Don Taylor (director)
Encyclopedia
Donald Victor Taylor was an English
writer
, director
and producer
, active across theatre
, radio
and television
for over forty years. He is most noted for his television work, particularly his early 1960s collaborations with the playwright David Mercer, much of whose early work Taylor directed for the BBC
.
in London
, Taylor attended Chiswick Grammar School and subsequently studied English Literature
at Pembroke College, Oxford
. While at university he became actively involved in student theatre, particularly with the Experimental Theatre Club
. It was for the club that Taylor directed, in 1957, the world premiere of Epitaph for George Dillon
by the acclaimed playwright John Osborne
.
After graduating, he joined the BBC
as a general trainee in 1960, quickly becoming a television director
in the drama department
. His first directing work was an episode of the crime series Scotland Yard, but he rapidly became more associated with directing single plays. His association with David Mercer began in 1961 with Where the Difference Begins, the first instalment in what became the "Generations" trilogy, the subsequent instalments of which — A Climate of Fear (1962) and Birth of a Private Man (1963) — were also directed by Taylor. He also directed Mercer's Sunday Night Play episode A Suitable Case for Treatment (1962), which explored the writer's experiences of his own nervous breakdown
.
Taylor was greatly displeased by the arrival in December 1962 of the Canadian
producer Sydney Newman
as the new Head of Drama at the BBC. He regarded Newman as an uncultured populist with no theatrical knowledge or background; Taylor himself felt that the BBC should be the "National Theatre
of the Air". He also disliked Newman's restructuring of the drama department, one of the features of which was the abolition of the BBC's traditional single producer/director role and the division of responsibilities of producing and directing to separate posts.
Newman attempted to work with Taylor and offered him the producer's role on a series the Canadian himself had initiated — an educational science-fiction serial for children entitled Doctor Who
. Taylor had no interest in the series. Taylor remained with the BBC for a time, but eventually in 1963 his unhappiness with the department under Newman drove him to resign from the corporation. Although he did return as a freelancer to direct two episodes of The Wednesday Play
in 1965 — including a further Mercer play, And Did Those Feet? — he later claimed to have been "blacklisted" from working in the BBC's drama department for the remainder of the decade, and there is a deal of evidence to show that this was the case. Taylor himself quoted Lionel Harris as confirming this to Ellen Dryden in his memoir Days of Vision.
in 1967.
From the early 1970s, he also began to work for BBC television drama again directing versions of his own plays The Exorcism in 1972, and The Roses of Eyam
the following year.
He also worked in television for the ITV
network, including two episodes of Nigel Kneale
's ATV anthology horror series Beasts
in 1976.
He went on to direct mostly classic theatrical adaptations for the BBC, including The Two Gentlemen of Verona
in 1984 for their The Complete Dramatic Works of William Shakespeare
series, which adapted all of Shakespeare's plays for the small screen. His final television work was his own new translation of Iphigenia at Aulis by Euripides
in 1990, after which he retired from the medium. That same year he published a memoir of his television work, Days of Vision, in which he was scathing of the state of modern television drama and the disappearance of the theatrical tradition from the medium.
For the remainder of his career, Taylor was particularly active in radio and the theatre. The same year that he retired from television work, he and his wife established a radio production company called First Writes, producing plays independently for transmission on BBC radio
. He both wrote and directed for radio himself, as well as working alongside his wife in the running of a youth theatre company they had established near their Chiswick home. He wrote a number of plays for the company, including "Daughters of Venice".
Later in life, the family moved to the village of Banham
, near Norwich
, in Norfolk
, where Taylor died in 2003. He had married the writer Ellen Dryden in 1960 — she and their two children survived him.
Less than a year after his death, Katie Mitchell
directed a production of his translation of Iphigenia at Aulis at the Lyttelton, to huge critical acclaim. The "National Theatre of the Air" had not come to pass, but finally his work was played at the National Theatre. This was followed in 2007 by the same director's production of his translation of Women of Troy.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
, director
Television director
A television director directs the activities involved in making a television program and is part of a television crew.-Duties:The duties of a television director vary depending on whether the production is live or recorded to video tape or video server .In both types of productions, the...
and producer
Television producer
The primary role of a television Producer is to allow all aspects of video production, ranging from show idea development and cast hiring to shoot supervision and fact-checking...
, active across theatre
Theatre
Theatre is a collaborative form of fine art that uses live performers to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place. The performers may communicate this experience to the audience through combinations of gesture, speech, song, music or dance...
