Whether as an Elf, Pirate, Trojan lover or Outlaw, Orlando Bloom never misses his target.

Watched by the cream of British showbiz, Sir Ian McKellen didn't mince words at a London film awards on Nov. 4. Presented with a gong by The Lord of the Rings co0star Orlando Bloom, the veteran spoke with Gandalf-like honesty about why he'd been given the honour. "They knew I'd turn up for the free booze and the chance to snog Orlando Bloom."

It seems everyone wants Orlando from A-list directors- Gore Verbinski, Peter Jackson and Troy's Wolfgang Peterson, who called him "beautiful"- to legions of teenage (and older) fans. Since 2002, Bloom, who turned 27 on Jan. 13th, has had a packed schedule including turns as an Elf in Lord of the Ring, a bushranger in Ned Kelly and a buccaneer in Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl.

"Orlando has become a big star quicker than anyone I've ever seen," says Billy Boyd who plays 'Pippin' in Rings; Troy's Brad Pitt calls him "a gem". But while the blockbuster star has said new fame sometimes makes him feel "totally lost" he told TIME, "I'm in the prime of my life. What do I have to complain about?"

Probably nothing, now. But growing up, he struggled with his weight and dyslexia. At 9, "I broke my leg when I was skiing and I had to wear a cast for a year," he tells WHO. "I sat at home really depressed…I was eating biscuits and chocolate bars. I was a porker." Now the vegetarian eats nothing more sinister than his finger nails, but he still cops a ribbing- about his matinee-idol looks. "The hobbits kill me. Everyone does," he says. "My best mates rip at me all the time."

But he's made of strong stuff. Five years ago Bloom fell three storeys from a roof and broke his back. "I hadn't even been partying," he said, "There's just no excuse." Says McKellen, "The boy was told he would never walk again. He pulled through and that is truly amazing."

Born in Canterbury, England to Sonia, who runs a language school, Orlando believed his father was novelist and apartheid activist Harry Bloom, who died when the boy was 4. His mother's boyfriend, Colin Stone, was a substitute dad and Bloom was later told Stone was his real father. "It's an unusual story, but all families have their stuff," said Bloom, who left home at 16 for the London stage. There he won a one-line role in Wilde, then a scholarship to The British American School of Music and Drama and was chosen as Legolas on The Lord of the Rings 48 hours before graduating. To play the 2931-year-old Elf, Bloom was trained in riding, fencing and archery. "I had to be pretty swift with it and found that I had a bit of a knack, to where I was shooting paper plates out of the sky," he said. "Which is quite cool."

He's also cool about romances. He's stepped out with Cristina Ricci and his engagement to former model Jemma Kidd ended while filming Lord of the Rings ("That's life," he said. "People come into your life and people leave it.") He's now with Blue Crush hottie Kate Bosworth, 21. "She's a great girl" is all he'll say, but he notes "women are beautiful. They deserve to be cherished. When you start falling for somebody and you can't stop the king about them, I love that." Says Keira Knightley, his on screen love interest in Pirates, "I can report that he's a good kisser."

And one with a taste for streamlining his life. A London home owner since last year, Bloom avoids computers and listens to Coldplay. When he's not working, "I prefer to sit and do nothing. Go to a beach. Go for a walk. The simple things have suddenly become more enjoyable." His big wish "I'd really like to take a role that doesn't involve a sword."