Stephen Poliakoff
Encyclopedia
Stephen Poliakoff, CBE
, FRSL (born 1 December 1952) is an acclaimed British
playwright
, director and scriptwriter, widely judged amongst Britain's foremost television dramatists.
where he attracted sufficient attention for Granny, a play written and directed by him, to be reviewed in The Times
newspaper. After Westminster, he went to King's College, Cambridge
but never took a degree.
Poliakoff continued to write stage plays, becoming writer-in-residence for the National Theatre
at the age of 24, but he became increasingly interested in the medium of television, with Stronger Than the Sun (1977 – BBC1 Play for Today
), Bloody Kids (1980 – ATV
), Caught on a Train
(1980 – BBC2 Playhouse) starring Peggy Ashcroft
, and Soft Targets (1982 – Play for Today). There were also TV adaptations of his stage plays Hitting Town (1976 – Thames Television
/ITV
Play for Britain) and City Sugar (1978 – Scottish Television
/ ITV The Sunday Drama).
Poliakoff's first feature film
was Runners, directed by Charles Sturridge
, starring James Fox
, Jane Asher
and Kate Hardie
. It received a limited theatrical release in 1983 before being shown in Channel 4
's Film on Four slot. His directorial debut was the much-lauded and now rare Hidden City
(1988), premiered at the Venice Film Festival
and starring Charles Dance
, Richard E. Grant
and Cassie Stuart. His television career continued with She's Been Away
(1989) starring Peggy Ashcroft
and also winning awards at Venice, before a return to film with Close My Eyes
(1991), starring Clive Owen
, Saskia Reeves
and Alan Rickman
in an elaborate reworking of the incest theme that had been central to Hitting Town, followed by Century (1993), with Owen, Dance and Miranda Richardson
. Less successful were Food of Love (1997) with Grant, Nathalie Baye
and Joe McGann
and The Tribe
(1998) starring Joely Richardson
and Jeremy Northam
, the latter eventually screened on BBC2 in the absence of a cinema distribution deal.
He subsequently returned to his favoured form, television, this time choosing a flexible serial format resulting in the acclaimed and Prix Italia
-winning Shooting the Past
(1999), the fresh critical and audience success of Perfect Strangers
(2001), a family drama starring Matthew Macfadyen
, Michael Gambon
and Lindsay Duncan
and The Lost Prince
(2003), a single drama recognized with an Emmy award rare for a non-American production. The film also featured Miranda Richardson
in a Golden Globe nominated performance as Queen Mary of Teck
. Michael Gambon
, Gina McKee
, Tom Hollander
and Bill Nighy
appeared in major roles. Late 2005 saw the one-off drama Friends and Crocodiles
starring Damian Lewis
and Jodhi May
, with its overlapping companion piece, Gideon's Daughter
, starring Bill Nighy
, Miranda Richardson and Emily Blunt
, appearing early the following year. The latter won a Peabody Award
in April 2007, with Golden Globes for Nighy and Blunt.
In 2005, he renewed recent criticisms of BBC scheduling and commissioning policy, arguing that the reintroduction of a regular evening slot for one-off plays
on BBC1
would provide the re-invigoration of drama output that has become a priority for the corporation.
Joe's Palace
was screened on 4 November 2007 on BBC One and Capturing Mary
was screened on BBC Two on 12 November 2007. The Culture Show
also screened a Poliakoff special, including an interview between Poliakoff and Mark Kermode
and a new TV play, A Real Summer, on 10 November.
His most recent feature film
, Glorious 39, starring Romola Garai
, Bill Nighy and Julie Christie
, premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival
in September 2009 and was released in the UK that November.
In 2011, Poliakoff wrote a seven-minute short film, Astonish Me, to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the World Wildlife Fund. Starring Bill Nighy
and Gemma Arterton
, the film was shown in Odeon Cinemas
in August 2011 and made available on the WWF website and YouTube
.
, west London
, England to an Anglo-Jewish mother, Ina (née Montagu), and a Russian-Jewish father, Alexander Poliakoff. His brother Martyn Poliakoff
is a Professor of Chemistry at the University of Nottingham
and father of physicist Simon Poliakoff.
He lives in London and is married to fellow scriptwriter Sandy Welch
, with whom he has two children. He was awarded a CBE
in the Queen's 2007 Birthday Honours list.