, radio
Radio drama
Radio drama is a dramatized, purely acoustic performance, broadcast on radio or published on audio media, such as tape or CD. With no visual component, radio drama depends on dialogue, music and sound effects to help the listener imagine the characters and story...
and television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
for over forty years. He is most noted for his television work, particularly his early 1960s collaborations with the playwright David Mercer, much of whose early work Taylor directed for the BBC
BBC
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...
.
The BBC
Born in MaryleboneMarylebone
Marylebone is an affluent inner-city area of central London, located within the City of Westminster. It is sometimes written as St. Marylebone or Mary-le-bone....
in 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...
, Taylor attended Chiswick Grammar School and subsequently studied English Literature
English literature
English literature is the literature written in the English language, including literature composed in English by writers not necessarily from England; for example, Robert Burns was Scottish, James Joyce was Irish, Joseph Conrad was Polish, Dylan Thomas was Welsh, Edgar Allan Poe was American, J....
at Pembroke College, Oxford
Pembroke College, Oxford
Pembroke College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England, located in Pembroke Square. As of 2009, Pembroke had an estimated financial endowment of £44.9 million.-History:...
. While at university he became actively involved in student theatre, particularly with the Experimental Theatre Club
Experimental Theatre Club
The Experimental Theatre Club is a student dramatic society at University of Oxford, England. It was founded in 1936 by Nevill Coghill as an alternative company to the Oxford University Dramatic Society , and produces several productions a year.Many famous actors and directors have been involved...
. It was for the club that Taylor directed, in 1957, the world premiere of Epitaph for George Dillon
Epitaph for George Dillon
Epitaph for George Dillon is an early John Osborne play, one of two he wrote in collaboration with Anthony Creighton . It was written before Look Back in Anger, the play which made Osborne’s career, but opened a year after in Oxford in 1957 and moved to London’s Royal Court theatre, where Look...
by the acclaimed playwright John Osborne
John Osborne
John James Osborne was an English playwright, screenwriter, actor and critic of the Establishment. The success of his 1956 play Look Back in Anger transformed English theatre....
.
After graduating, he joined the BBC
BBC
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...
as a general trainee in 1960, quickly becoming a television director
Television director
A television director directs the activities involved in making a television program and is part of a television crew.-Duties:The duties of a television director vary depending on whether the production is live or recorded to video tape or video server .In both types of productions, the...
in the drama department
BBC television drama
BBC television dramas have been produced and broadcast since even before the public service company had an officially established television broadcasting network in the United Kingdom...
. His first directing work was an episode of the crime series Scotland Yard, but he rapidly became more associated with directing single plays. His association with David Mercer began in 1961 with Where the Difference Begins, the first instalment in what became the "Generations" trilogy, the subsequent instalments of which — A Climate of Fear (1962) and Birth of a Private Man (1963) — were also directed by Taylor. He also directed Mercer's Sunday Night Play episode A Suitable Case for Treatment (1962), which explored the writer's experiences of his own nervous breakdown
Nervous breakdown
Mental breakdown is a non-medical term used to describe an acute, time-limited phase of a specific disorder that presents primarily with features of depression or anxiety.-Definition:...
.
Taylor was greatly displeased by the arrival in December 1962 of the Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
producer Sydney Newman
Sydney Newman
Sydney Cecil Newman, OC was a Canadian film and television producer, who played a pioneering role in British television drama from the late 1950s to the late 1960s...
as the new Head of Drama at the BBC. He regarded Newman as an uncultured populist with no theatrical knowledge or background; Taylor himself felt that the BBC should be 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...
of the Air". He also disliked Newman's restructuring of the drama department, one of the features of which was the abolition of the BBC's traditional single producer/director role and the division of responsibilities of producing and directing to separate posts.
Newman attempted to work with Taylor and offered him the producer's role on a series the Canadian himself had initiated — an educational science-fiction serial for children entitled Doctor Who
Doctor Who
Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
. Taylor had no interest in the series. Taylor remained with the BBC for a time, but eventually in 1963 his unhappiness with the department under Newman drove him to resign from the corporation. Although he did return as a freelancer to direct two episodes of The Wednesday Play
The Wednesday Play
The Wednesday Play was an anthology series of British television plays which ran on BBC1 from October 1964 to May 1970. Every week's play was usually written for television, although adaptations from other sources also featured...
in 1965 — including a further Mercer play, And Did Those Feet? — he later claimed to have been "blacklisted" from working in the BBC's drama department for the remainder of the decade, and there is a deal of evidence to show that this was the case. Taylor himself quoted Lionel Harris as confirming this to Ellen Dryden in his memoir Days of Vision.
