Happy Birthday, Stephen Fry!

British writer/actor/comedian/novelist/director/wordsmith Stephen Fry turns 50 today, and we would like to send him our best. With talent and heart and smarts, openly gay Fry has established an impressive resume and sterling reputation.

American audiences may know him from his touching turn as a persecuted gay businessman in V for Vendetta or by any assorted episodes of the wonderful Jeeves and Wooster or Fry and Laurie (both of which co-starred House's Hugh Laurie) that floated across the pond. Fry also notably appeared in Wilde (as Oscar himself), Peter's Friends (as Peter) and in a recent recurring run on Bones.

In a stroke of wonderful timing, just this week it was announced that Fry had a quote entered into the Oxford Book of Modern Phrases: "The e-mail of the species is more deadly than the mail." Not a bad birthday present!

I first noticed Fry when I was about 10 and saw the actor play Lord Snot in an episode of the hilarious Brit sitcom The Young Ones, and have loved him ever since. Here are a few snaps of the charming man.