CBE
CBE and C.B.E. are abbreviations for "Commander of the Order of the British Empire", a grade in the Order of the British Empire.Other uses include:* Chemical and Biochemical Engineering...
, FRSL (born 1 December 1952) is an acclaimed British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
playwright
Playwright
A playwright, also called a dramatist, is a person who writes plays.The term is not a variant spelling of "playwrite", but something quite distinct: the word wright is an archaic English term for a craftsman or builder...
, director and scriptwriter, widely judged amongst Britain's foremost television dramatists.
Early life and career
The second of four children, Poliakoff was sent at a young age to boarding school, which he hated. He then proceeded to Westminster SchoolWestminster School
The Royal College of St. Peter in Westminster, almost always known as Westminster School, is one of Britain's leading independent schools, with the highest Oxford and Cambridge acceptance rate of any secondary school or college in Britain...
where he attracted sufficient attention for Granny, a play written and directed by him, to be reviewed in The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
newspaper. After Westminster, he went to King's College, Cambridge
King's College, Cambridge
King's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England. The college's full name is "The King's College of our Lady and Saint Nicholas in Cambridge", but it is usually referred to simply as "King's" within the University....
but never took a degree.
Poliakoff continued to write stage plays, becoming writer-in-residence for the National Theatre
Royal National Theatre
The Royal National Theatre in London is one of the United Kingdom's two most prominent publicly funded theatre companies, alongside the Royal Shakespeare Company...
at the age of 24, but he became increasingly interested in the medium of television, with Stronger Than the Sun (1977 – BBC1 Play for Today
Play for Today
Play for Today is a British television anthology drama series, produced by the BBC and transmitted on BBC1 from 1970 to 1984. During the run, more than three hundred programmes, featuring original television plays, and adaptations of stage plays and novels, were transmitted...
), Bloody Kids (1980 – ATV
Associated TeleVision
Associated Television, often referred to as ATV, was a British television company, holder of various licences to broadcast on the ITV network from 24 September 1955 until 00:34 on 1 January 1982...
), Caught on a Train
Caught on a Train
Caught On A Train is a British television play written by Stephen Poliakoff and directed by Peter Duffell, based on an overnight train journey across Europe, and following the route of a journey Poliakoff had himself made from London to Vienna...
(1980 – BBC2 Playhouse) starring Peggy Ashcroft
Peggy Ashcroft
Dame Peggy Ashcroft, DBE was an English actress.-Early years:Born as Edith Margaret Emily Ashcroft in Croydon, Ashcroft attended the Woodford School, Croydon and the Central School of Speech and Drama...
, and Soft Targets (1982 – Play for Today). There were also TV adaptations of his stage plays Hitting Town (1976 – Thames Television
Thames Television
Thames Television was a licensee of the British ITV television network, covering London and parts of the surrounding counties on weekdays from 30 July 1968 until 31 December 1992....
/ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
Play for Britain) and City Sugar (1978 – Scottish Television
Scottish Television
Scottish Television is Scotland's largest ITV franchisee, and has held the ITV franchise for Central Scotland since 31 August 1957. It is the second oldest ITV franchisee still active...
/ ITV The Sunday Drama).
Poliakoff's first feature film
Feature film
In the film industry, a feature film is a film production made for initial distribution in theaters and being the main attraction of the screening, rather than a short film screened before it; a full length movie...
was Runners, directed by Charles Sturridge
Charles Sturridge
Charles B. G. Sturridge is an English screenwriter, producer, stage, television and film director.-Personal life:Sturridge was born in London, England to Alyson Bowman Vaughan and Jerome Sturridge. He was educated at Stonyhurst College...
, starring James Fox
James Fox
James Fox, OBE is an English actor.-Early life:James Fox was born in London, England to theatrical agent Robin Fox and actress Angela Worthington. He is the brother of actor Edward Fox and film producer Robert Fox. The actress Emilia Fox is his niece and the actor Laurence Fox is his son. His...
, Jane Asher
Jane Asher
Jane Asher is an English actress. She has also developed a second career as a cake decorator and cake shop proprietor.-Early life:...
and Kate Hardie
Kate Hardie
Kate Hardie is a British actress, who has appeared in a number of film and television roles.-Biography:Hardie's stage name is derived from those of both her parents: Jean Hart and comedian turned naturalist Bill Oddie.-Career:...
