Mike Newell (director)
Michael Cormac Newell (born 28 March 1942) is an English director and producer of motion pictures for film and television. Newell is best known for directing the films Four Weddings and a Funeral and Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.[1] He won the BAFTA Award for Best Direction for Four Weddings and a Funeral.
Mike Newell | |
|---|---|
 Newell at WonderCon, 2010 | |
| Born | Michael Cormac Newell 28 March 1942 St Albans, Hertfordshire, England |
| Nationality | British |
| Alma mater | Cambridge University |
| Occupation | Director, producer |
| Years active | c. 1960–present |
Notable work | Four Weddings and a Funeral Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire |
| Spouse(s) | |
| Children | 2 |
| Awards | BAFTA Award for Best Direction Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994) |
Early life
Newell was born in St Albans, Hertfordshire, the son of amateur actors.[2] Newell was educated at St Albans School and Magdalene College, Cambridge. He then attended a three-year training course at Granada Television, with the intention of entering the theatre.
Career
Newell directed various British TV shows from the 1960s onwards (such as Spindoe, credited as Cormac Newell, and Big Breadwinner Hog), but eventually shifted his focus to film direction.
His first feature-length project was The Man in the Iron Mask (1977), a made-for-television film. His first critically acclaimed movie was Bad Blood (1981), concerning the 1941 manhunt for the New Zealand mass-killer Stan Graham, played by Jack Thompson. This was followed by Dance with a Stranger (1985), a biographical drama starring Miranda Richardson as Ruth Ellis, the last woman to be hanged in the UK. For his directorial efforts, Newell won the Award of the Youth at the 1985 Cannes Film Festival.
Newell continued his successes in the film industry with Enchanted April (1991), an adaptation of the 1922 novel by Elizabeth von Arnim. Miranda Richardson received a Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Comedy/Musical and Joan Plowright won a Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy/Musical.
During this period, George Lucas recruited Newell as one of the numerous feature film directors to direct episodes of The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles.
The comedy Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994) was also critically acclaimed, winning numerous awards, including a César Award (Best Foreign Film), a Golden Globe (Best Actor – Hugh Grant), and a number of London Critics Circle Film Awards (Best Director, Film, Producer, and Screenwriter).
Since these award-winning productions, Newell has directed a number of films in Hollywood, such as Donnie Brasco (1997) (starring Al Pacino and Johnny Depp), Pushing Tin (1999) (starring John Cusack, Billy Bob Thornton, Cate Blanchett, and Angelina Jolie) and Mona Lisa Smile (2003) (starring Julia Roberts, Kirsten Dunst, and Julia Stiles).
In 2005, Newell was presented with an honorary degree of Doctor of Arts by the University of Hertfordshire which has a campus in St Albans, his birthplace. He was also awarded the BAFTA Britannia Award for Artistic Excellence in Directing for his career prior to 2005.[3] Newell became the first British director of the Harry Potter film series with the production of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, the fourth adaptation in the series, which became a major critical and financial success worldwide. Newell is heard briefly as the radio announcer at the beginning of the film.
Newell directed Love in the Time of Cholera in 2007 and Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time in 2010. In February 2011, Newell attended the British Academy Film Awards along with Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling, David Heyman, David Barron, David Yates, Alfonso Cuarón, Rupert Grint, and Emma Watson to collect the Michael Balcon Award for Outstanding Contribution to British Cinema on behalf of the Harry Potter film series.[4]
Continuing to work on adaptations, Newell directed Great Expectations (2012) from the novel by Charles Dickens, with Ralph Fiennes, Helena Bonham Carter, and Jeremy Irvine in starring roles.[5][6][7][8][9] The film had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival.[10]
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Director | Executive Producer | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | The Awakening | Yes | No | Directorial debut |
| 1981 | Bad Blood | Yes | No | |
| 1985 | Dance with a Stranger | Yes | No | |
| The Good Father | Yes | No | ||
| 1987 | Amazing Grace and Chuck | Yes | No | |
| 1988 | Soursweet | Yes | No | |
| 1991 | Enchanted April | Yes | No | |
| 1992 | Into the West | Yes | No | |
| 1994 | Four Weddings and a Funeral | Yes | No | BAFTA Award for Best Direction |
| 1995 | An Awfully Big Adventure | Yes | No | |
| 1997 | Donnie Brasco | Yes | No | |
| Photographing Fairies | No | Yes | ||
