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Clive Syddall | |
|---|---|
 Clive Syddall | |
| Born | Forfar, Scotland |
| Alma mater | University of Leicester and University of Oxford |
| Occupations |
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Clive Syddall is a British filmmaker and television journalist noted for several campaigning documentaries. He was a trustee of Marie Curie Cancer Care and communications advisor to the British Red Cross.
Syddall was born in Forfar, Scotland.[ citation needed ] He was educated at St Egbert's College London, followed by the University of Leicester and Wadham College, Oxford. [1]
Syddall was the BBC’s resident producer in Washington covering the Watergate Hearings securing the first interview with Nixon White House aide, John D. Erlichman, later gaoled for his role in the scandal. Clive also persuaded President Nixon's daughter Julie and her husband David Eisenhower, grandson of the former President, to appear live on the BBC to take questions from the ordinary British public. [2] Reported at the time as ‘unprecedented’ and ‘an astonishing coup by the BBC’. [3]
In 1978 he was appointed deputy editor [4] of the BBC's The Money Programme and later story editor [5] on Newsnight .
In 1982 he moved to New York as an independent producer, directing and producing documentaries for the BBC, Channel 4 and PBS. Films included Gang City – the story of the ongoing gang warfare in the Olympic City of Los Angeles BBC2, [6] A Bitter Harvest - The Killing Fields of Mindanao , an investigation into major human rights violations taking place on a plantation funded by the British taxpayer in the Philippines (Channel 4) and Eater of Men - the first rafting expedition attempting the descent of the treacherous Waghi River in New-Guinea 'the-most-dangerous white-water river run ever filmed' reported The Royal Geographic Society at the time; [7] produced for British Academy series River Journeys [8] (BBC / PBS). He was also involved in the development of several feature films including the Oscar winning movie The Mission (Warner Brothers). [9]
In 1988 he was invited to become managing director of Antelope Films. Productions included Global Rivals - The History of US Soviet Rivalry, for PBS, [10] Pasternak [9] - for an extended South Bank Show - a dramatised documentary on Boris Pasternak, the creator of Dr Zhivago, the first co-production between the British film Industry and Soviet State Film Company Video-Film. Other productions included The Margot Fonteyn Story [9] (Channel 4) and the Cinema Short 1867 The Execution of Maximilian [9] winner of the New York Film Festival Gold Medal Award for best Cinematography.
In 1992 he set up Paladin Pictures Ltd, specialising in current affairs, history and music and arts programming. Productions included Dance Ballerina Dance a BBC Christmas special and Travels With My Tutu which attracted record audiences, both presented by the Royal Ballet's principal ballerina Deborah Bull, The People's Duchess [11] - the dramatised documentary of Georgiana Duchess of Devonshire the ill-fated ancestor of Diana Princess of Wales, reviewed at the time as 'The Benchmark for all Future History Documentaries [12] (Channel 4). Several campaign documentaries included The Last Flight of Zulu Delta 576 [13] - an investigation into the Chinook helicopter crash over the Mull of Kintyre killing 29 of Britain's top secret service personnel (Channel 4). The film led to a Parliamentary Inquiry and a decision in 2008 by the Secretary of State for Defence to review the case finally clearing the names of the two helicopter pilots.
In 2000 he formed a joint venture with Bill Cran as Paladin Invision. [14] [15] [16] Productions for international distribution included Sinatra Dark Star [17] - a 90-minute investigation into Sinatra's connection to the Mafia, Harem [18] – TV mini-series telling the story of three of the most powerful women in the Ottoman Empire for Channel 4 and Jihad - The Men and Ideas Behind Al-Qaeda [19] (15) a 2-hour documentary that launched the PBS series America at a Crossroads.
