- Is one of 9 actors to have won the Triple Crown of Acting (an Oscar, Emmy and Tony); the others in chronological order are Thomas Mitchell, Melvyn Douglas, Paul Scofield, Jack Albertson, Jason Robards, Al Pacino, Geoffrey Rush and Christopher Plummer.
- Turned down the role of Dr Hannibal Lecter in The Silence of the Lambs (1991) because he just finished playing Claus Von Bulow in Reversal of Fortune (1990) and didn't want to play another dark character.
- One of the first celebrities to wear the recently created Red Ribbon, supporting the fight against AIDS (1991).
- He is fluent in French.
- His previous jobs include assistant stage manager, house-cleaner, "busker" (singing and playing guitar outside movie theaters), and gardener.
- He and fellow The Lion King (1994) cast member Whoopi Goldberg were both nominees for the first ever Emmy Award for Outstanding Narrator in 2014; Irons won.
- Owns Kilcoe Castle (which he has painted a rusty pink) in County Cork, Ireland, and has become involved in local politics.
- Confessed to Pat Kenny on Irish TV, The Late Late Show (1962), that one of his guilty pleasures was sifting through dumpsters in search of discarded "treasures".
- In 2003, he appeared in a Comic Relief sketch entitled "Harry Potter and the Secret Chamberpot of Azerbaijan". Irons played Severus Snape, a character played in the films by Alan Rickman. Irons and Rickman play brothers in the "Die Hard" films.
- He is the second Academy-Award winning actor to play the role of Alfred Pennyworth after Michael Caine.
- Narrated the "Spaceship Earth" attraction in Epcot.
- At the 1990 Oscars, Irons concluded his acceptance speech for best actor in Reversal of Fortune (1990) by thanking "David". The "David" was David Cronenberg, who directed Irons the previous year in Dead Ringers (1988).
- An exceptionaly good horseman and enjoys skiing. Hates cooking, but loves gardening and the beauty of nature.
- In 1996, he became the fourteenth performer to win the Triple Crown of acting. Oscar: Best Actor in a Leading Role, Reversal of Fortune (1990); Tony: Best Actor in a Play, "The Real Thing" (1984); and Emmy: Outstanding Voice-Over Performance, War Without End (1996), Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie, Elizabeth I (2005), & Outstanding Narrator, Game of Lions (2013).
- Was a close friend and one-time London neighbor of billionaire-philanthropist Paul Getty.
- Has a signet ring with the insignia PDI engraved on it. It belonged to his father Paul Dugan Irons.
- Although he is a heavy smoker, he claims that he is unable to drink alcohol without getting sick.
- Was wearing sneakers when called to the stage to accept his Oscar in 1991.
- Became a father for the 2nd time at age 37 when his 2nd wife Sinéad Cusack gave birth to their son Max Irons on 17 October 1985.
- Starred opposite his wife Sinead Cusack in Stealing Beauty (1996).
- He and his wife Sinead Cusack have both starred in adaptations of DC Comics properties: She was in V For Vendetta (2005) and he was in Batman v Superman: Dawn Of Justice (2016) and Justice League (2017).
- Member of jury at the Cannes Film Festival in 2000.
- The "Series of Unfortunate Events" novels by Daniel Handler make reference to three of his characters. In Reversal of Fortune (1990), he plays Klaus von Bülow, husband to Sunny von Bülow. Two of the lead characters in Handler's novels are named Klaus and Sunny Baudelaire. In The Carnivorous Carnival, Klaus and his other sister Violet disguise themselves as circus freaks named Beverly and Elliot, which are the names of the identical twin gynecologists that Irons plays in Dead Ringers (1988).
- Supporter of English football team Portsmouth F.C.
- Helped to financially Sponser British Character Actor Stephen Manwaring whilst Stephen was at The Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts in 1999-2002.
