Celebrate Patrick Stewart's Birthday with His Life in Photos

The celebrated actor — of Star Trek and stage fame — turns 83 on July 13, 2023

Born in England on July 13, 1940, Sir Patrick Stewart and his two older brothers were raised by his mother, Gladys, a mill worker. His father, Alfred, was a British soldier during World War II who later suffered from PTSD. “We were poor and had almost nothing,” Stewart recalled to PEOPLE in a 2022 sit-down.

At 19, he was performing in a small theatre, making five pounds a week: “Enough for my rent, some food and an occasional glass of beer. I was content,” he said. After a brief stint as a journalist, he landed a job with the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1966 and remained there until the early 1980s — when he struck it even bigger on Star Trek.

Here, celebrate the beloved actor's life in photos, on his 83rd birthday.

Patrick Stewart and His Mother

“She was so sweet and caring and loving, a simple soul,” Stewart said of his mother (with him, ca. 1943), who died in 1977. “She’d had no education at all and worked at a big weaving mill for decades.”

Patrick Stewart on Stage

Stewart played Launce in the Royal ShakespeareCompany’s 1970 production of The Two Gentlemen of Verona. His more recent stage work includes a 2013 Broadway production of No Man's Land/Waiting for Godot.

Patrick Stewart on 'Star Trek: The Next Generation'

“I think it happened to me at exactly the right time,” Stewart (with the original cast of Star Trek: The Next Generation in 1987) said of finding sudden fame at age 46. His role as Captain Jean-Luc Picard brought him a new level of success; he played the character for the show's seven popular seasons and in four subsequent feature films. "There is not a corner of my life that wasn't impacted."

Patrick Stewart in 'X-Men'

In 2000, Stewart was tapped to play Professor Charles Xavier in X-Men and went on to star in seven films in the franchise. He initially turned down the role to distance himself from sci-fi.

Though he's been nominated for several Emmys, Golden Globe and SAG Awards, plus a Tony, his sole major award is a 1996 Grammy for Best Spoken Word Album for Children for Prokofiev: Peter And The Wolf.

Patrick Stewart as Macbeth

The actor spent a difficult year playing Macbeth opposite Kate Fleetwood at the Brooklyn Academy of Music in 2008.

"Doing the play had a really dark impact on my life. Because he is a tragic figure," Stewart shared. "Yes, he’s a villain. Yes, he kills people. Yes, he ruins people’s lives, but he is a struggler. I would do the show, and I would get in my car and go home and drink. I really turned into an alcoholic because the only way I could clear my head of this man was by alcohol. I would drink until I passed out. I got help with the drinking. One of the reasons was because I met my wife."

Patrick Stewart and Wife Sunny Ozell

Stewart and second wife Sunny Ozell (pictured in Jamaica in 2015) met when she served him in a Brooklyn diner. "It was the only time in my life I’ve given someone my telephone number and said call me," he told PEOPLE. "I’ve never met anyone like her before. She is so smart and so informed. And her intellectual accomplishments are extraordinary. She remembers everything. My life is perpetually interesting — and it’s largely as a result of Sunny."

Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen

Longtime friend Sir Ian McKellen officiated the couple's 2013 wedding. The actors starred in the X-Men franchise together, with McKellen playing the occasional villain Magneto.

Patrick Stewart and Son Daniel

Stewart has two children with ex-wife Sheila Falconer; he passed on the acting gene to his son Daniel, now 55 (with him in 2015). "I loved Daniel when he was little, and when he was a baby, I loved holding him. It was fantastic," Stewart recalled fondly of his son's early days.

Stewart credits his children for both encouraging him and teasing him on his initial Star Trek audition.

"They thought it was hysterical that I was even auditioning," he said. "They told me, ‘Dad, we used to watch [the original] every night!’ I said, ‘The guys wearing the colored T-shirts?’ That was all I knew about it."

After landing the role, “they teased me of course,” said Stewart. “But I think they were actually quite proud that dad was Captain Jean-Luc Picard.”

Patrick Stewart and Daughter Sophie

"When my daughter was born, it just happened to be in a time when my work was slowing down," Stewart (here with her in 2009) remembered to PEOPLE. "The first two years of her life I was very much a caretaker because her mother was a wonderful dancer and appeared in musicals. I took over the job of being mom and dad, and I loved it. It was marvelous."

Patrick Stewart Is Knighted

When Stewart was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace in 2010, he called the moment an "unlooked-for honor."

He also paid tribute to the teacher who encouraged him to act, according to the BBC. "Although many people in my life have had great influence on me, without this man none of it would have happened," he said.

Patrick Stewart on 'Star Trek: Picard'

Stewart returned to his iconic '80s role in 2020 for the Paramount+ series Star Trek: Picard (the show wrapped this spring after three seasons). “Thirty-three years later and I’m still doing it,” he said. “I’ve been very, very lucky.”

Patrick Stewart Now

“I thought I’d be retired [by now],” Stewart, who currently does voice work on American Dad, told PEOPLE in 2022. “It just hasn’t happened.” At some point, though, he and Ozell plan to “go somewhere and just sort of shut down,” he added. “I’m looking forward to it very much. Although, my wife believes I’ll tolerate it for about two weeks. Then I’ll be calling my agent.”

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