This biography was taken directly from Bix's Mike McShane Page.
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Michael McShane was born on either June 25th in Marquette, Michigan or December 10, 1955 (or 1957, there is conflicting information on just where and when). At the age of three weeks, he was adopted by a retired United States Army officer and his wife; Mike's mother was a Metis (Native American) Indian. He grew up on the east side of Boston, Massachusetts. In his youth he became so uncontrollable-- at one point, he tried to burn down his school--that at the age of 16, his parents had to commit him to a psychiatric hospital for six months. "Even though it was pretty horrific," McShane said once in an interview, "it never felt too melodramatic to me."

When he turned 18, Mike followed in his father's footsteps and joined the Army, but he later left the military to go to college in California. While attending classes on theater design at San Francisco State University (with the hope of becoming a set designer), Mike turned to acting and joined the Berkeley Shakespeare Film Festival, whose company members included Annette benning and Andre Braugher. He performed in several productions including "Henry IV" and "Hamlet," and in regional productions of "A Bright Room Called Day," "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum," and "Twelfth Night."

He became a member of the improvisational troupe, Faultline; he was later joined by fellow classmate and aspiring comedian Greg Proops in 1979, and the two became close friends. When Hat Trick Productions came to southern California in the late 1980s to audition comedians for its improvisation show, "Whose Line is it, Anyway?" Mike found himself as one of the first (and arguably one of the best) American improv artists to be accepted by the British production company.

Mike moved to London in 1990, and is often credited as being a British actor. He now lives with his wife in Claremont, California.