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- Producer
- Director
- Production Designer
Described by film producer Michael Deeley as "the very best eye in the business", director Ridley Scott was born on November 30, 1937 in South Shields, Tyne and Wear. His father was an officer in the Royal Engineers and the family followed him as his career posted him throughout the United Kingdom and Europe before they eventually returned to Teesside. Scott wanted to join the British Army (his elder brother Frank had already joined the Merchant Navy) but his father encouraged him to develop his artistic talents instead and so he went to West Hartlepool College of Art and then London's Royal College of Art where he helped found the film department.
In 1962, he joined the BBC as a trainee set designer working on several high profile series. He attended a trainee director's course while he was there and his first directing job was on an episode of the popular BBC police series Z Cars (1962), Error of Judgement (1965). More TV work followed until, frustrated by the poor financial rewards at the BBC, he went into advertising. With his younger brother, Tony Scott, he formed the advertising production company RSA (Ridley Scott Associates) in 1967 and spent the next 10 years making some of the best known and best loved TV adverts ever shown on British television, including a series of ads for Hovis bread set to the music of Dvorak's New World Symphony which are still talked about today ("'e were a great baker were our dad.")
He began working with producer David Puttnam in the 1970s developing ideas for feature films. Their first joint endeavor, The Duellists (1977) won the Jury Prize for Best First Work at Cannes in 1977 and was nominated for the Palm d'Or, more than successfully launching Scott's feature film career. The success of Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope (1977) inspired Scott's interest in making science fiction and he accepted the offer to direct Dan O'Bannon's low budget science fiction horror movie Alien (1979), a critical and commercial success that firmly established his worldwide reputation as a movie director.
Blade Runner (1982) followed in 1982 to, at best, a lukewarm reception from public and critics but in the years that followed, its reputation grew - and Scott's with it - as one of the most important sci-fi movies ever made. Scott's next major project was back in the advertising world where he created another of the most talked-about advertising spots in broadcast history when his "1984"-inspired ad for the new Apple Macintosh computer was aired during the Super Bowl on January 22, 1984. Scott's movie career has seen a few flops (notably Legend (1985) and 1492: Conquest of Paradise (1992)), but with successes like Thelma & Louise (1991), Gladiator (2000) and Black Hawk Down (2001) to offset them, his reputation remains solidly intact.
Ridley Scott was awarded Knight Bachelor of the Order of the British Empire at the 2003 Queen's New Year Honours for his "substantial contribution to the British film industry". On July 3, 2015, he was awarded an honorary doctorate by the Royal College of Art in a ceremony at the Royal Albert Hall in London. He was awarded the BAFTA Fellowship in 2018. BAFTA described him as "a visionary director, one of the great British film-makers whose work has made an indelible mark on the history of cinema. Forty years since his directorial debut, his films continue to cross the boundaries of style and genre, engaging audiences and inspiring the next generation of film talent."- Actor
- Producer
- Writer
Described by top film critic Mark Kermode as an "unbelievably versatile" actor, Jamie Bell was born in 1986 in Billingham, Stockton-on-Tees, County Durham, England, UK, to Eileen (Matfin) and John Bell, a toolmaker. He comes from a family of dancers including his grandmother, mother, aunt, and sister. It was at his sister's dance practices that he would stand outside the door and imitate the movements of the dancers inside. At age six, he was encouraged to step inside the door and, thus, his dance career began. His own story parallels that of Billy Elliot (2000) in that Jamie kept his dancing a secret from his friends at school. His mother had him when she was 16 and, unfortunately, he never knew his father.
When he met Stephen Daldry, director of Billy Elliot (2000), Jamie adopted him as his father. Once the word about his dancing got out, he was harassed, but this only made him more determined to prove that dancing wasn't just for girls. He has proven a lot by landing the title role of Billy Elliot (2000), winning the role in an audition that included more than 2,000 boys from the northeast of England. His ensuing performance certainly justified the selection since he has not only won the hearts of moviegoers all over the world, he has also been nominated for and won a number of awards, including a Best Newcomer Award and then a Best Male Performance at the BAFTA awards.- Actor
- Writer
- Producer
Rowan Sebastian Atkinson was born on 6 January, 1955, in Consett, Co. Durham, UK, to Ella May (Bainbridge) and Eric Atkinson. His father owned a farm, where Rowan grew up with his two older brothers, Rupert and Rodney. He attended Newcastle University and Oxford University where he earned degrees in electrical engineering. During that time, he met screenwriter Richard Curtis, with whom he wrote and performed comedy revues.
Later, he co-wrote and appeared in Not the Nine O'Clock News (1979), which was a huge success and spawned several best-selling books. It won an International Emmy Award and the British Academy Award for "Best Light Entertainment Programme of 1980." He won the "British Academy Award" and was named "BBC Personality of the Year" for his performance in Not the Nine O'Clock News (1979).