| 1999 | 200 Cigarettes | No | Yes | |
| Pushing Tin | Yes | No | ||
| Best Laid Plans | No | Yes | ||
| 2000 | High Fidelity | No | Yes | |
| Traffic | No | Yes | ||
| 2003 | I Capture the Castle | No | Yes | |
| Mona Lisa Smile | Yes | No | ||
| 2005 | Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire | Yes | No | Nominated - Saturn Award for Best Director |
| 2007 | Love in the Time of Cholera | Yes | No | |
| 2010 | Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time | Yes | No | |
| 2012 | Great Expectations | Yes | Yes | |
| 2014 | Enchanted Kingdom 3D | No | Yes | Documentary film |
| 2018 | The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society | Yes | No |
Television
As director
| Year(s) | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1964 | Sharon | TV Movie documentary |
| Comedy Workshop: Love and Maud Carver | TV Movie | |
| 1966 | Coronation Street | TV Series, 8 episodes |
| 1967 | The Fellows | TV Series, 5 episodes |
| Escape | TV Series, 1 episode | |
| The Kindness of Strangers | TV Movie | |
| 1967–1981 | ITV Playhouse | TV Series, 4 episodes |
| 1968 | Spindoe | TV Series, 4 episodes |
| Them Down There | TV Movie | |
| City '68 | TV Series, 2 episodes | |
| Her Majesty's Pleasure | TV Series, 5 episodes | |
| The Visitors | TV Movie | |
| The Gamekeeper | TV Movie | |
| 69 Murder – The Blood Relation | TV Movie | |
| 1969 | Big Breadwinner Hog | TV Series, 6 episodes |
| Parkin's Patch | TV Series, 2 episodes | |
| Blood Relations | TV Movie | |
| 1969–1970 | ITV Saturday Night Theatre | TV Series, 2 episodes |
| 1970 | Confession | TV Series, 2 episodes |
| Diamond Crack Diamond | TV Series, 1 episode | |
| The Adventures of Don Quick | TV Series, 1 episode | |
| Arthur Wants You for a Sunbeam | TV Movie | |
| 1971 | The Guardians | TV Series, 2 episodes |
| Mrs. Mouse, Are You Within? | TV Movie | |
| Big Soft Nelly Mrs. Mouse | TV Movie | |
| 1971–1972 | Thirty-Minute Theatre | TV Series, 2 episodes |
| Budgie | TV Series, 6 episodes | |
| 1972 | The Man from Haven | TV Series |
| 1972–1978 | Play for Today | TV Series, 6 episodes |
| 1973 | Love Story | TV Series, 2 episodes |
| Hadleigh | TV Series, 2 episodes | |
| Late Night Theatre | TV Series, 3 episodes | |
| Wessex Tales | TV Mini-Series, 1 episode | |
| 1974 | Childhood | TV Series, 1 episode |
| Baa Baa Black Sheep | TV Movie | |
| The Gift of Friendship | TV Movie | |
| Late Night Drama | TV Series, 2 episodes | |
| 1975 | BBC2 Playhouse | TV Series, 1 episode |
| The Boundary | TV Movie | |
| The Midas Connection | TV Movie | |
| Comedy Premiere | TV Series, 1 episode | |
| Of the Fields Lately | TV Movie | |
| Lost Yer Tongue? | TV Movie | |
| 1976 | Red Letter Day | TV Series, 1 episode |
| Second City Firsts | TV Series, 1 episode | |
| 1977 | The Man in the Iron Mask | TV Movie |
| The Sunday Drama | TV Series, 1 episode | |
| The Fosdyke Saga | TV Movie | |
| 1978 | BBC2 Play of the Week | TV Series, 1 episode |
| Little Girls Don't | TV Movie | |
| 1983 | Blood Feud | TV Movie |
| Birth of a Nation | TV Movie | |
| 1989 | Smith and Jones in Small Doses | TV Series, 1 episode |
| The Whole Hog | TV Movie | |
| 1990 | Common Ground | TV Movie |
| 1993 | The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles | TV Series, 2 episodes |
| 2002 | Jo | TV Movie, also producer |
| 2016 | The Interestings | TV Movie |
| 2019 | One Red Nose Day and a Wedding | TV Short |
As executive producer
| Year(s) | Name | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 2003 | The Branch | TV Series |
| 2004–2006 | Huff | TV Series, 16 episodes |
References
- "Mike Newell on Love in the Time of Cholera". ComingSoon.net.
- "Mike Newell Biography (1942-)". filmreference.com.
- Mike Newell: BAFTA/LA Archived 16 June 2012 at the Wayback Machine
- "Harry Potter Series Receives Prestigious BAFTA". The Lord of the Hallows.
- Ralph Fiennes In Talks For Great Expectations Archived 12 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine
- Zakarin, Jordan (14 April 2011). "Helena Bonham Carter in 'Great Expectations'? Star in Talks for Miss Havisham Role". Huffington Post. Retrieved 15 April 2011.
- "Jeremy Irvine Meeting Great Expectations, Helena Bonham Carter also in talks". Empire Online. 15 April 2011. Retrieved 15 April 2011.
- Sneider, Jeff (14 April 2011). "'War' star Irvine meets 'Expectations'". Variety. Retrieved 15 April 2011.
- "Number 9's slate includes new Neil Jordan vampire film". ScreenDaily. 15 May 2011. Retrieved 15 May 2011.
- "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 16 January 2013. Retrieved 6 August 2012.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
External links
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Mike Newell (director). |
- Mike Newell on IMDb
- Mike Newell at the BFI's Screenonline
| Preceded by Alfonso Cuarón |
Harry Potter film director 2005 |
Succeeded by David Yates |
Authority control  |
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