. It received a limited theatrical release in 1983 before being shown in 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...
's Film on Four slot. His directorial debut was the much-lauded and now rare Hidden City
Hidden City
Hidden City is a film written and directed by Stephen Poliakoff for Film4 Productions in 1987. It starred Charles Dance, Cassie Stuart, Richard E. Grant and Bill Paterson.-External links:*...
(1988), premiered at the Venice Film Festival
Venice Film Festival
The Venice International Film Festival is the oldest international film festival in the world. Founded by Count Giuseppe Volpi in 1932 as the "Esposizione Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica", the festival has since taken place every year in late August or early September on the island of the...
and starring Charles Dance
Charles Dance
Walter Charles Dance, OBE is an English actor, screenwriter and director. Dance typically plays assertive bureaucrats or villains. His most famous roles are Guy Perron in The Jewel in the Crown , Dr Clemens, the doctor of penitentiary Fury 161, who becomes Ellen Ripley's confidante in Alien 3 ,...
, Richard E. Grant
Richard E. Grant
Richard E. Grant is a Swaziland-born British actor, screenwriter and director. His most notable role came in the film Withnail and I. He holds dual British and Swazi citizenship.-Early life:...
and Cassie Stuart. His television career continued with She's Been Away
She's Been Away
She's Been Away is a 1989 British television play by Stephen Poliakoff and directed by Sir Peter Hall. In her final appearance it starred Dame Peggy Ashcroft, who won two awards at the Venice International Film Festival for her performance, as did Geraldine James.Poliakoff and Hall present an...
(1989) starring Peggy Ashcroft
Peggy Ashcroft
Dame Peggy Ashcroft, DBE was an English actress.-Early years:Born as Edith Margaret Emily Ashcroft in Croydon, Ashcroft attended the Woodford School, Croydon and the Central School of Speech and Drama...
and also winning awards at Venice, before a return to film with Close My Eyes
Close My Eyes (film)
Close My Eyes is a 1991 film written and directed by Stephen Poliakoff and starring Alan Rickman, Clive Owen and Saskia Reeves as well as Lesley Sharp and Karl Johnson...
(1991), starring Clive Owen
Clive Owen
Clive Owen is an English actor, who has worked on television, stage and film. He first gained recognition in the United Kingdom for portraying the lead in the ITV series Chancer from 1990 to 1991...
, Saskia Reeves
Saskia Reeves
Saskia Reeves is a British actress perhaps best known for her roles in the films Close My Eyes and ID , and the 2000 miniseries Frank Herbert's Dune....
and Alan Rickman
Alan Rickman
Alan Sidney Patrick Rickman is an English actor and theatre director. He is a renowned stage actor in modern and classical productions and a former member of the Royal Shakespeare Company...
in an elaborate reworking of the incest theme that had been central to Hitting Town, followed by Century (1993), with Owen, Dance and Miranda Richardson
Miranda Richardson
Miranda Jane Richardson is an English stage, film and television actor. She has been nominated for two Academy Awards, and has won two Golden Globes and a BAFTA during her career....
. Less successful were Food of Love (1997) with Grant, Nathalie Baye
Nathalie Baye
Nathalie Marie Andrée Baye is a French film, television, and stage actress. After having dance and dramatic education, Baye began acting in 1970. She has appeared in more than 70 films. She won four César Awards for Sauve qui peut , Une étrange affaire , La Balance , and Le Petit Lieutenant...
and Joe McGann
Joe McGann
Joseph 'Joe' McGann is an English actor. His most well known role is the lead role of Charlie Burrows, the "housekeeper" in the TV comedy series The Upper Hand . He is also known as a television reporter on the BBC's South Today programme, reporting on local events in the south of England...
and The Tribe
The Tribe (1998 film)
The Tribe is a 1998 television film written and directed by Stephen Poliakoff, and starring Joely Richardson, Jeremy Northam, and Anna Friel.The film was made in 1996, but only first appeared in 1998, on BBC Two...
(1998) starring Joely Richardson
Joely Richardson
Joely Kim Richardson is an English actress, most known recently for her role as Queen Catherine Parr in the Showtime television show The Tudors and Julia McNamara in the television drama Nip/Tuck...
and Jeremy Northam
Jeremy Northam
Jeremy Philip Northam is an English actor. He is best known for his roles as Ivor Novello in the 2001 film Gosford Park, as Dean Martin in the 2002 television movie Martin and Lewis, and as Thomas More on the Showtime series The Tudors...
