BBC mag's expert poll names Paul Newman greatest film actor ever

The survey took into account criteria including box office success, Oscar nominations, acting range and marriage appeal, Newman neat James Stewart, Marlon Brando and Cary Grant. Newman, whose film credits include Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and The Hustler, was nominated for the best actor Oscar seven times during his career, winning it in 1986 for The Colour of Money.

A readers' poll disagreed with the experts, putting Scottish legend Sean Connery at the top of the list, whereas the original James Bond only managed to make it to eighth in the experts' league table. Tom Hanks, who is to star alongside Newman in British director Sam Mendes's next offering, The Road to Perdition, came second in the list. The top 10 were as follows: 1) Paul Newman 2) Tom Hanks 3) James Stewart 4) Harrison Ford 5) Marlon Brando 6) Cary Grant 7) Robert Redford 8) Sean Connery 9) Tom Cruise 10) Gary Cooper

(la/dpa)