Atkinson also appeared in several movies, including Dead on Time (1983), Pleasure at Her Majesty's (1976) (aka "Monty Python Meets Beyond the Fringe"), Never Say Never Again (1983), and The Tall Guy (1989). He played "Mr. Bean" in the TV series, Mr. Bean (1990) but, apart from that and Not the Nine O'Clock News (1979), he also appeared in several other series like Blackadder (1982) and Funny Business (1992), etc.
Atkinson enjoys nothing more than fast cars. He has two children, named Benjamin and Lily, with ex-wife Sunetra Sastry.- Actor
- Composer
- Additional Crew
Jeremy Swift is an English actor born in Stockton-on-Tees, County Durham in 1960, who has most recently been seen in 'Mary Poppins Returns' directed by Rob Marshall for Disney. Jeremy has also worked with legendary film directors such as Roman Polanski (Oliver Twist), Robert Altman (Gosford Park) and The Wachowski Siblings (Jupiter Ascending). His professional career began touring a revue show to prisons and borstals and throughout his 20's Jeremy worked mainly in theatre including The National Theatre (What The Butler Saw) and the West End (Abigail's Party). Jeremy moved more into television in his 30's with roles in Vanity Fair and cult show The Smoking Room (BBC) then in his 40's into major feature films such as Gosford Park, Amazing Grace, Oliver Twist, Fred Claus and Jupiter Ascending. He is known internationally for his role in Downton Abbey, in which he played Mr. Spratt (Maggie Smiths butler) and Foyle's War, in which he played Glenvil Harris. Jeremy is married to the actress Mary Roscoe. (q v )They have 2 children and live in London.- Actor
- Producer
- Writer
Simon Farnaby was born on 2 April 1973 in Darlington, County Durham, England, UK. He is an actor and producer, known for Paddington 2 (2017), Wonka (2023) and Your Highness (2011). He is married to Claire Keelan. They have one child.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Alun Armstrong is a British actor who is known for playing Cardinal Jinette from the Van Helsing franchise, Baltus Hafez from The Mummy Returns, Uncle Garrow from Eragon, the High Constable from Sleepy Hollow and Maxwell Randall from Billy the Kid and the Green Baize Vampire. He is married to Sue Bairstow and has three sons.- Actor
- Producer
- Music Department
Stephen Tompkinson was born in Stockton-on-Tees, County Durham in October 1965. His grandad (who Stephen describes as "a comic genius") inspired him to take up acting and he attended the Central Drama School, which he left at the age of 23. He has rarely been out of work since and has worked on the stage, on radio, television and, on the big screen, notably in the movie Brassed Off (1996), for which he has gained many excellent reviews. His TV roles have included a psychopathic poisoner (A Very Open Prison (1995)), a psycho TV reporter (Drop the Dead Donkey (1990)), a yuppie (Downwardly Mobile (1994)), a priest (Ballykissangel (1996)), a veterinarian (Wild at Heart (2006)) and a detective inspector (DCI Banks (2010)). Stephen has also played "Demetruis" in "A Midsummer Night's Dream" for Radio 4. He is also a keen charity cricket player and once scored two more runs than Brian Lara, when they played on the same team. In 1994, he won a Best Comedy Actor award for his role as "Damien Day" in Drop the Dead Donkey (1990). In the future, he plans a trip to Australia (to do a report for the Holiday programme) before he begins filming a new series of Ballykissangel (1996) in March 1997.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Daniel Casey was born on 1 June 1972 in Stockton-on-Tees, County Durham, England, UK. He is an actor, known for Midsomer Murders (1997), Marchlands (2011) and Hex (2004). He has been married to Ellie since October 2005. They have two children.- Mark Stobbart was born in Stockton-on-Tees, County Durham, England, UK. He is known for Line of Duty (2012), The Devil Outside (2018) and The Silence (2010).
- Actor
- Additional Crew
- Soundtrack
Malcolm Dixon was born on 1 September 1934 in Auckland, County Durham, England, UK. He was an actor, known for Time Bandits (1981), Flash Gordon (1980) and Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi (1983). He was married to Anita B. Senior. He died on 9 April 2020 in the UK.- Philip Middlemiss was born on 19 June 1963 in Hartlepool, County Durham, England, UK. He is an actor, known for Coronation Street (1960), Where the Heart Is (1997) and Traffik (1989).
- Actress
- Soundtrack
Elizabeth Estensen was born on 10 August 1949 in Stockton-on-Tees, County Durham, England, UK. She is an actress, known for Emmerdale Farm (1972), T.Bag's Christmas Cracker (1988) and T.Bag's Christmas Carol (1989). She has been married to Philip Allen since May 1983. They have one child.- Actor
- Producer
- Writer
Mike grew up in a working-class family in Stockton-on-Tees, North Yorkshire on the North East coast. A versatile character actor with an extensive body of work across both stage and screen. He studied Meisner technique under the tuition of Eva Pope, as well as attending Anthony Meindl's Actors Workshop, Drama Studio London and Redroof's Film and Television School.