, the latter eventually screened on BBC2 in the absence of a cinema distribution deal.
He subsequently returned to his favoured form, television, this time choosing a flexible serial format resulting in the acclaimed and Prix Italia
Prix Italia
The Prix Italia is an international Italian television, radio-broadcasting and Website award. It was established in 1948 by RAI - Radiotelevisione Italiana in Capri...
-winning Shooting the Past
Shooting the Past
Shooting The Past is a television drama by Stephen Poliakoff, produced by TalkBack Productions for BBC Two and first shown in 1999. It was TalkBack's first drama production, the company being mainly known for its television comedy work...
(1999), the fresh critical and audience success of Perfect Strangers
Perfect Strangers (BBC TV series)
Perfect Strangers is an acclaimed television drama first aired in 2001, produced for BBC Two. It was written and directed by Stephen Poliakoff, and starred Michael Gambon, who won a British Academy Television Award for his performance, Lindsay Duncan, Matthew Macfadyen and Claire Skinner...
(2001), a family drama starring Matthew Macfadyen
Matthew Macfadyen
David Matthew Macfadyen is an English actor, known for his role as MI5 intelligence officer Tom Quinn in the BBC television drama series Spooks and for starring as Fitzwilliam Darcy in Pride and Prejudice.In June, 2010 Macfadyen won a British Academy Television Award for Best Supporting...
, Michael Gambon
Michael Gambon
Sir Michael John Gambon, CBE is an Irish actor who has worked in theatre, television and film. A highly respected theatre actor, Gambon is recognised for his roles as Philip Marlowe in the BBC television serial The Singing Detective, as Jules Maigret in the 1990s ITV serial Maigret, and as...
and Lindsay Duncan
Lindsay Duncan
Lindsay Vere Duncan, CBE is a Scottish stage, television and film actress. On stage she won two Olivier Awards and a Tony Award for her performance in Les Liaisons dangereuses and Private Lives , and she starred in several plays by Harold Pinter. Her most famous roles on television include:...
and The Lost Prince
The Lost Prince
The Lost Prince is an acclaimed British television drama serial, produced by Talkback Thames for the BBC and originally broadcast in two episodes on BBC One in January 2003...
(2003), a single drama recognized with an Emmy award rare for a non-American production. The film also featured Miranda Richardson
Miranda Richardson
Miranda Jane Richardson is an English stage, film and television actor. She has been nominated for two Academy Awards, and has won two Golden Globes and a BAFTA during her career....
in a Golden Globe nominated performance as Queen Mary of Teck
Mary of Teck
Mary of Teck was the queen consort of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Empress of India, as the wife of King-Emperor George V....
. Michael Gambon
Michael Gambon
Sir Michael John Gambon, CBE is an Irish actor who has worked in theatre, television and film. A highly respected theatre actor, Gambon is recognised for his roles as Philip Marlowe in the BBC television serial The Singing Detective, as Jules Maigret in the 1990s ITV serial Maigret, and as...
, Gina McKee
Gina McKee
Georgina "Gina" McKee is an English actor known for her television roles in Our Friends in the North , The Lost Prince and The Forsyte Saga ; and her portrayal of Bella in the film Notting Hill ....
, Tom Hollander
Tom Hollander
Thomas Anthony "Tom" Hollander is a British actor who has appeared in productions such as Enigma, Gosford Park, Cambridge Spies, Pride and Prejudice, Pirates of the Caribbean, In the Loop, Valkyrie and Hanna.-Early life:Tom Hollander was born in Bristol and raised in Oxford, Oxfordshire, the son...
and Bill Nighy
Bill Nighy
William Francis "Bill" Nighy is an English actor and comedian. He worked in theatre and television before his first cinema role in 1981, and made his name in television with The Men's Room in 1991, in which he played the womanizer Prof...
appeared in major roles. Late 2005 saw the one-off drama Friends and Crocodiles
Friends and Crocodiles
Friends and Crocodiles is a one-off British television drama production, written and directed by Stephen Poliakoff and first broadcast on BBC One on 15 January 2006.-Overview:...
starring Damian Lewis
Damian Lewis
Lewis was born in St John's Wood, London, the son of Charlotte Mary and J. Watcyn Lewis, a City broker. His paternal grandparents were Welsh. His maternal grandfather was Lord Mayor of London Ian Frank Bowater and his maternal grandmother's ancestors include Bertrand Dawson, 1st Viscount Dawson of...
and Jodhi May
Jodhi May
Jodhi May is an English actress.-Early life:Born in Camden Town, London, May first acted at the age of 12 in 1988's A World Apart. The role earned her a Best Actress award at the 1988 Cannes Film Festival, shared with her co-stars Barbara Hershey and Linda Mvusi...
