Mark Kermode (, ; ; born 2 July 1963) is an English

film critic Film criticism is the analysis and evaluation of films and the film medium. In general, film criticism can be divided into two categories: Academic criticism by film scholars, who study the composition of film theory and publish their findin ...

musician A musician is someone who Composer, composes, Conducting, conducts, or Performing arts#Performers, performs music. According to the United States Employment Service, "musician" is a general Terminology, term used to designate a person who fol ...

, radio presenter,

television presenter A television presenter (or television host, some become a "television personality") is a person who introduces or hosts television show, television programs, often serving as a mediator for the program and the audience. It is common for people ...

, author and podcaster. He is the co-presenter (with Ellen E. Jones) of the

BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. The station replaced the BBC Home Service on 30 September 1967 and broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes from the BBC's headquarters at Broadcasti ...

programme ''Screenshot'', and co-presenter (alongside long-time collaborator Simon Mayo) of the film-review podcast ''Kermode & Mayo's Take''. Kermode is a regular contributor to ''

The Observer ''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. First published in 1791, it is the world's oldest Sunday newspaper. In 1993 it was acquired by Guardian Media Group Limited, and operated as a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' ...

'', for which he was chief film critic between September 2013 and September 2023. Kermode is the author of several books on film and music, including ''It's Only A Movie'', ''The Good The Bad and The Multiplex'', ''Hatchet Job'' and ''How Does It Feel?''. He is the co-author of ''Hollywood: Sixty Great Years'' (with Jack Lodge, John Russell Taylor, Adrian Turner, Douglas Jarvis and David Castell), ''The Movie Doctors'' (with Simon Mayo), and ''Mark Kermode's Surround Sound'' (with Jenny Nelson). He has also written three volumes for the BFI's Modern Classics series – on ''

The Exorcist ''The Exorcist'' is a 1973 American supernatural horror film directed by William Friedkin from a screenplay by William Peter Blatty, based on The Exorcist (novel), his 1971 novel. The film stars Ellen Burstyn, Max von Sydow, Jason Miller (play ...

'', ''

The Shawshank Redemption ''The Shawshank Redemption'' is a 1994 American Prison film, prison Drama (film and television), drama film written and directed by Frank Darabont, based on the 1982 Stephen King novella ''Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption''. The film t ...

'' and '' Silent Running''. Since the late 1980s he has contributed to the BFI's film magazine '' Sight & Sound'' and its predecessor ''

The Monthly Film Bulletin The ''Monthly Film Bulletin'' was a periodical of the British Film Institute published monthly from February 1934 until April 1991, when it merged with '' Sight & Sound''. It reviewed all films on release in the United Kingdom, including those wi ...

'', and since January 2016 he has presented a monthly live show, ''MK3D'', at the

British Film Institute The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves filmmaking and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery to encourage film production, ...

(BFI),

South Bank The South Bank is an entertainment and commercial area on the south bank of the River Thames, in the London Borough of Lambeth, central London, England. The South Bank is not formally defined, but is generally understood to be situated betwe ...

. It is the BFI's longest-running live show. Kermode previously co-presented the

BBC Radio 5 Live BBC Radio 5 Live is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It broadcasts mainly news, sport, Talk show, discussion, interviews and phone-ins, and is on air 24 hours a day. It is the principal BBC radio station Broadca ...

show '' Kermode and Mayo's Film Review'', and previously co-presented the

BBC Two BBC Two is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's second flagship channel, and it covers a wide range of subject matte ...

arts programme '' The Culture Show''. Between 2018 and 2021, he co-wrote and presented three seasons of the

BBC Four BBC Four is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It was launched on 2 March 2002

film documentary series '' Mark Kermode's Secrets of Cinema'', and between 2019 and 2024 he presented a weekly film music show on Scala Radio. He is a member of the

British Academy of Film and Television Arts The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA, ) is an independent trade association and charity that supports, develops, and promotes the arts of film, television and video games in the United Kingdom. In addition to its annual awa ...

and a founding member of the

skiffle Skiffle is a music genre, genre of folk music with influences from American folk music, blues, Country music, country, Bluegrass music, bluegrass, and jazz, generally performed with a mixture of manufactured and homemade or improvised instruments. ...

band the Dodge Brothers, for which he plays

double bass The double bass (), also known as the upright bass, the acoustic bass, the bull fiddle, or simply the bass, is the largest and lowest-pitched string instrument, chordophone in the modern orchestra, symphony orchestra (excluding rare additions ...