On screen he has appeared in "The Genius of Turner" for the BBC; Series 2 of American crime docudrama "Suspicion" by the award winning October Films; the multi award-winning short film "Falsified" (Taba Productions); "Easy Virtue" for Ealing Studios and the Oscar-winning "The Kings Speech".
Mike is also Creative Director for Old Lamp, the award nominated production company he set up with British / Portuguese actress Luisa Guerreiro. In 2015, the company released "The Journey of Alfred Small" which picked up award nominations for 'Best Ensemble Cast'. Following this, the company then produced a live immersive production of "The Crystal Egg Live" to critical praise and a sell out run.- Actor
- Writer
Bodhrán Mullan was born on 1 April 1999 in Stockton-on-Tees, County Durham, England, UK. He is an actor and writer, known for The Lounge (2019), Once Upon a Time in Frickley and Hope Street (2020).- Edward was educated at South Shields Grammar Tech1958 -65, Manchester University 1967 -1970 BA Hons 1970 and is the chair of the Northern Electric Arts Awards, On the board of Northern Stage Co .,Royal Overseas League, British Actors Equity, Directors Guild of Great Britain. He appeared in the television series When the Boat Comes In and Rockcliffes Babies
- Writer
- Producer
- Director
Franc was born in Norton, near Stockton on Tees and on leaving St John's School at Billingham he went to work at Smith's Dock in Middlesbrough but soon gained a scholarship to the London Film School. From there he moved into the film side of tv commercials and freelancing and his productions of The Fight, a BBC documentary about the preparation for the Bugner -Frazer fight. Television productions such as Auf Wiedersehen Pet brought more acclaim and Quadrophenia, his first feature film achieved cult status in Amereica. This success led 20th Century Fox to offer him a three picture deal that brought a four year stay in Beverley Hills. The mid 1980's saw completion of a 14 million dollar blockbuster The Bride loosely based on May Shelley's Frankenstein tale starring Sting and Jennifer Beals. Since then Franc has maintained his run of successes with both film and television productions.- Actor
- Writer
- Director
William Thompson Hay was probably one of the most versatile of entertainers. He was not only a character comedian of the first rank, but was also an astronomer of high repute - he discovered the spot on the planet Saturn in 1933 - and a fully qualified air pilot; he was once an engineer. Born in Stockton-on-Tees, County Durham in 1888, he became interested in astronomy at school and carried on his research work in this direction after he had finished his nightly stage entertainments. He was first "on the air" in 1922 and his then comedy sketches of "St. Michaels School" (of which he was the headmaster) proved to be one of the most popular comedy characters on radio at that time. This character was transferred to film and became equally successful. He worked at Elstree Studios, then Gainsborough, then Ealing; the Gainsborough period was the most consistently successfully, particularly when he worked with the team of Marcel Varnel (director), Val Guest and Marriott Edgar (writers), and Moore Marriott and Graham Moffatt (supporting cast). By the time he made his first film, he was in his mid forties and his last role came less than a decade later. Between 1934 and 1943, he was a prolific and popular film comedian. He was credited on several films as a writer or co-ordinator, and was arguably the dominant 'author' of all the films in which he appeared, in that they were built around his persona and depended on the character and routines he had developed over years on the stage.- Peter McPherson was born on 22 July 1983 in Hartlepool, County Durham, England, UK. He is an actor, known for Years and Years (2019), In from the Side (2022) and The Chair (2019).
- Actor
- Writer
Peter Sandys-Clarke was born on 11 July 1981 in Darlington, County Durham, England, UK. He is an actor and writer, known for Napoleon (2023), The Charles Dickens Show (2012) and Desperate Romantics (2009).- Actor
- Writer
- Soundtrack
James Gaddas was born on 17 June 1960 in Ragworth, Stockton-on-Tees, County Durham, England, UK. He is an actor and writer, known for Starter for 10 (2006), Bad Girls (1999) and Jonathan Creek (1997).- Ronald Radd was born on 22 January 1929 in Ryhope, Sunderland, County Durham, England, UK. He was an actor, known for The Sea Gull (1968), A Tale of Two Cities (1957) and The Saint (1962). He was married to Dorothy May Goodman. He died on 23 April 1976 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
- Actor
- Music Department
While Paul was born in Stockton-on-Tees, County Durham near Middlesbrough, his early years were spent traveling the world due to his father being a chief technician in the R.A.F. but they always came back to Stockton. His final school was St. Mary's College in Middlesbrough and when he left he spent a year working as a clerk for a haulage contractor. At that time acting hadn't entered his mind as he wanted to be a singer and dreamt of being the new Frank Sinatra. A friend was studying acting at the Guildhall School of Speech and Drama and encouraged Paul to apply. Armed with speeches from 'King Lear', which he'd studied at school, he applied but was turned down. He took acting lessons from a Stockton teacher friend who took him through some pieces then he re applied and was accepted. One of his earliest acting jobs was as a photographer in 'Coronation Street' then a part in 'Crossroads' where he met and married Diane Keen and later divorced. They had a daughter Melissa, In 1975 who's a theatrical agent. He became well known playing the title role in the TV series 'The Growing Pains of PC Penrose' and the follow up series 'Rosie'. Now married to actress Claire Neilson he's stepfather to her daughter Peggy. who's a script editor. His most enjoyable role was the smallest, that of Master Stephen in Ben Johnson's Every Man In His Humour. He has a third daughter Rosie- Director
- Writer
- Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Bill Hays was born on 15 March 1938 in Wingate, County Durham, England, UK. He was a director and writer, known for Dig This Rhubarb (1963), The Good Companions (1980) and R3 (1964). He was married to Catherine Schell and Jill. He died on 2 March 2006 in Craponne-sur-Arzon, Haute-Loire, France.- Camera and Electrical Department
- Additional Crew
Ian Fergusson was born in the Stockton-on-Tees, County Durham, England but spent much of his younger years living abroad including in Japan, Southern Africa and California. His final school years were spent in Hertfordshire, England and Edinburgh, Scotland.
