Revel Guest
Encyclopedia
Revel Guest is a filmmaker, journalist, author and farmer and is chair of the Hay Festival
. Revel is also the Chair of The Golden Valley Pony Club.
and his three brothers served as MPs with their cousin, Sir Winston Churchill
), she was educated at Bedgebery School and the London School of Economics
. After working as a secretary for Jo Grimond in the House of Commons, she stood as the then youngest ever female Conservative parliamentary candidate (for Swansea East) in the 1955 election. She then became assistant editor of Time and Tide and in 1957 left to become press officer for the UK Council of the European Movement and later wrote a syndicated column from America for the Westminster Press.
’s Panorama and became its first female producer/director, working with Richard Dimbleby
, Robin Day
and John Morgan, making major programmes on domestic issues and international affairs before moving on to direct and produce a series of profiles of major political leaders including Hugh Gaitskell
, Harold MacMillan
and Edward Heath
.
She left the BBC in 1966 to become Head of the European Bureau of the Ford Foundation's two year experiment in US public broadcasting, Public Broadcasting Laboratory - which led to the creation of PBS
- and in 1968 she formed Transatlantic Films, the first truly independent documentary film company to co-produce quality films for the international television market.
and other major UK broadcasters, as well as with leading TV networks in the United States, Canada, Australia and Europe – Discovery Channel
, TLC
, Animal Planet
, A&E
, Group W, Metromedia
, PBS
, ABC
, TVNZ, TF1
, La Cinquième, NDR
and ORF
.
; In Search of Paradise, a co-production with TF1 in France, Channel 4 in the UK and TV Ontario in Canada; 4 American Composers, a series of four one-hour films directed by Peter Greenaway
; Placido Domingo
, A Year in the Life of an Opera Singer, also for Channel 4. Then followed three major award winning series: The Horse in Sport, Greek Fire, and History's Turning Points, a 26 part series which won the Prix de Basle, Barcelona Bienale for Culture and the Prix Stendhal.
Trailblazers was the highest-rated series on the Travel Channel in the USA, a co-production with Discovery Channel Europe. Horse Tales was the first UK/Canadian Treaty Co-Production of a factual documentary television series. Three Gorges was an acclaimed documentary on the construction and completion of the largest dam in the world along with the efforts of the Chinese government to save their antiquities from the rising waters. The Science of Love, Extreme Body Parts and Sleep and Dreams were all co-produced with Discovery Health
in the United States, Great North and Alliance Atlantis in Canada, S4C
in Wales and NDR in Germany. Legends of the Living Dead was a co-production with the Travel Channel, S4C and S4C International and most recently, she co-produced Return to the Three Gorges a Discovery Channel
special made in co-production with West Beach Productions.
Her drama credits include producing and directing Man in a Fog for Channel 4, a psychological drama starring Tim Piggot Smith, and later produced Belzoni, a three part drama series, also for Channel 4
. Her feature film Makin' it, directed by Simon Hartog
, was chosen as the British entry for the Director Fortnight at Cannes Film Festival
in 1972.
Guest was also Executive Producer of "Covent Garden Pioneer" - a joint venture between the Royal Opera House
and the Japanese electronic company, Pioneer. During this time she produced fifteen full length opera and ballet productions from Covent Garden in co-production with the BBC, Channel 4 and NHK.
for over ten years.
Hay Festival
The Hay Festival of Literature & Arts is an annual literature festival held in Hay-on-Wye, Powys, Wales for ten days from May to June. Devised by Norman and Peter Florence in 1988, the festival was described by Bill Clinton in 2001 as "The Woodstock of the mind"...
. Revel is also the Chair of The Golden Valley Pony Club.
Early career
A politician’s daughter (her father, Oscar GuestOscar Guest
Hon. Oscar Montague Guest was a politician in the United Kingdom, initially with the Liberal Party and later as a Conservative...
and his three brothers served as MPs with their cousin, Sir Winston Churchill
Winston Churchill
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, was a predominantly Conservative British politician and statesman known for his leadership of the United Kingdom during the Second World War. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest wartime leaders of the century and served as Prime Minister twice...