. Since 2008, the Dodge Brothers (with Neil Brand) have provided live accompaniment for

silent film A silent film is a film without synchronized recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) or key lines of dialogue may, w ...

s such as '' Beggars of Life'', '' Hell's Hinges'', ''

White Oak ''Quercus'' subgenus ''Quercus'' is one of the two subgenera into which the genus ''Quercus'' was divided in a 2017 classification (the other being subgenus ''Cerris''). It contains about 190 species divided among five sections. It may be calle ...

'' and '' The Ghost That Never Returns''.

Early life

Kermode was born in the Royal Free Hospital in the London Borough of Camden.https://planetradio.co.uk/scala-radio/presenters/mark-kermode/ He was educated at the state-funded

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...

primary school St Mary's at Finchley,https://planetradio.co.uk/scala-radio/presenters/mark-kermode/ and was granted a Barnet-council-funded free place at The Haberdashers' Aske's Boys' School in Elstree, Hertfordshire under the

Direct grant grammar school A direct grant grammar school was a type of selective secondary school in the United Kingdom that existed between 1945 and 1976. One quarter of the places in these schools were directly funded by central government, while the remainder attracted ...

scheme in 1974, at the same time as actor Jason Isaacs. Kermode's mother was a GP, who was born in

Douglas, Isle of Man Douglas (, ) is the Capital (political), capital city and largest settlement of the Isle of Man, with a population of 26,677 (2021) and an area of . It is located at the mouth of the River Douglas, Isle of Man, River Douglas, and on a sweepi ...

, and practised in Golders Green, north London. His father, the son of a travelling flour salesman, worked in the London Hospital in

Whitechapel Whitechapel () is an area in London, England, and is located in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is in east London and part of the East End of London, East End. It is the location of Tower Hamlets Town Hall and therefore the borough tow ...

.https://planetradio.co.uk/scala-radio/presenters/mark-kermode/ His grandmother was

Swiss German Swiss German (Standard German: , ,Because of the many different dialects, and because there is no #Conventions, defined orthography for any of them, many different spellings can be found. and others; ) is any of the Alemannic German, Alemannic ...

. He was raised as a

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a Protestant Christianity, Christian Christian tradition, tradition whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's brother ...

, and later became a member of the

. His parents divorced when he was in his early twenties, and he subsequently changed his surname to his Manx mother's maiden name by

deed poll A deed poll (plural: deeds poll) is a legal document binding on a single person or several persons acting jointly to express an intention or create an obligation. It is a deed, and not a contract, because it binds only one party. Etymology Th ...

. He earned his

PhD A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of graduate study and original research. The name of the deg ...

in English at the

University of Manchester The University of Manchester is a public university, public research university in Manchester, England. The main campus is south of Manchester city centre, Manchester City Centre on Wilmslow Road, Oxford Road. The University of Manchester is c ...

in 1991, writing a

thesis A thesis (: theses), or dissertation (abbreviated diss.), is a document submitted in support of candidature for an academic degree or professional qualification presenting the author's research and findings.International Standard ISO 7144: D ...

horror fiction Horror is a genre of speculative fiction that is intended to disturb, frighten, or scare an audience. Horror is often divided into the sub-genres of psychological horror and supernatural horror. Literary historian J. A. Cuddon, in 1984, defin ...

Film criticism

Mark Kermode and Simon Mayo recording a podcast

Kermode began his film career as a print journalist, writing for Manchester's ''City Life'', and then '' Time Out'' and ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming and culture website, bimonthly magazine, and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a "Rock music, rock inkie", the ''NME'' would be ...

'' in London. He has subsequently written for a range of publications including ''The Guardian'', ''The Observer'',

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

, Vox,

Empire An empire is a political unit made up of several territories, military outpost (military), outposts, and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a hegemony, dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the ...

, ''Flicks'', ''20/20'',

Fangoria ''Fangoria'' is an internationally distributed American horror film fan magazine, in publication since 1979. It is published four times a year by Fangoria Publishing, LLC and is edited by Phil Nobile Jr. The magazine was originally released i ...

