Bill Sellars

William Sellars (5 June 1925 – 19 December 2018)[2] was a British television producer and director, most active from the 1960s to the 1980s.[3] His entire 33-year-career was spent working on projects for the BBC.[4] Of these, All Creatures Great and Small (1978-90), which he produced for its entire run, was the biggest success. Conversely, he had a major critical failure with Triangle (1981-83), a soap opera set on board a ferry in the North Sea.

For the footballer, see Billy Sellars.
Bill Sellars
Born(1925-06-05)5 June 1925
Brighton, England[1]
Died19 December 2018(2018-12-19) (aged 93)
OccupationTelevision producer and director
EmployerBBC

As director

Sellars' first significant creative work for the BBC was as a director. From 1962-1967, he was assigned to shows such as the upscale soap Compact and the early Doctor Who, for which he directed The Celestial Toymaker (1966). He also directed episodes of United! and 199 Park Lane during this period. However, due to the BBC's policy of wiping videotape, little of Sellars' early directorial work survives.

As producer

After his period as a contract director, Sellars became a producer. His first work in this role was as Verity Lambert's successor on The Newcomers.[5] From 1967 to 1976, he moved through a succession of dramas, including The Doctors and The Brothers. He also had a period of producing shorter-form dramas. Most of these endeavours were mysteries, such as The Chinese Puzzle (1974) and an adaptation of The Five Red Herrings (1975).

In 1977, he found himself back to regular series work when he was given All Creatures Great and Small, which began transmission in January the following year. Although he would produce other shows in the downtime from All Creatures—such as the poorly received soap opera Triangle and another veterinary drama, One By One—he would work on All Creatures until the end of his active career in 1990. As producer of All Creatures Great and Small he received his only two significant awards nominations: a BAFTA nomination for Best Drama Series in 1979, and a Primetime Emmy nomination for Best Children's Series in 1990.

Personal life

In 1950 Sellars married the actress June Bland. The couple had three children before divorcing in 1974. Sellars then lived with Alan Sandilands, moving to Spain in 2003 and entering a civil partnership the following year. Sandilands died in 2012 and Sellars then returned to England, remarrying Bland who remained with him until his death.[6]

gollark: The ++become_sentient command?
gollark: It became sentient ages ago.
gollark: It's not even in the source, I livepatched the bot.
gollark: Nope!
gollark: Bee you UTTERLY, [REDACTED] homogenous differential equation.

References
  1. "Bill Sellars". BFI.
  2. http://www.rusticom.co.uk/times.pdf
  3. Wednesday; December 19; Pm, 2018-06:43 (19 December 2018). "Television producer Bill Sellars dies aged 93". www.irishexaminer.com.CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  4. All Memories Great & Small, Oliver Crocker (2016; MIWK)
  5. BFI's page on The Newcomers, showing Sellars firmly the producer from at least May to December 1967
  6. Obituary, the Times, 12 January 2019
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