, with its overlapping companion piece, Gideon's Daughter
Gideon's Daughter
Gideon's Daughter is the second of two linked BBC television dramas written and directed by Stephen Poliakoff.Produced independently for the BBC by Talkback Thames and starring Bill Nighy, Miranda Richardson, and Emily Blunt, it aired in the UK on BBC One on 26 February 2006 and in the US on BBC...
, starring Bill Nighy
Bill Nighy
William Francis "Bill" Nighy is an English actor and comedian. He worked in theatre and television before his first cinema role in 1981, and made his name in television with The Men's Room in 1991, in which he played the womanizer Prof...
, Miranda Richardson and Emily Blunt
Emily Blunt
Emily Olivia Leah Blunt is an English actress best known for her roles in The Devil Wears Prada , The Young Victoria , and The Adjustment Bureau . She has been nominated for two Golden Globe Awards, two London Film Critics' Circle Awards, and one BAFTA Award...
, appearing early the following year. The latter won a Peabody Award
Peabody Award
The George Foster Peabody Awards recognize distinguished and meritorious public service by radio and television stations, networks, producing organizations and individuals. In 1939, the National Association of Broadcasters formed a committee to recognize outstanding achievement in radio broadcasting...
in April 2007, with Golden Globes for Nighy and Blunt.
In 2005, he renewed recent criticisms of BBC scheduling and commissioning policy, arguing that the reintroduction of a regular evening slot for one-off plays
Play (theatre)
A play is a form of literature written by a playwright, usually consisting of scripted dialogue between characters, intended for theatrical performance rather than just reading. There are rare dramatists, notably George Bernard Shaw, who have had little preference whether their plays were performed...
on BBC1
BBC One
BBC One is the flagship television channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It was launched on 2 November 1936 as the BBC Television Service, and was the world's first regular television service with a high level of image resolution...
would provide the re-invigoration of drama output that has become a priority for the corporation.
Joe's Palace
Joe's Palace
Joe's Palace is a BBC television drama, and written and directed by Stephen Poliakoff. It was first aired on BBC One on 4 November 2007...
was screened on 4 November 2007 on BBC One and Capturing Mary
Capturing Mary
Capturing Mary is a BBC television drama , written and directed by Stephen Poliakoff. It was aired on BBC Two on 12 November 2007...
was screened on BBC Two on 12 November 2007. The Culture Show
The Culture Show
The Culture Show is a weekly BBC Two Arts magazine programme. It is broadcast in the UK on Thursday nights at 7pm, focusing on the best of the week's arts and culture news, covering books, art, film, architecture, music, visual fashion and the performing arts...
also screened a Poliakoff special, including an interview between Poliakoff and Mark Kermode
Mark Kermode
Mark Kermode is an English film critic, musician and a member of the British Academy of Film and Television Arts. He contributes to Sight and Sound magazine, The Observer newspaper and BBC Radio 5 Live, where he presents Kermode and Mayo's Film Reviews with Simon Mayo on Friday afternoons...
and a new TV play, A Real Summer, on 10 November.
His most recent feature film
Feature film
In the film industry, a feature film is a film production made for initial distribution in theaters and being the main attraction of the screening, rather than a short film screened before it; a full length movie...
, Glorious 39, starring Romola Garai
Romola Garai
Romola Sadie Garai is an English actress. She is known for appearing in the movies Amazing Grace, Atonement, and Glorious 39, and for appearing in the BBC adaptation of Emma.-Early life:...
, Bill Nighy and Julie Christie
Julie Christie
Julie Frances Christie is a British actress. Born in British India to English parents, at the age of six Christie moved to England, where she attended boarding school....
, premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival
Toronto International Film Festival
The Toronto International Film Festival is a publicly-attended film festival held each September in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. In 2010, 339 films from 59 countries were screened at 32 screens in downtown Toronto venues...
in September 2009 and was released in the UK that November.
In 2011, Poliakoff wrote a seven-minute short film, Astonish Me, to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the World Wildlife Fund. Starring Bill Nighy
Bill Nighy
William Francis "Bill" Nighy is an English actor and comedian. He worked in theatre and television before his first cinema role in 1981, and made his name in television with The Men's Room in 1991, in which he played the womanizer Prof...
and Gemma Arterton
Gemma Arterton
Gemma Arterton is an English actress. She played the eponymous protagonist in the BBC adaptation of Thomas Hardy's Tess of the D'Urbervilles, and starred in the feature films St Trinian's, the James Bond film Quantum of Solace, Clash of the Titans, Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time and Tamara...
, the film was shown in Odeon Cinemas
Odeon Cinemas
Odeon Cinemas is a British chain of cinemas, one of the largest in Europe. It is owned by Odeon & UCI Cinemas Group whose ultimate parent is Terra Firma Capital Partners.-History:Odeon Cinemas was created in 1928 by Oscar Deutsch...
in August 2011 and made available on the WWF website and YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
.
Personal life
Poliakoff was born in Holland ParkHolland Park
Holland Park is a district and a public park in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, in west central London, England.Holland Park has a reputation as an affluent and fashionable area, known for attractive large Victorian townhouses, and high-class shopping and restaurants...
, west 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...
, England to an Anglo-Jewish mother, Ina (née Montagu), and a Russian-Jewish father, Alexander Poliakoff. His brother Martyn Poliakoff
Martyn Poliakoff
Martyn Poliakoff CBE FRS is a British chemist, working on gaining insights into fundamental chemistry and also on developing environmentally acceptable processes and materials. The core themes of his work are supercritical fluids , infrared spectroscopy and lasers. He is a Research Professor in...
is a Professor of Chemistry at the University of Nottingham
University of Nottingham
The University of Nottingham is a public research university based in Nottingham, United Kingdom, with further campuses in Ningbo, China and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia...
and father of physicist Simon Poliakoff.
He lives in London and is married to fellow scriptwriter Sandy Welch
Sandy Welch
Sandy Welch is a British television writer and screenwriter.Sandy Welch's works for the BBC have included The Magnificent 7, adaptations of Charles Dickens' novel Our Mutual Friend and Elizabeth Gaskell's North and South, and most recently the BBC's well-received 2006 interpretation of Charlotte...
, with whom he has two children. He was awarded a CBE
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
in the Queen's 2007 Birthday Honours list.
Stage Plays
All London except where otherwise stated:- Granny (also directed) Westminster School, 1969
- Lay-By (co-writer) Edinburgh Festival, August 1971
- Pretty Boy Royal Court, June 1972
- Berlin Days Little Theatre, 1973
- Sad Beat Up Little Theatre, 1974
- The Carnation Gang Bush, 1974
- Clever Soldiers Hampstead, 1974
- Heroes Royal Court, July 1975
- Hitting Town Bush, 1975
- City Sugar Bush, October 1975; Comedy Theatre, March 1976; Phoenix Theatre (New York), January 1978
- Strawberry Fields NT Young Vic, August 1976; NT Cottesloe, 1977; Manhattan Theatre Club (New York), May 1978
- Shout Across the River Warehouse Croydon, 1978; Phoenix Theatre (New York), December 1979
- American Days ICA, June 1979; Manhattan Theatre Club (New York), December 1980
- The Summer Party Crucible Theatre, Sheffield 1980
- Favourite Nights Lyric Theatre Hammersmith, November 1981
- Breaking the Silence RSC The Pit, November 1984
- Coming in to Land National Theatre Lyttelton, January 1987
- Playing With Trains RSC The Pit, November 1989
- Sienna Red Richmond Theatre, May 1992
- Sweet Panic (also directed) Hampstead, February 1996
- Blinded by the Sun National Theatre Cottesloe, September 1996
- Talk of the City (also directed) RSC Swan, Stratford 1998; Young Vic February 1999
- Remember This National Theatre Lyttelton, October 1999
- Sweet Panic revival (also directed) Duke of York’s, November 2003
- My City (also directed) Almeida Theatre, September 2011
Films
- Runners (director Charles SturridgeCharles SturridgeCharles B. G. Sturridge is an English screenwriter, producer, stage, television and film director.-Personal life:Sturridge was born in London, England to Alyson Bowman Vaughan and Jerome Sturridge. He was educated at Stonyhurst College...