, ''Video Watchdog'' and ''Neon''.Mark Kermode
English Department teaching staff, University of Southampton, accessed 14 January 2008 Kermode began working as a film broadcaster on LBC in 1988, after which he moved to BBC Radio 5 (later rebranded as 5Live). Between February 1992 and October 1993, he was the resident film reviewer on BBC Radio 5's ''Morning Edition'' with Danny Baker. He became the film critic for

BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and Contemporary hit radio, current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including ...

in 1993, on a regular Thursday night slot called ''Cult Film Corner'' on Mark Radcliffe's ''Graveyard Shift'' session. He later moved to Simon Mayo's BBC Radio 1 morning show. He hosted a movie review show with Mary Anne Hobbs on Radio 1 on Tuesday nights called ''ClingFilm''. From 2001 until 2022, Kermode reviewed and debated new film releases with Mayo on the ''

'' show '' Kermode and Mayo's Film Review''. The programme won Gold in the Speech Award category at the 2009 Sony Radio Academy Awards on 11 May 2009. On 11 March 2022, it was announced by Simon Mayo, at the start of ''Kermode and Mayo's Film Review'', that the last episode would be broadcast on 1 April 2022. Kermode and Mayo launched a non-BBC film and television podcast called ''Kermode & Mayo's Take'' in May 2022. Kermode has worked on film-related documentaries including ''The Fear of God; 25 Years of

'', ''Hell on Earth: The Desecration and Resurrection of

Ken Russell Henry Kenneth Alfred Russell (3 July 1927 – 27 November 2011) was a British film director, known for his pioneering work in television and film and for his flamboyant and controversial style. His films were mainly liberal adaptations of ...

's The Devils'', '' Alien: Evolution'', ''On the Edge of

Blade Runner ''Blade Runner'' is a 1982 science fiction film directed by Ridley Scott from a screenplay by Hampton Fancher and David Peoples. Starring Harrison Ford, Rutger Hauer, Sean Young, and Edward James Olmos, it is an adaptation of Philip K. Di ...

'', ''Mantrap: Straw Dogs – The Final Cut'', ''Shawshank: The Redeeming Feature'', ''The Poughkeepsie Shuffle: Tracing the French Connection'', ''Salo: Fade to Black'', ''The Real Linda Lovelace'' and ''The Cult of The Wicker Man''. From 2001 to 2005, Kermode reviewed films each week for the ''

New Statesman ''The New Statesman'' (known from 1931 to 1964 as the ''New Statesman and Nation'') is a British political and cultural news magazine published in London. Founded as a weekly review of politics and literature on 12 April 1913, it was at first c ...

''. Prior to becoming chief film critic in 2013, he wrote "Mark Kermode's DVD round-up" for ''

'', a weekly review of the latest releases. He also writes for the

's ''

Sight and Sound ''Sight and Sound'' (formerly written ''Sight & Sound'') is a monthly film magazine published by the British Film Institute (BFI). Since 1952, it has conducted the well-known decennial ''Sight and Sound'' Poll of the Greatest Films of All Time. ...

'' magazine. From 1995 to 2001, Kermode was a film critic and presenter for Film4 and

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by Channel Four Television Corporation. It is state-owned enterprise, publicly owned but, unlike the BBC, it receives no public funding and is funded en ...

, presenting the weekly ''Extreme Cinema'' strand. He has written and presented documentaries for Channel 4 and the BBC, and until 2023 appeared on '' The Film Review'' for '' BBC News at Five''. For BBC Two's '' The Culture Show'', Kermode hosted an annual "Kermode Awards" episode, which presented statuettes to actors and directors not nominated for

Academy Awards The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence in ...

that year. In 2002, Kermode challenged the

British Board of Film Classification The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) is a non-governmental organization, non-governmental organisation founded by the British film industry in 1912 and responsible for the national classification and censorship of films exhibited ...

(BBFC), the censor for film in the UK, about its cuts to the 1972 film '' The Last House on the Left''. In 2008, the BBFC allowed the film to be re-released uncut. He has since stated that the BBFC do a good job in an impossible situation and expressed his approval of their decisions. In a 2012 '' Sight & Sound'' poll of cinema's greatest films, Kermode indicated his ten favourites, a list later published in order of preference in his book ''Hatchet Job'', as ''The Exorcist'', '' A Matter of Life and Death'', ''The Devils'', '' It's a Wonderful Life'', '' Don't Look Now'', '' Pan's Labyrinth'', ''

Mary Poppins Mary Poppins may refer to: * Mary Poppins (character), a nanny with magical powers * Mary Poppins (franchise), based on the fictional nanny ** Mary Poppins (book series), ''Mary Poppins'' (book series), the original 1934–1988 children's fanta ...