Ian Fergusson is a BBC weather presenter in the West of England, appearing on the regional news programme 'Points West', especially breakfast bulletins. Previously he worked as a cameraman based at BBC Bristol (where he was awarded by the Royal Television Society). Arguably, he is best-known to the wider public through his TV documentary work on sharks.
Fergusson's interests in sharks began as a child in South Africa in the mid 1970s. He went on to gain chartered status as a biologist and his research and conservation work in the past decade has mainly focused on sharks inhabiting the Mediterranean Sea. He has authored a number of scientific papers on the biology of great white sharks and other species, including preparing sections of the well-known 'Red List' of threatened species prepared by IUCN: The World Conservation Union.
His credentials as a shark conservationist include helping establish the Shark Trust, a UK-based wildlife charity, in 1997. Fergusson is now a patron of the Trust and also serves as a member of the IUCN Shark Specialist Group.
Although much of his TV work with the BBC has been behind the scenes as a cameraman, his TV appearances have spanned over a decade including presenting Channel 4's Equinox: 'Jaws in the Med' in 1995. Since then, he has been a regular contributor in television portrayals of sharks, including appearances on various BBC and ITV documentaries; children's programmes including the BBC's Blue Peter and Live & Kicking; and even fending-off Jeremy Paxman as a guest on BBC Two's current affairs series, Newsnight.
He was awarded by the Royal Television Society for his camera-work in 2007 and given Freedom of the City of London in 1997. Fergusson will appear as guest presenter in the first of a major new BBC TWO series of science-adventure documentaries,'Oceans', which will be shown in Autumn 2008.- Elliott Francis was born in Stockton-on-Tees, County Durham, England, UK. He is an actor, known for Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2009), Splatalot (2011) and Little Dorrit (2008).
- Actress
- Soundtrack
Susan Maughan was born on 1 July 1942 in Consett, County Durham, England, UK. She is an actress, known for Junior Showtime (1969), What a Crazy World (1963) and Two Left Feet (1965).- Producer
- Actor
- Director
Matt Baker was born on 23 December 1977 in Easington, County Durham, England, UK. He is a producer and actor, known for Doctor Who (2005), Blue Peter (1958) and The Itch of the Golden Nit (2011). He has been married to Nicola Mooney since 16 July 2004. They have two children.- Beatrice Kelley was born in 1947 in Durham, County Durham, England, UK. She is an actress, known for Ideal (2005), Heartbeat (1992) and Johnny and the Bomb (2006).
- Actor
- Writer
Best known in Australia as Detective Peter Barnes (1967-73) in the long running police drama Homicide (1964). He later appeared in Cop Shop (1977) and began to make a name for himself in local and international movies before suffering the first of the strokes that would eventually kill him in the mid-1980s. He was confined to a wheelchair for the last four years of his life. He and his wife Lenice Reed were married for 28 years, having met on the set of Homicide.- Producer
- Actor
- Writer
Born in Barnard Castle, County Durham his father, Deric was a bank manager at Spennymoor, Bishop Auckland and Barnard Castle and his mother, Gill, from Lincolnshire, was a teacher. He has an older brother and sister, Nigel and Debbie. He acted with the Middleton and District Musical Society making his debut as the Artful Dodger in 'Oliver'. He had thought of going into the legal profession and would probably been a lawyer but when he went to have a look around Christchurch College in Oxford, where his brother had been, they called him Nigel and he thought there would be too much comparison so he gave up the idea and decided on acting and auditioned for and got into Webber Douglas Stage School (1989 - 1992).He made his theatrical debut in 1992 at The Royal Court theatre playing Doug in 'Six Degrees of Separation which transferred to the Comedy Theatre in the West End.He joined the RSC (1994 - 1996) appearing in 'Twelfth Night' and 'Pentecost,' both in the West End. He made his television debut in 'Just a Gigolo' in 1993 followed by parts in 'The Upper Hand',and 'Dalziel and Pasco'. In 1996 he was appearing in 'A Going Concern' at the Stephen Joseph Theatre in Scarborough when ha was seen by the casting director of 'Coronation Street'and after doing a reading test was given the role of Detective Alan McKenna. His films include An English Lord in 'Henry V' Kenny St John in 'Up On the Roof' In 2000 he was in a touring production of 'Death Trap' He has written a number of unproduced scripts and would like to write and direct one.- Actor
- Writer
Ian Cullen first trod the boards in a village pantomime at the age of four and has been an actor ever since. He became a household name when he played PC Joe Skinner in Z Cars (1962), first appearing in 1969, the character was later promoted to Detective and stayed with the show for 6 years, until he was gunned down in the line of duty in one of TV's biggest shocks in the mid 70s.
