Brian Wilson Aldiss was an English writer, artist, and anthology editor, best known for science fiction novels and short stories. His byline reads either Brian W. Aldiss or simply Brian Aldiss, except for occasional pseudonyms during the mid-1960s.
Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier, was an English actor and director who, along with his contemporaries Ralph Richardson and John Gielgud, was one of a trio of male actors who dominated the British stage of the mid-20th century. He also worked in films throughout his career, playing more than fifty cinema roles. Late in his career, he had considerable success in television roles.
Henry V is a 1944 British Technicolor epic film adaptation of William Shakespeare's play of the same title. The on-screen title is The Chronicle History of King Henry the Fifth with His Battell Fought at Agincourt in France. It stars Laurence Olivier, who also directed. The play was adapted for the screen by Olivier, Dallas Bower, and Alan Dent. The score is by William Walton.
Hamlet is a 1948 British film adaptation of William Shakespeare's play of the same name, adapted and directed by and starring Laurence Olivier. Hamlet was Olivier's second film as director and the second of the three Shakespeare films that he directed. Hamlet was the first British film to win the Academy Award for Best Picture. It is the first sound film of the play in English.
Becket or The Honour of God is a 1959 play written in French by Jean Anouilh. It is a depiction of the conflict between Thomas Becket and King Henry II of England leading to Becket's assassination in 1170. It contains many historical inaccuracies, which the author acknowledged.
The Enigma of Kaspar Hauser is a 1974 West German drama film written and directed by Werner Herzog and starring Bruno Schleinstein and Walter Ladengast. The film closely follows the real story of foundling Kaspar Hauser, using the text of actual letters found with Hauser.
John Robert Fowles was an English novelist of international renown, critically positioned between modernism and postmodernism. His work was influenced by Jean-Paul Sartre and Albert Camus, among others.
Lee Hall is an English playwright, television writer, screenwriter, and lyricist. He is best known for writing the screenplay for the film Billy Elliot (2000) and the book and lyrics for its adaptation as a stage musical of the same name. In addition, he wrote the play The Pitmen Painters (2007), and the screenplay for the film Rocketman (2019).
James Morrow is an American novelist and short-story writer known for filtering large philosophical and theological questions through his satiric sensibility.
A Christmas Carol is a 1938 American film adaptation of Charles Dickens's 1843 novella of the same name, starring Reginald Owen as Ebenezer Scrooge, an elderly miser who learns the error of his ways on Christmas Eve after visitations by three spirits.
Richard III is a 1955 British Technicolor film adaptation of William Shakespeare's historical play of the same name, also incorporating elements from his Henry VI, Part 3. It was directed and produced by Laurence Olivier, who also played the lead role. Featuring many noted Shakespearean actors, including a quartet of actors who were later knighted, the film depicts Richard plotting and conspiring to grasp the throne from his brother King Edward IV, played by Sir Cedric Hardwicke. In the process, many are killed and betrayed, with Richard's evil leading to his own downfall. The prologue of the film states that history without its legends would be "a dry matter indeed", implicitly admitting to the artistic licence that Shakespeare applied to the events of the time.
The French Lieutenant's Woman is a 1981 British romantic drama film directed by Karel Reisz, produced by Leon Clore, and adapted by the playwright Harold Pinter. It is based on The French Lieutenant's Woman, a 1969 novel by John Fowles. The music score is by Carl Davis and the cinematography by Freddie Francis.
As You Like It is a 1936 British romantic comedy film directed by Paul Czinner and starring Laurence Olivier as Orlando and Elisabeth Bergner as Rosalind. It is based on William Shakespeare's play of the same name. It was Olivier's first performance of Shakespeare on screen.
Laurence Olivier Presents is a British television anthology series made by Granada Television which ran from 1976 to 1978.
King Lear (1983) is a video production of William Shakespeare's 1606 play of the same name, directed by Michael Elliott. It was broadcast in 1983 in the UK and in 1984 in the US.
Come Back, Little Sheba is a 1977 videotaped television film production of the play of the same name by William Inge produced by Granada Television as part of the anthology series Laurence Olivier Presents transmitted in the UK by ITV on 1 January 1978. The selected plays were intended to represent "the best" in 20th Century theatre, staged for television. It aired in the United States on NBC on 31 December 1977.
The Town Santa Forgot is a 1993 animated Christmas television special produced by Hanna-Barbera, narrated by Dick Van Dyke and originally broadcast on NBC. It is an adaptation of the poem Jeremy Creek, written by Charmaine Severson. Since then, it was frequently shown in Christmas marathons on Cartoon Network until 2005, and is still shown annually on Boomerang.
War Requiem is a 1989 film adaptation of Benjamin Britten's musical piece of the same name.
Brideshead Revisited is a 1981 British television serial starring Jeremy Irons and Anthony Andrews. It was produced by Granada Television for broadcast by the ITV network. Most of the serial was directed by Charles Sturridge, with certain sequences directed by Michael Lindsay-Hogg, who handled the initial phases of the production.
The Moon and Sixpence was an American television movie broadcast on NBC on October 30, 1959. The production, starring Laurence Olivier, was adapted by S. Lee Pogostin from the novel by Somerset Maugham. The production won multiple Emmy and Sylvania Awards, including awards for Olivier's acting, Pogostin's adaptation, and Robert Mulligan's direction.
