Grierson nominated director with over 15 years experience of writing, directing and producing documentaries on music, history, politics and art - from landmark documentaries like My Life as a Rolling Stone: Charlie Watts (a critical and award-winning hit for the BBC and Epix) to acclaimed series including The Great Offices of State and The People's History of Pop. I have often worked with and directed on-screen talent and I am an accomplished self- shooter.
Credits
My Life As A Rolling Stone: Charlie Watts
(1 x 60 for BBC 2 & Epix)
Director
Charlie Watts was a true musician to the core with a lifetime love of jazz, often cited by Mick and Keith as the rock and the glue that held the Stones together. For six decades he was the quiet force and swinging backbeat of the group and the least showy drummer in rock history.
Executive Producer - Steve Condie (2022)
“Its Charlie Watts episode is damn near perfect” Rolling Stone magazine
“Absolute Perfection” Tim Burgess
“5 stars for the Charlie Watts episode. Gets everything right. Don’t miss” Richard Williams
"It's a forensically produced tribute to the least well known and most interesting member of the band" Patrick Uden
The Longest Reign: The Queen and Her People
(1 x 60 for BBC 1, BBC Studios)
Director/Producer
Documentary exploring how the reign of Queen Elizabeth II has been a thread of continuity running through almost 70 tumultuous years of British social and political history.
Executive Producer - Steve Condie (2020)
"In all the tributes to Her late Majesty’s constancy, dignity, wisdom and devotion to duty, not enough has been said about her political cunning. But BBC1’s The Longest Reign: The Queen and Her People made a compelling case that Elizabeth II knew just how to tilt the balance". The Spectator
Thatcher: A Very British Revolution Episode Two ‘Power’
(1 x 60 for BBC2, BBC Studios)
Additional Director
The irresistible rise and dramatic downfall of Margaret Thatcher. Her inner circle reveal how a political outsider won power and dominated British life through a turbulent decade. (2019)
Our Classical Century: Episode Two “In War and Peace”
(1 x 60 for BBC4, Lion TV)
Director, Producer & Camera
Presented by Suzy Klein and John Simpson this episode explored the power of classical music through WWII and into peacetime, to console, unite and inspire the nation. Part of a four-part series looking at the greatest moments in classical music in Britain over the last 100 years. Executive Producers -Steve Condie & Richard Bradley (2019)
“Our classical Century, episode 2 - this was music to stir the soul and television to nourish the mind” 5 Stars - The Daily Telegraph
Can You Feel It? How Dance Music Conquered the World
(1 x 60 for BBC4, Somethin’ Else)
Director, Producer & Camera
Episode Two (in a three-part series) looked at one of the most important cultural entertainment spaces of the last 30 years - the club, detailing how club culture went from shady Chicago lofts to desert casinos. Executive Producers - Steve Condie & Jez Nelson (2018)
"An absolute treat... a series examining how club culture grew into a multi-billion dollar business" The Guardian
"Fascinating" The Daily Telegraph
"This superbly assembled history of dance music... Quality" The Observer
Hits, Hype and Hustle: Revivals and Reunions
(1 x 60 for BBC4, BBC Studios)
Director, Producer & Camera
Music PR legend Alan Edwards explores why so many bands are getting back together, what happens when they do – and how it’s changed the music business.
“The series comes back with a rousing finale about, aptly enough, reunions and revivals”
Radio Times
Pride and Prejudice: The People’s History of LGBTQ Britain
(1 x 60 for BBC4, 7Wonder)
Director/Producer & Camera
Series marking the 50th anniversary of The Sexual Offences Act 1967. Episode 2 (1987 to 2017) featured LGBTQ people from across the UK sharing their treasured possessions to tell the story of ordinary people in extraordinary times. (2017)
“The documentary’s embedding of personal stories within the larger history and the evocation of different times and places was masterly throughout” The Guardian
The People's History of Pop (Eps 1 & 2)
(2 x 60 mins for BBC4, 7Wonder)
Director, Producer & Camera
A five part series telling the history of British Pop Music through the eyes of the fans and their memorabilia. Episode one (1955-65) was presented by 60’s icon Twiggy. Episode Two (1966 – 76) by Danny Baker. Executive Producer - Steve Condie (2016)
"Full of charming detail and goose bumpy anecdote"
Radio Times on Ep One
“By restoring timeless music to its context, The People’s History of Pop conjured up something inspiring and bittersweet"
The Guardian on Ep Two
Let Us Entertain You (Ep 2 of 4)
(1 x 60 for BBC2, Oxford Scientific Films)
Director/Producer
Presented by historian Dominic Sandbrook, this series explored British post-war culture and argued that it’s a crucial part of Britain's modern identity - yet one firmly indebted to our Victorian past. Executive Producer - Steve Condie (2015)
Strange Days – Cold War Britain: Two Tribes (Ep 3 of 3)
(1 x 60 for BBC2)
Director/Producer
BBC History series looking at how the Cold War shaped Britain. This episode explored the 1970s and '80s, when the end of the world seemed alarmingly possible and everything from sport to music became weaponised. Presented by historian Dominic Sandbrook. Executive Producer - Steve Condie (2013)
Robert Peston Goes Shopping: Revolution (Ep 3 of 3)
(1 x 60 for BBC2)
Director/Producer
BBC Current Affairs series presented by Robert Peston telling the social history of shopping in Britain since WWII. Executive Producer - Darren Kemp (2013)
The Secret World of Whitehall
(3 x 60 for BBC 2 & 4)
Series Director/Producer & Camera
Three part series with Michael Cockerell going behind the scenes at Whitehall. (2011)
“Unmissable series about the workings of Government” The Daily Telegraph
The Great Offices of State
(3 x 60 for BBC 2 & 4 )
Series Director/Producer & Camera
Critically acclaimed three-part series in which reporter Michael Cockerell reveals what the trio of Great Offices of State - the Home, Foreign and Treasury - are really like. (2010)
“I settled down like a hen on a nest to watch the first of the Great Offices of State by Michael Cockerell, spookily subtitled The Dark Department.” Nancy Banks Smith – The Guardian"
"The Dark Department" was nominated for a Grierson in the Best Historical Documentary category (2010)
How to Win the TV Debate
(1 x 60 for BBC 2)
Director/Producer & Camera
Uncovering never-before-seen archive this documentary looked at the history of Presidential debates in the US and revealed the tricks needed to win them. (2010)
The Conspiracy Files: The Oklahoma Bomber
(1 x 60 for BBC 2)
Co-Director & Producer
Documentary investigating the conspiracy surrounding the Oklahoma bombing. (2007)