be able to go to college in Dublin but fate was to lead him in another direction.

CHAPTER TWO
A FATEFUL DAY
    C atherine was now at the prestigious Trinity College in Dublin, studying psychology and neuroscience, but Michael was much more vague about what he wanted to do in life. He was only an average pupil at school and did not have the focus, application or academic ability of his sister. But then one fateful day, when he was 17, he happened to see a piece of paper on the school notice board offering a new Wednesday afternoon activity. The message was from Donie Courtney, a former pupil who had taken a course at the Gaiety School of Acting [the National Theatre School of Ireland] and come back to introduce drama and comedy classes to his old school.
    Courtney had set up a couple of workshop classes and an intrigued Michael went along and found that he thoroughly enjoyed the experience. It provided an ideal outlet for his creativity and fantasies and, to his surprise, he did not feel shy or self-conscious when acting. As he was later to explain, ‘It just felt right to me, as a way to express myself. All these people in my head could finally find a place to go.’
    Disappointed when the classes came to an end, he caught sight of Courtney in town shortly afterwards and, after telling him how much he had enjoyed the acting classes, eagerly asked if there would be any more. Recognising his talent and enthusiasm, Courtney told him about a professional theatre company he had set up in Killarney called Bricriu – named after a troublemaker from the Ulster Cycle of Irish myths and legends – and suggested that he go and do some part-time stuff with them. It was a pivotal moment for Michael – it set him on the course of acting and sparked in him the realisation that it was something he was good at and could possibly do for a living.
    ‘That was it,’ he explained. ‘It happened fast. I felt it was something that I could really do. It’s really thanks to Donie and Bricriu that I got started [in acting]. Donie opened up the whole world to me.’
    At the theatre company he did pantomime, theatre in pubs, sketch work and improvisation, keenly absorbing as much as he could about the various techniques. His firstperformance was on stage in a pub in an off-the-wall production