Other recurring roles include the classic 60s hospital drama Emergency-Ward 10 (1957), where he played Warren Kent (1966-67), When the Boat Comes In (1976), as Geordie Watson (1977-81) and as Angus Hart, the original lead of the Channel 5 soap opera Family Affairs (1997). Ian's character, Angus Hart, was also killed in a shock storyline when the entire Hart family were killed in a boat explosion. He has also guest starred in many British television series, including Doctor Who (1963), The Bill (1984), Blake's 7 (1978) and Sorry! (1981).
Ian's stage work is extensive and has seen him perform all over the Country, with 8 West End productions to his name and 2 years with the Royal Shakespeare Company. He won rave reviews for his performance as Jay in 'Road to the Sea' at the Orange Tree Theatre, in 2003.
In 2008 he won a Gold Award for his narration of the feature length documentary The Destiny of Britain (2007). Constantly busy, Ian also runs the Surrey Heath Youth Actors Company with his wife, actress Yvonne Quenet. They have been married for over 30 years and have three daughters.- Ciaran Dow Jones was born on 2 July 1985 in Darlington, County Durham, England, UK. He is an actor, known for Weapon (2020), Shameless (2004) and The Nature of Daylight (2016).
- Neil Daglish was born in December 1949 in Hebburn, County Durham, England, UK. He is an actor, known for Doctor Who (1963), EastEnders (1985) and Secret Army (1977).
- Composer
- Music Department
- Soundtrack
Jim Parker was born on 18 December 1934 in Hartlepool, County Durham, England, UK. He was a composer, known for The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling (1997), The Fortunes and Misfortunes of Moll Flanders (1996) and To Play the King (1993). He was married to Pauline George and Sonia Levy. He died on 28 July 2023 in the USA.- Ivy Close began a dynasty that has now covered four generations of the history of Cinema and Television. She married the photographer Elwin Neame (1885-1923) and reared two sons Ronald Neame (1911-2010), a successful cinematographer, screenwriter, producer and director and Derek Neame (1915-1979), an author who scripted several films. Her grandson Christopher Neame (1942- ) and her great-grandson Gareth Neame (1967- ) have become successful producers. Her second husband was the Australian-born make-up artist and former stuntman Curly Batson, who died in 1957.
- Rob is from Newcastle Upon Tyne, United Kingdom. He studied Creative & Performing Arts at Northumbria University. His debut Television role was in 1995 in the BBC drama series 'Harry'. He has worked on ITV's 'Vera', 'Bancroft', Channel 4's 'Humans' & Sky's 'Curfew', together with small supporting roles in 'Eastenders, Emmerdale & Coronation Street. His feature films include; 'Ruth - The Musical', the psychological thriller 'Goodbye Mary', 'I Daniel Blake' & 'Sorry We Missed You' from award winning Director Ken Loach. Rob is a member of British Actors Equity & The Actors Guild Of Great Britain.
- Frank Jarvis was born on 13 May 1941 in Stockton-on-Tees, County Durham, England, UK. He was an actor, known for The Italian Job (1969), A Bridge Too Far (1977) and Secret Army (1977). He was married to Christine Muphy. He died on 15 September 2010 in London, England, UK.
- Wincey Willis was born Florence Winsome Leighton in Gateshead, County Durham in 1948.
The name Florence was soon dropped in favour of Winsome - shortened to Wincey - a named she loved. When she married husband Malcolm Willis the names ran together so well she still uses his surname some 15 years after her divorce. She was employed variously in the travel industry, acting as a courier and guide before finding work as a record plugger. This lead to her first broadcasting experience as a radio presenter, from where she progressed to Weather presenting for Tyne Tees Television. Domiciled in the Barnard Castle area she also indulged her other passion, which was to rescue and re-home various wild and domestic animals. At one time she had a menagerie of approaching 100 creatures of varying sorts, a subject on which she would eventually publish a book.