Later career
He was, however, able to find work with other departments of the BBC, directing several episodes of the arts documentary series Omnibus. He also began to find success as a playwright himself, for the theatre, with his first professional play Grounds for Marriage being premiered by the Traverse TheatreTraverse Theatre
The Traverse Theatre is a theatre in Edinburgh, Scotland. It was founded in 1963.The Traverse Theatre commissions and develops new plays or adaptations from contemporary playwrights. It also presents a large number of productions from visiting companies from across the UK. These include new plays,...
in 1967.
From the early 1970s, he also began to work for BBC television drama again directing versions of his own plays The Exorcism in 1972, and The Roses of Eyam
The Roses of Eyam
The Roses of Eyam is a historical drama by Don Taylor about The Great Plague that swept Britain in 1665/66. It is largely based on the events that happened in the 'Plague Village' of Eyam in Derbyshire, between September 1665 and December 1666...
the following year.
He also worked in television for the 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...
network, including two episodes of Nigel Kneale
Nigel Kneale
Nigel Kneale was a British screenwriter from the Isle of Man. Active in television, film, radio drama and prose fiction, he wrote professionally for over fifty years, was a winner of the Somerset Maugham Award and was twice nominated for the British Film Award for Best Screenplay...
's ATV anthology horror series Beasts
Beasts (TV series)
Beasts is a series of six television plays by Manx writer Nigel Kneale, unconnected but for a bestial horror theme, made by ATV for ITV in the United Kingdom and broadcast in 1976.-Episodes:-External links:* at the BFI's Screenonline...
in 1976.
He went on to direct mostly classic theatrical adaptations for the BBC, including The Two Gentlemen of Verona
The Two Gentlemen of Verona
The Two Gentlemen of Verona is a comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in 1590 or 1591. It is considered by some to be Shakespeare's first play, and is often seen as his first tentative steps in laying out some of the themes and tropes with which he would later deal in more...
in 1984 for their The Complete Dramatic Works of William Shakespeare
BBC Television Shakespeare
The BBC Television Shakespeare was a set of television adaptations of the plays of William Shakespeare, produced by the BBC between 1978 and 1985.-Origins:...
series, which adapted all of Shakespeare's plays for the small screen. His final television work was his own new translation of Iphigenia at Aulis by Euripides
Euripides
Euripides was one of the three great tragedians of classical Athens, the other two being Aeschylus and Sophocles. Some ancient scholars attributed ninety-five plays to him but according to the Suda it was ninety-two at most...
in 1990, after which he retired from the medium. That same year he published a memoir of his television work, Days of Vision, in which he was scathing of the state of modern television drama and the disappearance of the theatrical tradition from the medium.
For the remainder of his career, Taylor was particularly active in radio and the theatre. The same year that he retired from television work, he and his wife established a radio production company called First Writes, producing plays independently for transmission on BBC radio
BBC Radio
BBC Radio is a service of the British Broadcasting Corporation which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a Royal Charter since 1927. For a history of BBC radio prior to 1927 see British Broadcasting Company...
. He both wrote and directed for radio himself, as well as working alongside his wife in the running of a youth theatre company they had established near their Chiswick home. He wrote a number of plays for the company, including "Daughters of Venice".
Later in life, the family moved to the village of Banham
Banham
Banham is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. The village is about 7 miles north of Diss, 12 miles east of Thetford and 20 miles south west of Norwich. It is home to Banham Zoo....
, near Norwich
Norwich
Norwich is a city in England. It is the regional administrative centre and county town of Norfolk. During the 11th century, Norwich was the largest city in England after London, and one of the most important places in the kingdom...
, in Norfolk
Norfolk
Norfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast and to the north-west the county is bordered by The Wash. The county...
, where Taylor died in 2003. He had married the writer Ellen Dryden in 1960 — she and their two children survived him.
Less than a year after his death, Katie Mitchell
Katie Mitchell
Katrina Jane Mitchell OBE is an English theatre director. She is an Associate of the Royal National Theatre.-Life and career:Mitchell was raised in Hermitage, Berkshire and educated at Oakham School. Upon leaving Oakham she went up to Magdalen College, Oxford to read English...
directed a production of his translation of Iphigenia at Aulis at the Lyttelton, to huge critical acclaim. The "National Theatre of the Air" had not come to pass, but finally his work was played at the National Theatre. This was followed in 2007 by the same director's production of his translation of Women of Troy.
External links
- Don Taylor at the Internet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie Database is an online database of information related to movies, television shows, actors, production crew personnel, video games and fictional characters featured in visual entertainment media. It is one of the most popular online entertainment destinations, with over 100 million...
. - Overview of Taylor's radio work at the suttonelms drama site
- Full biography at British Television drama by Oliver Wake. 15 April 2010. Accessed June 2010
- Don Taylor radio