He was council member of the Royal Television Society, [20] Trustee of Marie Curie Cancer Care 1991-1994 [21] and communications advisor to the British Red Cross (1991-1994).
| Year | Title | Format | Description | Distribution | Awards |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | JIHAD - The Men and Ideas behind Al-Qaeda | 1 x 2 hrs | Launched the PBS series America At A Crossroads | PBS | Awarded the du Pont Columbia University Award for ‘Excellence in Journalism’ and an Emmy Nomination – ‘Outstanding Historical Programme’ (2008) [22] |
| 2008 | Sinatra - Dark Star [23] | 1 x 90 mins | Sinatra's connections to Mafia leaders | BBC / ZDF / A&E | |
| 2008 | An Islamic Conscience – The Aga Khan and the Ismailis [24] | 1 x 60 mins | Profile of and interview with HH The Aga Khan | ||
| The Demonised Duchess | 1 x 75 mins | Wallis Simpson Duchess of Windsor. | Channel 4 | ||
| 2002 | Nelson's Trafalgar [25] | 1 x 90 mins | Broadcast to coincide with the bicentenary of the Battle of Trafalgar. | Channel 4 | |
| 1999 | The People's Duchess [26] | Dramatised documentary about Georgiana Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire | Channel 4 | ||
| 1998 | Purple Secret - In Search of Royal Madness [27] | 1 x 60 mins | 60’ investigation into Porphyria and the madness of King George III and his descendants | Channel 4 | |
| 1997 | The Last Flight of Zulu 567 | 1 x 75 mins | Investigation into the Chinook helicopter crash over the Mull of Kintyre killing 29 of Britain's top secret service personnel. | Channel 4 | |
| The Assassin [28] | 1 x 50 mins | Film tracking down the American born Chilean Secret Agent hired to assassinate the foes of General Pinochet | BBC 1 (Inside Story) | ||
| Julia's Baby | 1 x 60 mins | Julia is deaf, blind, single and pregnant, who will care for Julia's Baby? | Channel 4 | ||
| 1995 | Lost in Africa [29] | 1 x 60 mins | Documentary on the fight by the International Red Cross to save 100,000 children separated from their parents by the civil war in Rwanda, | Channel 4 | |
| 1993 | An Ordinary Boy [30] | Colin and Wendy Parry, whose son Tim was killed in the Warrington IRA bombing, travel to Northern Ireland to find out the reason for Tim's murder. | BBC (Panorama) | New York International Film & TV Festival award 1993 | |
| 1987 | Command and Control – How nuclear weapons are controlled | Documentary report about "Command and Control", the collection of telephones, code books, keys and triggers that is supposed to stop a nuclear war. | Channel 4 | ||
| 1987 | A Bitter Harvest - The killing fields of Mindanao [31] | Investigation into major human rights violations carried out on a Palm Oil Plantation in the Philippines part funded by British Taxpayers. | Channel 4 | ||
| 1979 | Ambassador Jay | Profile of the Prime Minister Jim Callaghan's son-in-law as British Ambassador in Washington and the workings of the embassy. With reporter Michael Cockerell | BBC (Panorama) | ||
| 1977 | Allahabad Speaks | Investigation of how the citizens of the City of Indira Gandhi's birthplace fared under her 'state of emergency' during which civil liberties were suspended, the press censored and widespread atrocities were carried out. With presenter David Dimbleby. | BBC (Panorama) | ||
| 1976 | Who'll Help Letcher County? | 1976 Presidential Election as seen through the eyes of the BBC citizens of one of the poorest counties in America. With presenter David Dimbleby. | BBC (Panorama) |
| Year | Title | Format | Description | Distribution | Awards |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | P G Woodhouse The Long Exile [32] | 1 x 75 mins | TV documentary. The story of lyricist and writer P.G. Wodehouse, from his days on Broadway through to his wartime years in an internment camp in Germany which led to accusations of treachery. | Channel 4 | |