In May 1983, Greg Dyke, then Programme Editor for the struggling TV-am was searching for new faces to prop up the failing morning show. He sought unknowns who'd make an impact, even recruiting a friend's aerobics instructor as the exercise presenter. A clip of Willis' presenting the weather was sent to him and he hired her immediately. As he commented at the time, she was more famous for the things that went wrong on her show than for slick presentation, and nobody really cared about the weather anyway. Her weather slot was immediately prior to the half hourly news bulletins and she found she was given anything between 15 seconds and three minutes (with little notice as to which it would be) to fill depending on how long previous interviews and items had lasted. Remarkably it worked. Popular with both audience and colleagues her role began to grow and other features and gimmicks were added, until the arrival of Bruce Gyngell in 1984. Seeking to drag the whole show upmarket, and reduce expenditure to the minimum he could get away with Willis gradually found herself being marginalised within TV-am. However this ironically coincided with expanding horizons elsewhere. Treasure Hunt (1982) came along in 1985 and riding her fame she was offered a deal to write a book, and sponsor a children's board game. Neither was spectacularly successful, but kept her name firmly in the public eye. The usual round of 'B' list games shows and chat shows also meant that she was instantly recognisable anywhere in the UK and abroad. Her haircut was perhaps her most distinctive feature. Spectacularly streaked blonde, it was relatively short and spiky on top and long to the back. Definitively the ultimate 'Mullet' as they were known in the 1980s. She was rewarded with the 'Head of the Year Award' in 1986, a year that perhaps marked the peak of her fame.
In the summer of 1987 after a disagreement with Gyngell about her role within the programme she walked out: noting with some irony that as she was clearing her desk, her replacement was already being feted on the canal bank outside TV-am's studios. While TV-am and Bruce Gyngell then embarked on their terminal progress through industrial disputes and ill-judged franchise bids, Willis also saw her public exposure steadily decline. Although she continued to appear on Treasure Hunt, it too would disappear as a show in 1989 leaving her with no regular appearances.
Her involvement with animals had continued through the 1980s and she was active in supporting many animal charities, including sponsoring 'St Tiggywinkles' hospital for injured animals. Gradually this work took over and in the early 1990s she left the UK to go Greece for an extended period living and working in a turtle sanctuary. She has since returned to the UK, and has become known for reading and writing poetry. - Director
- Producer
- Writer
Maurice Elvey was born in Stockton-on-Tees, County Durham, England, the oldest son of William Clarence Folkard, an inspecting engineer, and Sarah Anna Seward Folkard (formerly Pearce). He never had a formal education, and was working on the streets of London by the age of nine after having run away from home. For a time he worked as a page boy in the Hyde Park Hotel, and a lucky encounter with a wealthy American set him on the road to a career in first the theatre and then in films. It was while in New York when working as a stage producer that he saw his first film, The Flying Dutchman (1923). This made such an impression on him that when he came back to England he was determined to produce and direct films; thus began a career spanning 44 years, during which time he made over 300 feature films and innumerable shorts. Amongst the "firsts" that Maurice Elvey can claim as a director are: Gaumont's first talking film (High Treason (1929)) and the first British colour film Sons of the Sea (1939)). Carol Reed and David Lean began their distinguished careers in film by working for him, and he directed Gracie Fields in her first movie, Sally in Our Alley (1931). Maurice Elvey was the older brother of Fred V. Merrick, and during the 1920s and 1930s they worked on a number of films together. In May 1996 the world premiere of a long-lost film about David Lloyd George, directed by Elvey, took place in Cardiff more than 70 years later than scheduled. The three-hour film was suppressed on the eve of its release under circumstances that have still not been fully explained. The film was acclaimed by cinema historians as a milestone in film making, and it is believed that had it been released in 1918, as originally planned, it may well have changed the course of British cinema.
