Purcell was born in Wallasey, Merseyside, England, the eldest of five children. He moved to Sydney with his family when he was two, where he was raised by his father and Irish mother, Maureen, in the Western Suburbs. Purcell attended Blaxland High School. Purcell's father, who had previously served in the Norwegian Merchant Navy, installed air-conditioning ducts for a living, but later separated Read more...

Although he never contemplated being an actor, and thought that "people in the arts - actors, ballet dancers, musicians, whatever - were weird", he decided to try "that acting thing" on impulse. He applied and was accepted to the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts (WAAPA) where Purcell studied alongside fellow actors, Hugh Jackman and Frances O'Connor. After graduating in 1996, Purcell Read more...

In 2000, he won a green card lottery and resided in Los Angeles, California with his wife, Rebecca Williamson (from whom he is now divorced), and their four children: Joseph (b. 1999), Audrey (b. 2001), and twins Lily and Augustus (b. 2003).

In 2006 and 2007 Purcell spent the Christmas period in Louth Village, Co. Louth, in Ireland, the home area of his mother and drew considerable attention Read more...