- He won a Best Actor Oscar for playing Claus Von Bullow in Reversal of Fortune (1990), making him one of 19 actors to win the Award for playing a real person who was still alive at the evening of the Award ceremony (as of 2022). The other eighteen actors and their respective performances are: Spencer Tracy for playing Father Edward Flanagan in Boys Town (1938), Gary Cooper for playing Alvin C. York in Sergeant York (1941), Patty Duke for playing Helen Keller in The Miracle Worker (1962), Jason Robards for playing Ben Bradlee in All the President's Men (1976), Robert De Niro for playing Jake La Motta in Raging Bull (1980), Sissy Spacek for playing Loretta Lynn in Coal Miner's Daughter (1980)_, Susan Sarandon for playing Sister Helen Prejean in Dead Man Walking (1995), Geoffrey Rush for playing David Helfgott in Shine (1996), Julia Roberts for playing Erin Brockovich in Erin Brockovich (2000), Jim Broadbent for playing John Bayley in Iris (2001), Jennifer Connelly for playing Alice Nash in A Beautiful Mind (2001), Helen Mirren for playing Queen Elizabeth II in The Queen (2006), Sandra Bullock for playing Leigh Anne Tuohy in The Blind Side (2009), Christian Bale for playing Dickie Eklund in The Fighter (2010), Melissa Leo for playing Alice Eklund-Ward in The Fighter (2010), Meryl Streep for playing Margaret Thatcher in The Iron Lady (2011), Eddie Redmayne for playing Stephen Hawking in The Theory of Everything (2014) and Will Smith for playing Richard Williams in King Richard (2021).
- He was originally considered for the part of Neville Chamberlain in A Prominent Patient (2016), eventually played by Paul Nicholas.
- After being ticketed in England for driving 97 mph. on his BMW motorcycle and being charged with speeding and fined $225.00, he had his motorcycle license suspended for three months (1 June 1995).
- In 2004, he declared his support for the Countryside Alliance.
- Became a father for the 1st time at age 30 when his 2nd wife Sinéad Cusack gave birth to their son Samuel Irons on 16 September 1978.
- Owns a home in The Liberties neighborhood in Dublin, Ireland, as well as a home in his birthplace of Cowes, on the Isle Of Wight, and a farm in Watlington, Oxfordshire.
- He has twice played characters with the same first and last name. The first in Lolita (1997) (Humbert Humbert) and second in And Now Ladies & Gentlemen (2002) (Valentin Valentin).
- Born to Paul Dugan Irons, an accountant, and Barbara Anne Sharpe a homemaker, he has a brother, Christopher and a sister Felicity.
- Won the 1984 Tony Award (New York City) for Actor in a Drama for "The Real Thing".
- He and his documentary film Trashed (2012) was be featured at the "New York Times Energy for Tomorrow" Conference on "Building Sustainable Cities" in New York City on April 25, 2013.
- He currently owns Audi A6 Quatro estate, BMW cruising bike, and Ducati motorbike. He has owned Morris Minor, Honda 50, and a Volkswagen rag-top Beetle.
- President of the jury at 2007 Sarajevo Film Festival.
- Jeremy's step son is an Irish politician (TD) named Richard Boyd Barrett for The Dublin South East Constituency and is a member of The People Before Profit Party, whom are a liberal social left movement against austerity and unfair treatment of working class people.
- Trained as an actor at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, which is one of the most selective drama schools (as well as school of any kind) in the world. To be admitted onto the three-year BA acting course, the theatre school accepts 28 out of approximately 2,500 applications. This would equate to an acceptance rate of around 1%.
- In 1998, he was named as a major donor to the Labour Party.
- Was one of the cast members of cult children's programme Play Away (1971), from which clips featuring him are regularly repeated on "Before They Were Famous..." type programmes.
- Starring in the theatrical adaptation of Sándor Márai's novel, "Embers" at Duke of York's Theatre in London. (February 2006)
- Won Broadway's 1984 Tony Award as Best Actor (Play) for Tom Stoppard's "The Real Thing."
- Spent 2 years with the R.S.C.
- At the New York City Opera in Stephen Sondheim's "A Little Night Music". (March 2003)
- Attended Sherborne School for boys from 1962-1966.
- Appeared in Broadway in ' The Real Thing'.
- On Broadway in the play "Impressionism". Opened March 24. Scheduled to run through July 5th, 2009. (March 2009)
- Born at 2:00am-BST.
Contribute to this page
Suggest an edit or add missing content