'', ''

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

'', '' Eyes Without a Face'' and '' The Seventh Seal''. From September 2013 to September 2023, Kermode was the chief film critic for ''The Observer''. In 2018, he began to present his own documentary series '' Mark Kermode's Secrets of Cinema'' on

BBC Four BBC Four is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It was launched on 2 March 2002

. A second series followed, as well as disaster movie, Christmas, and Oscar winners specials. Between 2019 and 2024, Kermode presented a soundtrack-themed show on classical radio station Scala Radio. Kermode produces an annual "best-of-the-year" and "worst-of-the-year" movie lists, thereby providing an overview of his critical preferences. His top choices were: {, class="wikitable" , +Kermode's best films of the year !Year !Best Film !Citation !Worst Film !Citation , - , 1996 , '' Crash'' , , , , - , 1997 , ''

Boogie Nights ''Boogie Nights'' is a 1997 American drama film written, directed, and co-produced by Paul Thomas Anderson. It is set in Los Angeles's San Fernando Valley and focuses on a young nightclub dishwasher who becomes a popular star of pornographic ...

'' , , , , - , 1998 , ''Festen'' aka '' The Celebration'' , , , , - , 1999 , ''

Audition An audition is a sample performance by an actor, singer, musician, dancer or other performer. It typically involves the performer displaying their talent through a previously memorized and rehearsed solo piece or by performing a work or piece gi ...

'' , , , , - , 2000 , '' Erin Brockovich'' , , , , - , 2001 , '' Ghost World'' , , , , - , 2002 , ''

Punch-Drunk Love ''Punch-Drunk Love'' is a 2002 American Absurdist fiction, absurdist Romance film, romantic comedy drama film written and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, and starring Adam Sandler, Emily Watson, and Philip Seymour Hoffman. It follows an entrepr ...

'' , , , , - , 2003 , '' City of God'' , , , , - , 2004 , '' Dogville'' and ''

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind ''Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind'' is a 2004 American surrealist science fiction romantic drama film directed by Michel Gondry and written by Charlie Kaufman from a story by Gondry, Kaufman, and Pierre Bismuth. Starring Jim Carrey a ...

'' , , , , - , 2005 , ''

A History of Violence ''A History of Violence'' is a 2005 action thriller film directed by David Cronenberg and written by Josh Olson. It is an adaptation of the 1997 DC Comics, DC A History of Violence (comics), graphic novel by John Wagner and Vince Locke. The fi ...

'' , , , , - , 2006 , '' Pan's Labyrinth'' , , , , - , 2007 , '' The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford'' , , '' Good Luck Chuck'' , , - , 2008 , '' Of Time and the City'' , , '' The Hottie and the Nottie'' , , - , 2009 , '' Let the Right One In'' , , '' Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen'' , , - , 2010 , '' Inception'' , , '' Sex and the City 2'' , {{cite news, url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/markkermode/2010/12/my_worst_five_films_of_2010.html, title=My Worst Five Films of 2010, author=Mark Kermode, access-date=2010-12-31, publisher=

BBC Online BBC Online, formerly known as BBCi, is the BBC's online service. It is a large network of websites including such high-profile sites as BBC News and BBC Sport, Sport, the on-demand video and radio services branded BBC iPlayer and BBC Sounds, t ...

, archive-date=August 4, 2020, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200804214615/https://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/markkermode/2010/12/my_worst_five_films_of_2010.html, url-status=live , - , 2011 , '' We Need to Talk About Kevin'' , , ''

New Year's Eve In the Gregorian calendar, New Year's Eve refers to the evening, or commonly the entire day, of the last day of the year, 31 December, also known as Old Year's Day. In many countries, New Year's Eve is celebrated with dancing, eating, drinkin ...

'' , , - , 2012 , '' A Royal Affair'' and ''

Berberian Sound Studio ''Berberian Sound Studio'' is a 2012 British psychological horror film. It is the second feature film by British director and screenwriter Peter Strickland. The film, which stars Toby Jones, is set in a 1970s Italian horror film studio. Plot B ...