), she was educated at Bedgebery School and the London School of Economics
London School of Economics
The London School of Economics and Political Science is a public research university specialised in the social sciences located in London, United Kingdom, and a constituent college of the federal University of London...
. After working as a secretary for Jo Grimond in the House of Commons, she stood as the then youngest ever female Conservative parliamentary candidate (for Swansea East) in the 1955 election. She then became assistant editor of Time and Tide and in 1957 left to become press officer for the UK Council of the European Movement and later wrote a syndicated column from America for the Westminster Press.
Cinema and television
In 1960 Guest joined the BBCBBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
’s Panorama and became its first female producer/director, working with Richard Dimbleby
Richard Dimbleby
Richard Dimbleby CBE was an English journalist and broadcaster widely acknowledged as one of the greatest figures in British broadcasting history.-Early life:...
, Robin Day
Robin Day
Sir Robin Day, OBE was a British political broadcaster and commentator. His obituary in the Guardian stated that "he was the most outstanding television journalist of his generation...
and John Morgan, making major programmes on domestic issues and international affairs before moving on to direct and produce a series of profiles of major political leaders including Hugh Gaitskell
Hugh Gaitskell
Hugh Todd Naylor Gaitskell CBE was a British Labour politician, who held Cabinet office in Clement Attlee's governments, and was the Leader of the Labour Party and Leader of the Opposition from 1955, until his death in 1963.-Early life:He was born in Kensington, London, the third and youngest...
, Harold MacMillan
Harold Macmillan
Maurice Harold Macmillan, 1st Earl of Stockton, OM, PC was Conservative Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 10 January 1957 to 18 October 1963....
and Edward Heath
Edward Heath
Sir Edward Richard George "Ted" Heath, KG, MBE, PC was a British Conservative politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and as Leader of the Conservative Party ....
.
She left the BBC in 1966 to become Head of the European Bureau of the Ford Foundation's two year experiment in US public broadcasting, Public Broadcasting Laboratory - which led to the creation of PBS
Public Broadcasting Service
The Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
- and in 1968 she formed Transatlantic Films, the first truly independent documentary film company to co-produce quality films for the international television market.
Transatlantic films
Since its creation 40 years ago, Transatlantic has produced over one hundred and fifty films and series, working in co-production with the BBC, Channel 4Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
and other major UK broadcasters, as well as with leading TV networks in the United States, Canada, Australia and Europe – Discovery Channel
Discovery Channel
Discovery Channel is an American satellite and cable specialty channel , founded by John Hendricks and distributed by Discovery Communications. It is a publicly traded company run by CEO David Zaslav...
, TLC
TLC (TV channel)
TLC is an American cable TV specialty channel which initially focused on educational content. Since 1991 TLC has been owned by Discovery Communications, the same company that operates the Discovery Channel, Animal Planet and The Science Channel, as well as other learning-themed networks...
, Animal Planet
Animal Planet
Animal Planet is an American cable tv specialty channel that launched on October 1, 1996. It is distributed by Discovery Communications. A high-definition simulcast of the channel launched on September 1, 2007.-History:...
, A&E
A&E Network
The A&E Network is a United States-based cable and satellite television network with headquarters in New York City and offices in Atlanta, Chicago, Detroit, London, Los Angeles and Stamford. A&E also airs in Canada and Latin America. Initially named the Arts & Entertainment Network, A&E launched...
, Group W, Metromedia
Metromedia
Metromedia was a media company that owned radio and television stations in the United States from 1956 to 1986 and owned Orion Pictures from 1986-1997.- Overview :...
, PBS
Public Broadcasting Service
The Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
, ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
, TVNZ, TF1
TF1
TF1 is a national French TV channel, controlled by TF1 Group, whose major share-holder is Bouygues. TF1's average market share of 24% makes it the most popular domestic network...
, La Cinquième, NDR
NDR
NDR may refer to:* Numalian Democratic Republic a Micronation within the borders of Malaysia.* Nador International Airport — IATA code Morocan airport* National Derby Rallies...
and ORF
ORF
ORF may refer to:* ORF , the Austrian public service broadcaster.* Open reading frame, a portion of the genome.* The IATA airport code for Norfolk International Airport in Norfolk, Virginia.* ORF format , Olympus raw image file format....
