Laurie Johnson is an English

English people

The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...

 film

Film

A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...

 and television

Television

Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...

 composer

Composer

A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...

, and bandleader

Bandleader

A bandleader is the leader of a band of musicians. The term is most commonly, though not exclusively, used with a group that plays popular music as a small combo or a big band, such as one which plays jazz, blues, rhythm and blues or rock and roll music....

.

Career

Johnson studied at the Royal College of Music

Royal College of Music

The Royal College of Music is a conservatoire founded by Royal Charter in 1882, located in South Kensington, London, England.-Background:The first director was Sir George Grove and he was followed by Sir Hubert Parry...

 in London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

, and spent four years in the Coldstream Guards

Coldstream Guards

Her Majesty's Coldstream Regiment of Foot Guards, also known officially as the Coldstream Guards , is a regiment of the British Army, part of the Guards Division or Household Division....

 before moving to the entertainment industry in the 1950s. One of his first major projects was as composer and music director in a musical adaptation of Henry Fielding

Henry Fielding

Henry Fielding was an English novelist and dramatist known for his rich earthy humour and satirical prowess, and as the author of the novel Tom Jones....

's Rape Upon Rape entitled Lock Up Your Daughters

Lock Up Your Daughters

Lock Up Your Daughters is a musical based on an 18th century comedy, Rape Upon Rape, by Henry Fielding and adapted by Bernard Miles. The lyrics were written by Lionel Bart and the music by Laurie Johnson...

(1959), which opened in Bernard Miles

Bernard Miles

Bernard James Miles, Baron Miles, CBE was an English character actor, writer and director. He opened the Mermaid Theatre in London in 1959, the first new theatre opened in the City of London since the 17th century....

' Mermaid Theatre

Mermaid Theatre

The Mermaid Theatre was a theatre at Puddle Dock, in Blackfriars, in the City of London and the first built there since the time of Shakespeare...

. The score, with lyrics by Lionel Bart

Lionel Bart

Lionel Bart was a writer and composer of British pop music and musicals, best known for creating the book, music and lyrics for Oliver!-Early life:...

, won an Ivor Novello Award. Johnson's stage work included music for the Peter Cook

Peter Cook

Peter Edward Cook was an English satirist, writer and comedian. An extremely influential figure in modern British comedy, he is regarded as the leading light of the British satire boom of the 1960s. He has been described by Stephen Fry as "the funniest man who ever drew breath," although Cook's...

 revue

Revue

A revue is a type of multi-act popular theatrical entertainment that combines music, dance and sketches. The revue has its roots in 19th century American popular entertainment and melodrama but grew into a substantial cultural presence of its own during its golden years from 1916 to 1932...

, Pieces of Eight (1959), and The Four Musketeers

The Four Musketeers (musical)

The Four Musketeers is a musical with music by Laurie Johnson, lyrics by Herbert Kretzmera and a book by Michael Pertwee, loosely based on The Three Musketeers....

(1967), starring Harry Secombe

Harry Secombe

Sir Harry Donald Secombe CBE was a Welsh entertainer with a talent for comedy and a noted fine tenor singing voice. He is best known for playing Neddie Seagoon, the central character in the BBC radio comedy series The Goon Show...

.

In 1961, Johnson entered the UK Singles Chart

UK Singles Chart

The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...

 with "Sucu Sucu", the theme music

Theme music

Theme music is a piece that is often written specifically for a radio program, television program, video game or movie, and usually played during the title sequence and/or end credits...

 from the UK television series Top Secret. It was in this area of television scoring that he was to be most prolific. From the 1960s to the 1980s, he composed over fifty themes and scores, including the theme used on This Is Your Life

This Is Your Life

This Is Your Life is an American television documentary series broadcast on NBC, originally hosted by its producer, Ralph Edwards from 1952 to 1961. In the show, the host surprises a guest, and proceeds to take them through their life in front of an audience including friends and family.Edwards...

(entitled "Gala Performance") (1952), The Avengers

The Avengers (TV series)

The Avengers is a spy-fi British television series set in the 1960s Britain. The Avengers initially focused on Dr. David Keel and his assistant John Steed . Hendry left after the first series and Steed became the main character, partnered with a succession of assistants...

(from 1965), Animal Magic (entitled "Las Vegas") (1962), Jason King

Jason King (TV series)

Jason King was a British television series produced from 1971 to 1972. Each episode was one hour in duration , and the series had a run of one season of 26 episodes. As well as its native UK, the series was also screened in countries as far afield as Australia, Norway, Argentina and Peru...

(1971), The New Avengers

The New Avengers (TV series)

The New Avengers is a British secret agent fantasy adventure television series produced during 1976 and 1977. It is a sequel to the 1960s series, The Avengers which was created by Sydney Newman, and the new version was developed by original series producers Brian Clemens and Albert Fennell.The...

(1976) and The Professionals

The Professionals (TV series)

The Professionals was a British crime-action television drama series produced by Avengers Mk1 Productions and London Weekend Television that aired on the ITV network from 1977 to 1983. In all, 57 episodes were produced, filmed between 1977 and 1981. It starred Martin Shaw, Lewis Collins and Gordon...

(1977).

Johnson's film scores included The Moonraker, No Trees In The Street, Tiger Bay

Tiger Bay (film)

Tiger Bay is a 1959 British crime drama film directed by J. Lee Thompson and produced and co-written by John Hawkesworth. It stars John Mills as a police superintendent who investigates a murder, his daughter Hayley Mills, in her first major film role, as a girl who witnesses the murder, and Horst...