'' , ' , '' Keith Lemon: The Film'' , , - , 2013 , ''

12 Years a Slave ''Twelve Years a Slave'' is an 1853 memoir and slave narrative by Solomon Northup as told to and written by David Wilson. Northup, a black man who was born free in New York state, details himself being tricked to go to Washington, D.C., whe ...

'' and ''

Good Vibrations "Good Vibrations" is a song by the American rock music, rock band the Beach Boys, produced and composed by Brian Wilson with lyrics by Mike Love. Released as a single on October 10, 1966, it achieved immediate critical and commercial success, ...

'' , , '' Pain & Gain'' , , - , 2014 , '' The Babadook'' , , '' Transformers: Age of Extinction'' , , - , 2015 , '' Inside Out'' , , '' Entourage'' , , - , 2016 , '' Under the Shadow'' , {{cite web , title=Kermode Uncut: My Top Ten Films of 2016 – Part Two , url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ss6pxjUNDhA , archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211212/Ss6pxjUNDhA , archive-date=12 December 2021 , url-status=live , website=www.youtube.com , date=27 December 2016{{cbignore , '' Dirty Grandpa'' , , - , 2017 , '' Raw'' , , '' Wolves at the Door'' , , - , 2018 , '' Leave No Trace'' , , '' Show Dogs'' , , - , 2019 , '' Bait'' , , , , - , 2020 , '' Saint Maud'' , , , , - , 2021 , '' Petite Maman'' , , , , - , 2022 , '' Aftersun'' , , , , - , 2023 , '' Past Lives'' , , '' The Exorcist: Believer'' , , - , 2024 , '' The Substance'' , , ''

Megalopolis A megalopolis () or a supercity, also called a megaregion, is a group of metropolitan areas which are perceived as a continuous urban area through common systems of transport, economy, resources, ecology, and so on. They are integrated enough ...

'' , {{col-break {, class="wikitable" , +Kermode's best films of the decade !Decade !Film !Citation , - , 1990s , '' Land and Freedom'' , , - , 2000s , '' Pan's Labyrinth'' , , - , 2010s , ''Bait'' , {{Col-end

Bibliography

* ''Hollywood: Sixty Great Years'' (1992), with Jack Lodge, John Russell Taylor, Adrian Turner, Douglas Jarvis, Adrian Castell * ''BFI Modern Classics: The Exorcist'' (1997) * ''BFI Modern Classics: The Shawshank Redemption'' (2003) * ''It's Only a Movie: Reel Life Adventures of a Film Obsessive'' (2010) * ''The Good, The Bad and The Multiplex: What's Wrong With Modern Movies?'' (2011) * ''Hatchet Job: Love Movies, Hate Critics'' (2013) * ''BFI Modern Classics: Silent Running'' (2014) * ''The Movie Doctors'' (2015), with Simon Mayo * ''How Does It Feel? A Life of Musical Misadventures'' (2018) * ''Mark Kermode's Surround Sound'' (2025), with Jenny Nelson

Other writing

In February 2010,

Random House Random House is an imprint and publishing group of Penguin Random House. Founded in 1927 by businessmen Bennett Cerf and Donald Klopfer as an imprint of Modern Library, it quickly overtook Modern Library as the parent imprint. Over the foll ...

released his

autobiography An autobiography, sometimes informally called an autobio, is a self-written account of one's own life, providing a personal narrative that reflects on the author's experiences, memories, and insights. This genre allows individuals to share thei ...

, ''It's Only a Movie'', which he describes as being "inspired by real events". Its publication was accompanied by a UK tour. In September 2011, he released a follow-up book entitled ''The Good, the Bad and the Multiplex'', in which he expresses his opinions on the good and bad of modern films, and vehemently criticizes the modern

multiplex Multiplex may refer to: Science and technology * Multiplex communication, combining many signals into one transmission circuit or channel ** Multiplex (television), a group of digital television or radio channels that are combined for broadcast * ...

experience and the

3D film 3D films are motion pictures made to give an illusion of three-dimensional solidity, usually with the help of special glasses worn by viewers. 3D films were prominently featured in the 1950s in American cinema and later experienced a worldwide r ...

craze that had grown in the years immediately preceding the book's publication. In 2013,

