The ultimate lad

Michael Caine, an actor famous for bawling in his filthy Rotherhithe Cockney brogue, is tipped to win a third Oscar for a film named The Quiet American? Now there's an irony and a possibility. That Caine is once again re-united with Graham Greene's work so late in the day is not an indication of opportunities lost, but the state of things to come. Anyone who's studied his output and chosen to ignore the Muppet movies will know that Caine is a living great.

I was fortunate enough to meet him once - a few years ago a colleague and I gave him a big bunch of photographs from throughout his life and asked him to talk us through them. He had arrived unaccompanied in blazer, slacks and J.P. Tod's loafers and, like all great stars, he was charm personified, making us feel special. Ewan McGregor was there at the same time - they had just finished making Little Voice together - and chatted at ease, no sense of hierarchy or pretension.

As we rolled through the pictures - his first school photograph, John Wayne's birthday party - we came to an on-set shot of him in Get Carter in the trademark black overcoat. 'Now this,' he explained, 'is Get Carter. Funnily enough, a few years ago a mate rang me up and said, "Michael, there's this new magazine out and they've got you in every month, especially Get Carter. It was Loaded magazine.' At this point everyone round the table smiled, pointed at me and said, 'That was him!', to which Caine turned and said, 'Then you sir, are the guv'nor.'

Given that as a very young boy I'd been asked by the headmistress to choose between Bond and The Italian Job for the Christmas film, had chosen the latter, and had admired Michael Caine ever since, this was obviously a seminal moment in my life. A few days later Caine rang me and asked for a favour. 'You know I mentioned that Richard Harris gave me my first marijuana joint? Would you mind awfully missing that bit out, as every time I mention him he gets mad at me in the papers. Thanks.' Well Mr Harris is now the Late Mr Harris, so I think it's OK to reveal that bit of information.

For the man in the street Caine is, of course, the Guv'nor, the Geezer's Geezer, the Man Who Would Be King.

The row that blew up between Caine and Harris centred around whether or not Caine could consider himself a proper thespian because he, unlike the great Harris, hadn't spent 15 years doing Shakespeare on the stage. Certainly there was a time when movie snobs and critics felt that Caine had traded his credibility to live high in the Hollywood Hills, churning out any old film for money. On the contrary, the same year he made The Swarm he also made California Suite, and the year after Beyond The Poseidon Adventure came De Palma's Dressed To Kill. This supposedly weird appetite to earn was considered grubby by the movie snobs. But for those that work for a living this seemed about right and reflected positively for Caine.

That's where Caine strikes a chord - with the common man. He became a star, moved to Hollywood, opened some nice restaurants - never felt the need to indulge himself in some vanity production company or ridiculous art project. He's still one of us. He produced Get Carter but did so un-credited. In that movie Caine brought his own experiences to the mix, admitting, 'I know a few gangsters - actors tend to' and based his character on a chap of his acquaintance. He also removed any politeness from the script to give his Carter extra edge.

Keeping it simple, Caine possesses that great skill that all great stars have. No matter what he's doing he's himself, just like Eastwood, McQueen and De Niro. People come to identify the man, not just the role. In the archetypal Ladventure movies - Get Carter, The Italian Job, and Alfie - he's the no-nonsense boy about town. In unabashed boyish football and war movie Escape To Victory and excellent John Sturges pic The Eagle Has Landed, he plays heroes on both sides of the Second World War. In the Len Deighton and Graham Greene movies he handles White Collar Espionage/Foreign Office very well. In Little Voice and Educating Rita he's perfectly capable of dropping into Northern Stock and you know, oh that's Michael Caine, with a beard and corduroys. All roles, all believable. Certainly there was a period when Caine became better known for his catchphrases ('Not A Lot Of People Know That'), his autobiography and the impressions people did of him - and records made about him by Madness. Thankfully, his good work vastly overshadows the dodgy.

At his best he's controlled yet edgy, his range is enough to glue you to a decent thriller. He's stood outside of Luvviedom, has an appetite for a great line - 'Pissholes in the snow' - and he knows how to look good when the role allows it. As Len Deighton's Harry Palmer, he legitimised the wearing of glasses for three generations of men. Add to all this an ability to play parts that suit his age and a beautiful wife. Surely that's everything a straight man could want. Michael Caine. The Greatest Living Englishman?

James Brown is the editor of JACK magazine, out now.