The true story that inspired Billy Elliot The man who helped inspire Hall when he wrote the story has gone on to big things himself.

His name is … LONDON (dpa) - Billy Elliot, the hugely successful British film about a young kid from a tough northern England mining town who becomes a ballet dancer, is based on a real person.

Billy Elliot (Jamie Bell) is a young boy living in a small County Durham town, who discovers he has a talent for ballet, much to the chagrin of his widowed father Jackie (Gary Lewis), leaving him torn between his dreams and the only life he's ever known. LONDON (dpa) - Billy Elliot, the hugely successful British film about a young kid from a tough northern England mining town who becomes a ballet dancer, is based on a real person.Trump offers different take on US-Canada border closure extension,Review: Eric Martsolf and Stacy Haiduk are back in 'Days of Our Lives',Review: Kelly Lang puts fans into a time warp with stellar 'Old Soul' CD,Op-Ed: Climate Change — The great disruptor of life as we know it,Tropical Storm Beta could be a hurricane as it nears Texas Coast,Trump wants to force Russian concessions on nuclear treaty,Belarus police detain hundreds of women at protest,Trump's Supreme Court push roils US election,Navalny posts photo of him walking, describes recovery.