Picador A ''picador'' (; pl. ''picadores'') is one of the pair of horse-mounted bullfighters in a Spanish-style bullfight that jab the bull with a lance. They perform in the ''tercio de varas'', which is the first of the three stages in a stylized bull ...

published ''Hatchet Job: Love Movies, Hate Critics'' in which he examines whether professional "traditional" film critics still have a role in a culture of ever increasing numbers of online bloggers and amateur critics. In 2017, he collaborated with his idol

William Friedkin William David Friedkin (; August 29, 1935 – August 7, 2023) was an American film, television and opera director, producer, and screenwriter who was closely identified with the "New Hollywood" movement of the 1970s. Beginning his career in doc ...

on the feature documentary '' The Devil and Father Amorth'', as a writer. The film had its first showing at the

Venice Film Festival The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival (, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival held in Venice, Italy. It is the world's oldest film festival and one of the ...

on 31 August 2017.

Other work

Kermode was a regular presenter on

's ''The Culture Show'' and appeared regularly on '' Newsnight Review''. During a 2006 interview with Kermode for ''The Culture Show'' in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

Werner Herzog Werner Herzog (; né Stipetić; born 5 September 1942) is a German filmmaker, actor, opera director, and author. Regarded as a pioneer of New German Cinema, his films often feature ambitious protagonists with impossible dreams, people with unusu ...

was shot with an

air rifle An air gun or airgun is a gun that uses energy from compressed air or other gases that are mechanically pressurized and then released to propel and accelerate projectiles, similar to the principle of the primitive blowgun. This is in contr ...

. Herzog appeared unflustered, later stating: "It was not a significant bullet. I am not afraid". Kermode co-hosted an early 1990s afternoon magazine show on BBC Radio 5 called ''A Game of Two Halves'', alongside former '' Blue Peter'' presenter Caron Keating.{{cite book, title=It's Only a Movie: Reel Life Adventures of a Film Obsessive, first=Mark, last=Kermode, year=2010, location=London , publisher=Random House, isbn=978-1-84794-602-7, page={{Page needed, date=September 2010 Kermode appeared in a cameo role as himself in the revival of the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

's '' Absolutely Fabulous'' on 1 January 2012. In April 2008, Kermode started a twice-weekly

video blog A vlog (), also known as a video blog or video log, is a form of blog for which the medium is video. Vlog entries often combine embedded video (or a video link) with supporting text, images, and other metadata. Entries can be recorded in one ta ...

hosted on the BBC website, in which he discussed films and recounts anecdotes. He retired the podcast for its tenth anniversary at the close of 2018, with special episodes on his most and least favourite movies of the previous decade. Kermode has recorded DVD, Blu-ray and 4K Ultra HD audio commentaries for '' Tommy'' (with Ken Russell), ''The Devils'' (with Ken Russell and Mike Bradsell), '' The Ninth Configuration'' (with William Peter Blatty), '' The Wicker Man'' (with Edward Woodward, Christopher Lee and Robin Hardy), '' Gregory's Girl'', ''Cruising'' (with William Friedkin), ''Bait'', ''Enys Men'' (both with Mark Jenkin) and (with Peter O'Toole) '' Becket''. He appears in the DVD extras of ''

Lost in La Mancha ''Lost in La Mancha'' is a 2002 documentary film about Terry Gilliam's first attempt to make ''The Man Who Killed Don Quixote'', a film adaptation of the 1605/1615 novel ''Don Quixote'' by Miguel de Cervantes. The documentary was shot in 2000 d ...

'', interviewing

Terry Gilliam Terrence Vance Gilliam ( ; born 22 November 1940) is an American-British filmmaker, comedian, collage film, collage animator, and actor. He gained stardom as a member of the Monty Python comedy troupe alongside John Cleese, Eric Idle, Michael Pa ...