.
Direction and production
Guest’s directing and producing credits include: London Rock and Black, White and Blues, co-productions with the BBC and MetromediaMetromedia
Metromedia was a media company that owned radio and television stations in the United States from 1956 to 1986 and owned Orion Pictures from 1986-1997.- Overview :...
; In Search of Paradise, a co-production with TF1 in France, Channel 4 in the UK and TV Ontario in Canada; 4 American Composers, a series of four one-hour films directed by Peter Greenaway
Peter Greenaway
Peter Greenaway, CBE is a British film director. His films are noted for the distinct influence of Renaissance and Baroque painting, and Flemish painting in particular...
; Placido Domingo
Plácido Domingo
Plácido Domingo KBE , born José Plácido Domingo Embil, is a Spanish tenor and conductor known for his versatile and strong voice, possessing a ringing and dramatic tone throughout its range...
, A Year in the Life of an Opera Singer, also for Channel 4. Then followed three major award winning series: The Horse in Sport, Greek Fire, and History's Turning Points, a 26 part series which won the Prix de Basle, Barcelona Bienale for Culture and the Prix Stendhal.
Trailblazers was the highest-rated series on the Travel Channel in the USA, a co-production with Discovery Channel Europe. Horse Tales was the first UK/Canadian Treaty Co-Production of a factual documentary television series. Three Gorges was an acclaimed documentary on the construction and completion of the largest dam in the world along with the efforts of the Chinese government to save their antiquities from the rising waters. The Science of Love, Extreme Body Parts and Sleep and Dreams were all co-produced with Discovery Health
Discovery Health Channel
Discovery Health Channel is a website owned by Discovery Communications, created for people interested in health and wellness. Until December 31, 2010, it was a U.S. cable television specialty channel dedicated to television programming that highlights various aspects of health and wellness...
in the United States, Great North and Alliance Atlantis in Canada, S4C
S4C
S4C , currently branded as S4/C, is a Welsh television channel broadcast from the capital, Cardiff. The first television channel to be aimed specifically at a Welsh-speaking audience, it is the fifth oldest British television channel .The channel - initially broadcast on...
in Wales and NDR in Germany. Legends of the Living Dead was a co-production with the Travel Channel, S4C and S4C International and most recently, she co-produced Return to the Three Gorges a Discovery Channel
Discovery Channel
Discovery Channel is an American satellite and cable specialty channel , founded by John Hendricks and distributed by Discovery Communications. It is a publicly traded company run by CEO David Zaslav...
special made in co-production with West Beach Productions.
Her drama credits include producing and directing Man in a Fog for Channel 4, a psychological drama starring Tim Piggot Smith, and later produced Belzoni, a three part drama series, also for Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
. Her feature film Makin' it, directed by Simon Hartog
Simon Hartog
Simon Hartog was a British filmmaker.- Life: 8 February 1940 - 18 August 1992 :Hartog was born in England but lived in Chicago from the age of eight, after his parents divorced. He always retained an American accent, although after many years in England as an adult, his accent was not entirely...
, was chosen as the British entry for the Director Fortnight at Cannes Film Festival
Cannes Film Festival
The Cannes International Film Festival , is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films of all genres including documentaries from around the world. Founded in 1946, it is among the world's most prestigious and publicized film festivals...
in 1972.
Guest was also Executive Producer of "Covent Garden Pioneer" - a joint venture between the Royal Opera House
Royal Opera House
The Royal Opera House is an opera house and major performing arts venue in Covent Garden, central London. The large building is often referred to as simply "Covent Garden", after a previous use of the site of the opera house's original construction in 1732. It is the home of The Royal Opera, The...
and the Japanese electronic company, Pioneer. During this time she produced fifteen full length opera and ballet productions from Covent Garden in co-production with the BBC, Channel 4 and NHK.
Literature
Guest has co-authored two books and has been Chair of the Guardian Hay FestivalHay Festival
The Hay Festival of Literature & Arts is an annual literature festival held in Hay-on-Wye, Powys, Wales for ten days from May to June. Devised by Norman and Peter Florence in 1988, the festival was described by Bill Clinton in 2001 as "The Woodstock of the mind"...
for over ten years.