, I Aim at the Stars

I Aim at the Stars

I Aim at the Stars is a 1960 biographical film which tells the story of the life of Wernher von Braun. The film covers his life from his early days in Germany, through Peenemünde, up until his work with the U.S...

, Spare The Rod

Spare the Rod (film)

Spare the Rod is a 1961 British social drama, directed by Les Norman and starring Max Bygraves, Geoffrey Keen, Donald Pleasence and Richard O'Sullivan...

, Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb

Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb

Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb, commonly known as Dr. Strangelove, is a 1964 black comedy film which satirizes the nuclear scare. It was directed, produced, and co-written by Stanley Kubrick, starring Peter Sellers and George C. Scott, and featuring Sterling...

, First Men In The Moon

First Men in the Moon

First Men in the Moon, also known as H.G. Wells' First Men in the Moon, is a 1964 science fiction film directed by Nathan Juran. It is an adaptation by the noted science-fiction scriptwriter Nigel Kneale of the H. G...

, East Of Sudan, The Beauty Jungle, Hot Millions, And Soon the Darkness

And Soon the Darkness

And Soon the Darkness is a 1970 British thriller film. Starring Pamela Franklin, Michele Dotrice and Sandor Elès, it tells the story of two young English women on a cycling holiday in France, who run into difficulties.-Plot:...

, The Belstone Fox, Captain Kronos – Vampire Hunter and Diagnosis: Murder

Diagnosis: Murder

Diagnosis: Murder is a mystery/medical/crime drama television series starring Dick Van Dyke as Dr. Mark Sloan, a medical doctor who solves crimes with the help of his son, a homicide detective played by his real-life son Barry Van Dyke. The series began as a spin-off of Jake and the Fatman...

. Among his other works was the music for the television film, Mister Jerico, which involved many of the original Avengers team, including Patrick Macnee

Patrick Macnee

Patrick Macnee is an English actor, best known for his role as the secret agent John Steed in the series The Avengers.-Early life:...

.

He was one of the founders (with Albert Fennell

Albert Fennell

Albert Fennell was a British film and television producer.Best known for his work on the 1960s spy drama The Avengers with Brian Clemens, Fennell also produced its follow-up, The New Avengers and The Professionals.The Professionals was made by Mark One Productions and The New Avengers by The...

 and Brian Clemens

Brian Clemens

Brian Horace Clemens OBE is a British screenwriter and television producer, possibly best known for his work on The Avengers and The Professionals...

) of Mark One Productions, the television production company responsible for The New Avengers and The Professionals.

Johnson made several recordings on the Unicorn-Kanchana

Unicorn-Kanchana

Unicorn-Kanchana was a British independent record label. Originally known as Unicorn Records, the name Kanchana was added later to distinguish the company from Unicorn Records of Montréal, Canada...

 label. These included his own Symphony: Synthesis for a large ensemble comprising a jazz orchestra and symphony orchestra. The recording featured several famous jazz names including Tubby Hayes

Tubby Hayes

Edward Brian "Tubby" Hayes was an English jazz multi-instrumentalist, best known for his tenor saxophone playing in groups with fellow sax player Ronnie Scott and with trumpeter Jimmy Deuchar. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest British jazz instrumentalists.- Early life :Hayes was born...

, Don Lusher

Don Lusher

Don Lusher OBE was a jazz and big band trombonist best known for his association with the Ted Heath Big Band...

, Joe Harriott

Joe Harriott

Joseph Arthurlin 'Joe' Harriott was a Jamaican jazz musician and composer, whose principal instrument was the alto saxophone....

, Kenny Wheeler

Kenny Wheeler

Kenneth Vincent John Wheeler, OC is a Canadian composer and trumpet and flugelhorn player, based in the U.K. since the 1950s....

 and Stan Tracey

Stan Tracey

Stanley William Tracey CBE is a British jazz pianist and composer, most influenced by Duke Ellington and Thelonious Monk.-Early career:...

, as well as the London Philharmonic Orchestra

London Philharmonic Orchestra

The London Philharmonic Orchestra , based in London, is one of the major orchestras of the United Kingdom, and is based in the Royal Festival Hall. In addition, the LPO is the main resident orchestra of the Glyndebourne Festival Opera...

. He also recorded music from The Avengers, The New Avengers and The Professionals and a re-recording of Bernard Herrmann

Bernard Herrmann

Bernard Herrmann was an American composer noted for his work in motion pictures.An Academy Award-winner , Herrmann is particularly known for his collaborations with director Alfred Hitchcock, most famously Psycho, North by Northwest, The Man Who Knew Too Much, and Vertigo...

's suite for North by Northwest

North by Northwest

North by Northwest is a 1959 American thriller film directed by Alfred Hitchcock, starring Cary Grant, Eva Marie Saint and James Mason, and featuring Leo G. Carroll and Martin Landau...

.

Since 1997, Johnson has toured with the band he formed, 'The London Big Band'. Their "Theme From 'The Professionals'" peaked in the UK Singles Chart at #36 in May 1997. He has also provided DVD

DVD

A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....

 commentaries on several of the series in which he has been involved.

Notable stock tracks

• "Blood in the Gutter"
• "Fisticuffs"
• "Gala Premiere"
• "Happy Go Lively"
• "Lonely Stranger"
• "Shopping Spree"

External links

• Personal website