, and '' Pan's Labyrinth'', in which he interviews

Guillermo del Toro Guillermo del Toro Gómez (; born 9 October 1964) is a Mexican filmmaker, author, and artist. His work has been characterized by a strong connection to fairy tales, Gothic fiction, gothicism and horror fiction, horror often blending the genres ...

about the film, which he has called a masterpiece. Kermode has written books, published by the BFI in its ''Modern Classics'' series, on ''The Exorcist'', ''Silent Running'' and ''

'' and his documentary for Channel 4, ''Shawshank: The Redeeming Feature'', is on the film's tenth anniversary special edition DVD. Kermode's family connections with the

Isle of Man The Isle of Man ( , also ), or Mann ( ), is a self-governing British Crown Dependency in the Irish Sea, between Great Britain and Ireland. As head of state, Charles III holds the title Lord of Mann and is represented by a Lieutenant Govern ...

have led to him playing a role in Manx culture and the arts. This has seen him host various talks on the island.{{cite web , title=Mark Kermode opening event celebrates island culture 2014 , url=https://www.gov.im/categories/leisure-and-entertainment/arts-council/news/?altTemplate%3DViewCategorisedNews%26id%3D20352 , access-date=24 September 2015 , url-status=dead , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150925093035/https://www.gov.im/categories/leisure-and-entertainment/arts-council/news/?altTemplate=ViewCategorisedNews&id=20352 , archive-date=25 September 2015 He has also been involved with the annual Isle of Man Film Festival. Kermode became patron of the Sir

John Hurt Sir John Vincent Hurt (22 January 1940 – 28 January 2017) was an English actor. Regarded as one of the finest actors of his time and known for the "most distinctive voice in Cinema of the United Kingdom, Britain", he was described by David Ly ...

Film Trust in November 2019. He is a visiting fellow at the

University of Southampton The University of Southampton (abbreviated as ''Soton'' in post-nominal letters) is a public university, public research university in Southampton, England. Southampton is a founding member of the Russell Group of research-intensive universit ...

Music

Kermode played

for a

rockabilly Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music. It dates back to the early 1950s in the United States, especially the Southern United States, South. As a genre, it blends the sound of Western music (North America), Western musi ...

band called the Railtown Bottlers in the early 1990s. They were the house band on the BBC show '' Danny Baker After All'' for a series, starting in 1993,{{cite news , last=Kermode , first=Mark , title=My 20-year love affair with the joy of skiffle , url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2008/jun/01/popandrock2 , newspaper=

, location=London , date=1 June 2008 , access-date=28 December 2009 in which he performed with the Madness lead singer Suggs,

Nick Heyward Nicholas Heyward (born 20 May 1961) is an English singer-songwriter and guitarist. He came to international attention in the early 1980s as the lead singer and songwriter for Haircut One Hundred. He and the band parted ways after their first al ...

Alison Moyet Geneviève Alison Jane Ballard (; ; born 18 June 1961), formerly known as Alf, is an English singer. Noted for her powerful bluesy contralto voice, she came to prominence as a member of the synth-pop duo Yazoo (band), Yazoo (known as Yaz in Nor ...

Aimee Mann Aimee Elizabeth Mann (born September 8, 1960) is an American singer-songwriter. Over the course of four decades, she has released ten studio albums as a solo artist. She is noted for her sardonic and literate lyrics about dark subjects, often d ...

Nanci Griffith Nanci Caroline Griffith (July 6, 1953 – August 13, 2021) was an American singer, guitarist, and songwriter. She often appeared on the PBS music program ''Austin City Limits'', starting in 1985 during season 10. In 1990, Griffith appeared on th ...

Tim Finn Brian Timothy Finn (born 25 June 1952) is a New Zealand singer, songwriter, musician, and composer. He is best known as a founding member of Split Enz. Finn founded the band in 1972 with Phil Judd and served as lead singer and principal songw ...

and Squeeze.{{citation needed, date=September 2018 In 2001 he formed skiffle quartet the Dodge Brothers, playing double bass. Talking about playing the chromatic harmonica with an orchestra at the

Royal Festival Hall The Royal Festival Hall is a 2,700-seat concert, dance and talks venue within Southbank Centre in London, England. It is situated on the South Bank of the River Thames, not far from Hungerford Bridge, in the London Borough of Lambeth. It is a G ...

, he said: "Somehow I got away with it. You can listen to it. It's not terrible, it's not brilliant, but it's fine." Kermode says that sheer persistence is the key to his musical success: "I'd rate enthusiasm and persistence over talent. And that's been a guiding light, that you shouldn't be put off by being unprepared or technically inept. I have managed to surround myself with other people who can play. And actually that's the trick."

Personal life

Kermode is married to Linda Ruth Williams, a professor who lectures on film at the

University of Exeter The University of Exeter is a research university in the West Country of England, with its main campus in Exeter, Devon. Its predecessor institutions, St Luke's College, Exeter School of Science, Exeter School of Art, and the Camborne School of ...