, 1983) - Hidden CityHidden CityHidden City is a film written and directed by Stephen Poliakoff for Film4 Productions in 1987. It starred Charles Dance, Cassie Stuart, Richard E. Grant and Bill Paterson.-External links:*...
(1988) - Close My EyesClose My Eyes (film)Close My Eyes is a 1991 film written and directed by Stephen Poliakoff and starring Alan Rickman, Clive Owen and Saskia Reeves as well as Lesley Sharp and Karl Johnson...
(1991) - Century (1993)
- Food of Love (1997)
- Glorious 39 (2009)
- Astonish Me (short) (director Charles SturridgeCharles SturridgeCharles B. G. Sturridge is an English screenwriter, producer, stage, television and film director.-Personal life:Sturridge was born in London, England to Alyson Bowman Vaughan and Jerome Sturridge. He was educated at Stonyhurst College...
, 2011)
Television dramas and films
All (originally) made for British television unless otherwise stated.- Stronger than the Sun (1977) (part of Play for Today series)
- Bloody KidsBloody KidsBloody Kids is a British television film written by Stephen Poliakoff and directed by Stephen Frears, made by Black Lion Films for ATV, and first shown on ITV on 22 March 1980.-Cast:...
(1980) - Caught on a TrainCaught on a TrainCaught On A Train is a British television play written by Stephen Poliakoff and directed by Peter Duffell, based on an overnight train journey across Europe, and following the route of a journey Poliakoff had himself made from London to Vienna...
(1980) - Termeszet (Hungary, 1981)
- Doppelte Welt, Die (West Germany, 1985)
- She's Been AwayShe's Been AwayShe's Been Away is a 1989 British television play by Stephen Poliakoff and directed by Sir Peter Hall. In her final appearance it starred Dame Peggy Ashcroft, who won two awards at the Venice International Film Festival for her performance, as did Geraldine James.Poliakoff and Hall present an...
(1989) - Frontiers (co-written with Sandy Welch, 1996)
- The TribeThe Tribe (1998 film)The Tribe is a 1998 television film written and directed by Stephen Poliakoff, and starring Joely Richardson, Jeremy Northam, and Anna Friel.The film was made in 1996, but only first appeared in 1998, on BBC Two...
(1998) - Shooting the PastShooting the PastShooting The Past is a television drama by Stephen Poliakoff, produced by TalkBack Productions for BBC Two and first shown in 1999. It was TalkBack's first drama production, the company being mainly known for its television comedy work...
(1999) - Perfect StrangersPerfect Strangers (BBC TV series)Perfect Strangers is an acclaimed television drama first aired in 2001, produced for BBC Two. It was written and directed by Stephen Poliakoff, and starred Michael Gambon, who won a British Academy Television Award for his performance, Lindsay Duncan, Matthew Macfadyen and Claire Skinner...
(2001) - The Lost PrinceThe Lost PrinceThe Lost Prince is an acclaimed British television drama serial, produced by Talkback Thames for the BBC and originally broadcast in two episodes on BBC One in January 2003...
(2003) - Friends and CrocodilesFriends and CrocodilesFriends and Crocodiles is a one-off British television drama production, written and directed by Stephen Poliakoff and first broadcast on BBC One on 15 January 2006.-Overview:...
(2006) - Gideon's DaughterGideon's DaughterGideon's Daughter is the second of two linked BBC television dramas written and directed by Stephen Poliakoff.Produced independently for the BBC by Talkback Thames and starring Bill Nighy, Miranda Richardson, and Emily Blunt, it aired in the UK on BBC One on 26 February 2006 and in the US on BBC...
(2006) - Joe's PalaceJoe's PalaceJoe's Palace is a BBC television drama, and written and directed by Stephen Poliakoff. It was first aired on BBC One on 4 November 2007...
(2007) - Capturing MaryCapturing MaryCapturing Mary is a BBC television drama , written and directed by Stephen Poliakoff. It was aired on BBC Two on 12 November 2007...
(2007)