Maurice Elvey was married three times. His first marriage took place on 31st December 1910 to Adeline Maud Charlton Preston (aka actress 'Philippa Preston'. This marriage ended in divorce. He then married Florence Hill Clarke (a sculptor) on 2nd February 1916. This marriage, too, ended in divorce. On 13th January 1923 he married Isabella Reed (aka actress Isobel Elsom), but this marriage also ended in divorce. As Elvey's niece and god-daughter I was privileged to unveil a plaque in April 1997 at the Green Dragon Museum, Stockton-on-Tees as part of the Centenary of Cinema Celebrations.- Sound Department
Colin Cooper was born on 29 January 1973 in Stockton-on-Tees, County Durham, England, UK. Colin is known for The Phantom of the Opera (2004), Casino Royale (2006) and The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (2003).- Actress
- Music Department
- Soundtrack
Lesley Duncan was born on 12 August 1943 in Stockton-on-Tees, County Durham, England, UK. She was an actress, known for What a Crazy World (1963), Margot at the Wedding (2007) and Friends (1971). She was married to Anthony S. R. Cox and Jimmy Horowitz. She died on 12 March 2010 in Salen, Isle of Mull, Scotland, UK.- Director
- Writer
- Producer
Tim Burstall was born on 20 April 1927 in Stockton-on-Tees, County Durham, England, UK. He was a director and writer, known for Stork (1971), End Play (1976) and Libido (1973). He was married to Neela Dey and Betty Rogers. He died on 19 April 2004 in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.- Composer
- Music Department
- Actor
Best known as Frank Zappa's right-hand man and as one of the first electric-violinists in rock, Eddie Jobson first came to prominence as the 17-year-old keyboardist/violinist for Curved Air. He studied piano, violin and music theory from the age of 7, and had the premiere of his first string quartet at the age of 13. An early pioneering synthesist and rock prodigy, he garnered his first number-one gold album as a member of the art-rock band Roxy Music at the age of 18. He was a founding member of `supergroup' UK; a special guest with Jethro Tull, King Crimson, and Yes; and contributed to several solo albums by members of Deep Purple and The Who. He has been featured on more than 50 albums and performed in more than 20 countries.- Actor
- Writer
- Composer
Brian Routh was born in 1948 in Gateshead, County Durham, England, UK. He is an actor and writer, known for UHF (1989), The Spirit of '76 (1990) and Moonlighting (1985). He was previously married to Patricia Wells-Routh, Karen Finley and Nina Sobell.- Director
- Writer
- Editor
Born and raised in County Durham in the North East England, Peter is a British Independent Film Award nominated director, known for Make Me Famous (2020), Crack (2015) and This Is the Winter (2019). His work is high concept, hitting big themes with bold and original ideas. However unique the concept, his visual and storytelling style is grounded, crafting his work through real, accessible characters via strong performances and naturalistic cinematography.
His short 'Crack' was nominated for a British Independent Film Award for Best Short Film and screened at festivals around the world. 'This is the Winter' was nominated for Best UK Short at Raindance and was produced by Michael Fassbender through DMC Film.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Stephen Hancock was born on 25 November 1925 in Bishop Auckland, County Durham, England, UK. He was an actor, known for Coronation Street (1960), The Avengers (1961) and Dear Dotty (1954). He was married to Jocelyn Page. He died on 1 November 2015 in Southwold, Suffolk, England, UK.- Peter Wheeler was born in 1934 in Hartlepool, County Durham, England, UK. He was an actor, known for Crown Court (1972), Emmerdale Farm (1972) and The XYY Man (1976). He was married to Pat. He died on 18 May 2010 in Manchester, Greater Manchester, England, UK.
- Born 2nd December, 1937, Brian Lumley came into the world just nine months after the most obvious of his forebears - meaning of course a "literary" forebear, namely, H. P. Lovecraft - had departed from it. By his pre-teens Lumley had read Dracula and some other horror classics, but having followed the adventures of Dan Dare: Pilot of the Future in the British Eagle comic, his first love was Science Fiction. Then, in his early teens - as a result of reading Robert Bloch's Lovecraft pastiche Notebook Found in a Deserted House in a British SF magazine - he became more surely attracted to macabre fiction, an attraction that has lasted a lifetime.
Later still, in his early twenties while serving with the Corps of Royal Military Police in Germany, on finding a collection of stories by Lovecraft himself, Lumley began searching for every available item of the author's work. This culminated in his contacting HPL's publisher August Derleth in Sauk City, "Wisconsin, in order to purchase the one or two volumes still missing from his collection. Then, after Derleth had read various "extracts" from the Necronomicon and other fictional "Black Books" of the so-called Cthulhu Mythos, which Lumley had included in his letters, he asked if the aspiring author had anything solid he could use in a book he was preparing for publication, to be entitled Tales of the Cthulhu Mythos. Thus Lumley began writing in earnest. And the rest, as they say, is history.
Derleth included stories by Lumley in a number of Arkham House anthologies and went on to publish three of the author's books. One was a short novel with the title Beneath the Moors; the others were collections of short stories and novellas: "The Caller of The Black" and "The Horror at Oakdeene." These stories, set mainly in Lovecraft's Cthulhu Mythos milieu, echoed HPL's literary style: a somewhat archaic, adjectival mode of writing which, during the course of Lumley's military career, he would gradually eschew in favour of his own very distinctive style.
Despite that Lumley completed a full term of 22 years with the RMP - during which time he rose to the rank of Warrant Officer and, in his final years, served as the WO Chief Instruction (the DI) at the RMP Depot and Training Establishment - still he managed to write and see published his three Arkham books plus the first of the six paperback novels in his Titus Crow series, and the stand-alone novel, "Khai of Ancient Khem," while he was still a soldier. But by then: "it was time for the serious stuff!"
Having "retired" from the Army in December 1980, Lumley became "a professional author" (he had never really considered himself that way before) and of necessity began to write in earnest. he still had a projected series of four books in H. P. Lovecraft's "Dreamlands milieu" to complete, during the writing of which he began the "Psychomech" trilogy, the very first of his works (with the exception of a handful of short stories) to be published in the United Kingdom.