. From October to November 2004, they jointly curated a ''History of the Horror Film'' season and exhibition at the National Film Theatre in London.{{cite web, url=http://www.southampton.ac.uk/film/profiles/williams.html, title=Professor Linda Ruth Williams, publisher=University of Southampton, access-date=8 March 2008, url-status=dead, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080403125551/http://www.southampton.ac.uk/film/profiles/williams.html, archive-date=3 April 2008 Kermode and Williams have two children. Kermode has been described as "a

feminist Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideology, ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social gender equality, equality of the sexes. Feminism holds the position that modern soci ...

, a near vegetarian (he eats fish), a churchgoer and a straight-arrow spouse who just happens to enjoy seeing people's heads explode across a cinema screen".{{Cite news, url=https://www.scotsman.com/arts-and-culture/books/interview-mark-kermode-film-critic-2461582, title=Interview: Mark Kermode, film critic, first= Lee, last= Randall, work=The Scotsman Magazine, date=7 February 2010, access-date=21 July 2010 In the mid-1980s, Kermode was an "affiliate" of the Revolutionary Communist Group (RCG) and was involved in the Viraj Mendis Defence Campaign, against the deportation of one of the group's members to

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...

. This developed into a high-profile national campaign involving people from left-wing groups such as the RCG, local residents of

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

and extending to church leaders and Labour Party Members of Parliament. Kermode describes himself in this period as "a red-flag waving bolshie bore with a subscription to '' Fight Racism Fight Imperialism'' and no sense of humour."

Awards and honours

{, class="wikitable" , - ! Year ! Ceremony ! Award ! Result , - , 2010 , Sony Radio Academy Awards , Best Specialist Contributor of the Year , {{won, place=Gold , - , 2009 , Sony Radio Academy Awards , Speech Award , {{won, place=Gold Kermode is a patron of the charitable trust of the

Phoenix Cinema The Phoenix Cinema is an independent single-screen community cinema in East Finchley, London, England. It was built in 1910 and opened in 1912 as the East Finchley Picturedrome. It is one of the oldest continuously-running cinemas in the ...

in North London, which was his favourite cinema during his childhood in East Finchley.{{cite book , last=Kermode , first=Mark , author-link=Mark Kermode , title=It's Only a Movie: Reel Life Adventures of a Film Obsessive , publisher=Random House , year=2011 , page=26 , isbn=9780099543480 The tenth-anniversary episode of ''Kermode and Mayo's Film Review'' was broadcast from the venue as part of its relaunch celebrations in 2010. In 2013, Kermode was appointed an Island of Culture Patron by the

Arts Council. In 2016, Kermode was made an honorary Doctor of Letters at the

University of Winchester The University of Winchester is a public research university based in the city of Winchester, Hampshire, England. The university has origins tracing back to 1840 as a teacher training college, but was established in 2005. Winchester University ...

. In 2018, Kermode was appointed Honorary Professor in the Film Studies Department at the

.{{cite web, url=https://humanities.exeter.ac.uk/film/news/title_689761_en.html , title=Influential film critic Mark Kermode appointed Honorary Professor , publisher=

, date=26 October 2018 , access-date=4 November 2018

References

{{Reflist

External links

{{Commons category * {{IMDb name, 0449417
Official website
(archived)
''Screenshot''
at

Mark Kermode
at ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

''
Mark Kermode
at

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...

''Kermode and Mayo's Take''
podcast
''Mark Kermode's Secrets of Cinema''
on

BBC Four BBC Four is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It was launched on 2 March 2002

Mark Kermode
at

(archived) {{Authority control {{DEFAULTSORT:Kermode, Mark 1963 births Living people 21st-century English male musicians 21st-century British double-bassists Alumni of the University of Manchester BBC Radio 5 Live presenters British film historians Converts to Anglicanism from Methodism English Anglicans English podcasters English double-bassists English feminists English film critics English male journalists English radio presenters English republicans English people of German descent English people of Swiss descent British feminist musicians British male double-bassists British male feminists Musicians from Hertfordshire People educated at Haberdashers' Boys' School People from Brockenhurst People from Chipping Barnet Television personalities from Hertfordshire The Observer people Musicians from the London Borough of Camden