His meteoric rise to stardom has delivered Orlando Bloom straight onto the movie world's A-list, without so much as a stopover on the B or C versions. And Tinseltown, it seems, just can't get enough of his exuberant charm and youthful talent. Having grabbed the world's attention in Lord of the Rings, he now has Los Angeles film bosses jokeying to sign him for their latest productions. And if the young Brit's performance as Elf warrior Legolas, is anything to go by, there is much more still to come.

REAL LIFE ACTION MAN

While Orlando is well-known for his onscreen adventures, he is no stranger to daredevil antics off the set either. Indeed his passion for "extreme sports" such as skiing and bungee-jumping has led him into more than a few thrills and spills. He has fractured his skull three times not to mention breaking both legs and his back in various adrenaline-fuelled stunts. And just for good measure he's also broken his nose, arm, finger, wrist and a couple of ribs. The broken back experience seems to have been his hairiest and most memorable. "Fell off a roof I remember that one," he says. "For a few days it looked as though I would never walk again. Then they operated on me and I got up and walked out."

A DISTINGUISHED BACKGROUND

The young actor is not just your average chisel-jawed drama student. He comes from a family of distinguished intellectuals who endured the hardships of political persecution while fighting against the apartheid regime in South Africa. His father is the novelist Harry Bloom, who won great acclaim for his books Episode In The Transvaal and the boxing story King Kong. Bloom senior's efforts to help South Africa's embattled black population even resulted in him spending a spell in prison. The family eventually fled to Britain, and settled in Canterbury where Orlando was born. Just a few years later, in 1981, his father passed away. "Harry was a great man," says the actor. "It was as though he'd done his job and he left the world."

A STAR IS BORN

Growing up in Canterbury, Orlando realised early on he wanted to become an actor. As a child he was inspired by seeing Superman, but he would have to wait a while for his own big screen adventures. At 16 he joined the National Youth Theatre and spent two years honing his craft before winning a scholarship to London's British American Drama Academy. His film debut, playing an attractive rent boy in Wilde, came in 1997. A flood of movie offers followed, but he chose to further his training and concentrate on theatre work. His breakthrough role, as the elfin warrior Legolas in Lord Of The Rings, came just as he graduated from a three-year course at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, and he soon found himself working with such notable directorial names as Ridley Scott (Black Hawk Down).

LEGOLAS STAYS ON TARGET

The young actor's career has got off to a thundering start. In contrast to his movie elders like Tom Cruise and Richard Gere, who both spent years waiting tables and struggling to find their niche, Orlando has shot straight into Hollywood's premiere league. Having established himself as a star in his own right, the 26-year-old now has his choice of roles. He'll next be appearing in the spoof documentary The Calcium Kid, playing a milkman whose passion for amateur boxing takes an unexpected turn when he finds himself fighting the world champion. He'll also be crossing swords with Johnny Depp and Oscar-winner Geoffrey Rush in The Pirates Of The Caribbean, and teams up with the Shine star again for another perilous adventure, The Kelly Gang, which follows the story of Australia's most infamous criminal.

LORD OF THE HEART-STRINGS

Orlando insists he is married to his career, but when it comes to affairs of the heart he isn't completely immune to temptation as he revealed when questioned about film stars' inflated salaries. "I don't care much about the money at all," he said. "Frankly, if I get the chance to kiss someone in a movie, they wouldn't need to pay me at all." The 18-month shoot for the Lord Of The Rings trilogy eventually cost him his longtime girlfriend Joanne Morley. Following the split he took up with model Jodie Kidd to whom he became engaged but the relationship didn't last. There have also been rumours of a romance with Christina Ricci and, more recently, with Blue Crush star Kate Bosworth. Orlando himself refuses to answer questions about his love-life, however. "I won't admit or deny anything," he says. "Makes me more interesting."

Trivia

• His hobbies are sky diving, bungee jumping, paragliding, surfing and snowboarding.
• Spent two years at the National Youth Theatre and went to the Guildhall School of Music and Drama.
• Is close friends with André Schneider (I).
• Has three tattoos.
• Has a dog named Maude.
• Dated his "Lullaby of Clubland" girlfriend Joanne Morley (1996), until she left him for André Schneider (I) (1997).
• Was briefly engaged to model 'Jemma Kidd'.
• Was voted #19 in the F.M. magazine's Top 50 list of the sexiest Brit Actors (2001).
• Has a tattoo of 9 in Elvish (all the members of the Fellowship in the movie LOTR: Fellowship of the Rings have one in a different place)