Then came his breakthrough book. In March to September 1984 he wrote his dead-waking, ground-breaking horror novel Necroscope(R);, featuring Harry Keogh, the man who can talk to dead people. Not at first realizing, however, how successful this book would be (for it would eventually become a best-selling series), in late 1984 early 1985 he wrote the stand-alone novel "Demogorgon." Also in '85 to early 1986, he completed his "Dreamlands" series with a book of short stories and novellas called Iced on Aran; which will explain the gap between the writing of "Necroscope" and "Necroscope II: Wamphyri!" After Wamphyri!, however, "Necroscope III: The Source," took only five months to complete in 1987, and with the first two volumes having seen initial paperback publication in the UK, finally the trilogy was picked up by TOR Books, USA. Except it wasn't going to stop at being a trilogy!
Such was the appeal of the Necroscope(R) books that TOR published the so-called trilogy in the space of just twelve months: September 1988 to September 1989 -- by which time Lumley had written "Necroscopes IV and V: Deadspeak" and "Deadspawn." And in just five years, 1984 to 1989, the financial problems which the author had experienced on leaving the Army were well and truly behind him. Bestsellers in the USA, his books had already passed one million sales and were heading for two million.
But still the story wasn't finished; in fact it wasn't half-way there yet! Such had been the success of the first five volumes, and such was the demand from readers, that Lumley went straight on from Deadspawn to commence writing the massive Vampire World Trilogy, which he considers his finest, most ambitious and important work. Begun in 1991, finished in 1993, Blood Brothers, The Last Aerie and Bloodwars between them contain some three-quarters of a million words of horror, fantasy ... even a little of the author's first love, Science Fiction.
In 1994, just short of six years since publishing the original "Necroscope(R)", TOR began reprinting the entire series in hardcovers: a rare event in the modern publishing world. And Blood Brothers was the first Necroscope - or more properly the first series spin-off - to be published in hardcovers from the outset. The rest of the volumes in this incredible series - and there are seven of them - have all, or by Summer 2006 will all, have followed suit. Their titles are:
"The Lost Years and Lost Years Two: Resurgence" - the Invaders Trilogy: "Invaders," "Defilers" and "Avengers" - and the novellas: "Harry Keogh: Necroscope and Other Weird Heroes" - and, in the Summer of 2006, "Necroscope: The Touch."
Fifteen countries and counting have now published, or are in the process of publishing these and others of Lumley's novels and short story collections, which in the USA alone have sold well over three million copies. In addition, "Necroscope" comic books, graphic novels, a role-playing game, quality figurines, and in Germany a series of audio books have been created from themes and characters in the "Necroscope" books, and Lumley has added his "real" voice to Dangerous Ground, a Downliners Sect rock-&-roll album released in the UK in 2004.
Lumley's works other than "Necroscope" - such as his SF-ish novel The House of Doors and its sequel Maze of Worlds; also a dozen collections gathered from his more than 130 short stories and novellas, most notably Fruiting Bodies & Other Fungi, whose title story won a British Fantasy Award in 1989 - have seen or are seeing print in many European countries as well as the USA, and all the while his reputation is growing apace. As far back as 1990, the readers of Fear Magazine voted Lumley "Best Established Genre Author" for The Source, and his short story Necros (not a Necroscope spin-off!) was adapted for Ridley Scott's The Hunger series on the USA's Showtime Television series.
In 1998 at the as Guest of Honour at the World Horror Convention in Phoenix, AZ, he received the genre's most coveted Grand Master Award in recognition of his work. In 2010 Brian won two awards ... At the World Horror Convention in Brighton, UK he won the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Bram Stoker Awards and at the World Fantasy Convention in Columbus, OH, USA he also won the Lifetime Achievement Award.
In late 2013, the option for the first Necroscope(R) book, after being option for about 7 years was bought outright. through.
From (2000 to 2006), fans of Necroscope and Lumley's other works have convened at the annual KeoghCon, and there celebrated with the author and his wife Barbara Ann, who is known to one and all as "Silky;" where each successive year ever stronger bonds have formed between the members of this much extended "family" of friends and fans.(As for the last word, "fans:" Lumley prefers to refer to these people -- his friends -- as "dedicated readers.")
Although Brian is no longer writing novels, he still continues to write novellas and short stories.
Widely travelled, Brian Lumley has visited or lived in the USA, France, Italy, Cyprus, Germany, Malta, Canada, Scotland, Wales, Ireland, not to mention a dozen or more Greek islands. He still makes regular visits to the Mediterranean, indulging a passion for moussaka, retsina, just a little ouzo ... and Metaxa, naturally! In addition - as icing on the baklava - Necroscope and its sequels, along with others of his books, are now appearing in Greek translations.
When they're not travelling, the Lumleys keep house in Torquay, Devon, England. - Robert Scroggins was born in 1940 in Durham, County Durham, England, UK. He is an actor, known for St. Ives (1955), The Adventures of Sir Lancelot (1956) and Angel Pavement (1957).
- Fiona Hill was born in October 1965 in Bishop Auckland, County Durham, England, UK.