| 2001 | The Real Tommy Cooper [33] | 1 x 60 mins | Workaholic comic Tommy Cooper is remembered by friends and colleagues. | Channel 4 | |
| 1997 | A Death in Venice [34] | An investigation in to who or what caused the fire at Venice's Fenice Opera House. | BBC 2 (The Works) | ||
| Dance Ballerina Dance | 100 years of the choreography of women, presented by the Royal Ballet's Principal Ballerina Deborah Bull for BBC2's Dance Night | BBC 2 (Dance Night) | |||
| 1994 | The Shearing Touch – with Melvyn Bragg [35] | 1 x 60 mins | Profile of the congenitally blind pianist George Shearing, including interviews with various musicians and recordings of performances including Johnny Dankworth, Cleo Lane and Mel Tormé. | LWT / RM Arts | New York International Film & TV Festival Award. |
| 1992 | The Vanishing Rembrandts [36] | 1 x 50 mins | Film following the Dutch Investigation into the authenticity of several Rembrandt paintings | BBC & A&E | |
| 1991 | 1867 – The Execution of Maximilian [37] | 11’ cinema short re-enacting Edouard Manet painting a series of pictures of the execution of the Emperor Maximilian, filmed in a single take | Metropolitan Museum Art on Film Project / Channel 4 (Without Walls) | New York International Film & TV Festival 'Gold Medal' Award for Best Cinematography | |
| 1990 | Pasternak | 1 x 90 mins | Marking the centenary of Pasternak's birth and the first co-production between the British film industry and the Soviet state film company Video-film | LWT South Bank Show / Granada International / Video-Film | |
| 1989 | The Margot Fonteyn Story | 1 x 90 mins | Feature-length documentary presented by Margot Fonteyn. | Channel 4 / RM Arts |
| Year | Title | Format | Description | Distribution | Awards |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | The Curse of Oil - The Pipeline | 3 x 1 hour | BBC2 / PBS | Cine Golden Eagle Award (2004) | |
| 2003 | Harem | Channel 4 | |||
| 2000 | Travels With My Tutu | 4 part series where Principal Ballerina Deborah Bull tries her hand at Tango, Belly dancing, Hip-Hop and Breakdancing. | BBC | ||
| 1998 | Plague Wars | TV mini series presented by Tom Mangold | BBC / Worldwide | Winner Best Investigative Reporting / New Documentary Award, Chicago International Television Competition 1998 | |
| 1990 | 1421 – The Year China Discovered America [38] | 1421 – The Year China Discovered America 120’. (1990) | PBS / Pearson TV |
| Year | Title | Format | Description | Distribution | Awards |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 | Gang City | 1 x 50 mins | Documentary on the ongoing gang warfare in the Olympic City of Los Angeles launching the BBC1 series Real Lives | BBC (Real Lives) | |
| 1984 | 'Eater of Men' | 1 x 50 mins | documentary on the first navigation of the Waghi river, Papua New Guinea's most treacherous white water river with explorer Christina Dodwell. For the BBC series River Journeys | BBC / PBS / ABC Australia | BAFTA Award for ‘Best Factual Series’ |
| 1973 | Jimmy Hoffa Comes Back | One of the last interviews with the notorious leader of America's largest trade union before he went mysteriously missing, presumed murdered. | BBC (Midweek) | ||
| 1973 | Bad Blood - The Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment | Documentary tracking down the survivors of a clinical study in the American South to examine the long term effects of Syphilis who were falsely told by the US Public Health Service that they were being treated for the disease | BBC (Midweek) | ||
| Regine - Queen of Clubs | 1 x 40 mins | Documentary on the legendary singer and international night club entrepreneur | BBC (Larger than life) | ||
| 1975 | John Bloom Goes West | Documentary tracking down the controversial washing machine millionaire starting a new life in Lost Angeles | BBC Midweek / BBC 1 Special | ||
| 1972 | Ulster Veterans – Forgotten Men | The lives of some of the 1,000 men badly wounded fighting in Northern Ireland. | BBC (Midweek) |
