Paul Bettany

Actor Paul Bettany joins Gary Davies to choose his Tracks Of My Years - ten songs that tell the story of his life and career to date. His selections include The Jam, Jimmy Cliff and The Pogues & Kirsty MacColl.

Born in London to parents who loved acting, Paul began his career with stage roles in London before making his film debut in 1997's Bent. His profile rose further with roles in Gangster No. 1, A Knight's Tale and A Beautiful Mind in the early 00s, as well as playing the lead in romantic comedy Wimbledon. He made his debut in the Marvel cinematic universe in 2008’s ‘Iron Man’ as a voice-only role as Tony Stark’s computer system, J.A.R.V.I.S. He voiced the role in two more Iron Man films before the character transformed into Vision for 2015’s ‘Avengers: Age Of Ultron’ - becoming arguably his best-known role. He has played Vision in two more films (up to 2018), then in the Disney+ series ‘Wandavision’ in 2021, for which he was Emmy and Golden Globe nominated. He'll be playing the character again soon in a new series called Vision Quest - expected in 2026.

Paul will next be seen on TV in the Sky drama Amadeus. The series follows the arrival of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (played by Will Sharpe) in 18th-century Vienna, where he disrupts the status quo of music, developing a fierce rivalry with devoutly religious court composer Antonio Salieri (played by Paul). The show is based on Peter Shaffer’s award-winning stage play and also stars Gabrielle Creevy and Rory Kinnear.

Produced by BBC Audio for BBC Radio 2.