Alan Bridges (28 September 1927 – 7 December 2013) was an English film and television director. In 1967 Bridges directed a television adaptation of

Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian e ...

' ''

Great Expectations ''Great Expectations'' is the thirteenth novel by Charles Dickens and his penultimate completed novel. It depicts the education of an orphan nicknamed Pip (Great Expectations), Pip (the book is a ''bildungsroman''; a coming-of-age story). It ...

'' starring

Gary Bond Gary James Bond (7 February 1940 – 12 October 1995) was an English actor and singer. He is known for originating the role Joseph in Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical ''Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat'', his performances ...

as Pip. He won the ''

Grand Prix Grand Prix ( , meaning ''Grand Prize''; plural Grands Prix), is a name sometimes used for competitions or sport events, alluding to the winner receiving a prize, trophy or honour Grand Prix or grand prix may refer to: Arts and entertainment ...

'' at the 1973 Cannes Film Festival for his film ''

The Hireling ''The Hireling'' is a 1973 British drama film directed by Alan Bridges, based on a 1957 novel of the same title by L. P. Hartley, which starred Robert Shaw and Sarah Miles. It tells the story of a chauffeur who falls in love with an aristocrat ...

''. His film '' Out of Season'' (1975) was entered into the

25th Berlin International Film Festival The 25th annual Berlin International Film Festival was held from 27 June – 8 July 1975. The Golden Bear was awarded to the Hungarian film ''Adoption'' directed by Márta Mészáros. The retrospective dedicated to Greta Garbo was shown at the f ...

and film ''

The Shooting Party ''The Shooting Party'' is a 1984 British drama film directed by Alan Bridges and based on the book of the same name by Isabel Colegate. The film is set in 1913, less than a year before the beginning of the First World War, and shows the soon-t ...

'' (1985) was entered into the

14th Moscow International Film Festival The 14th Moscow International Film Festival was held from 28 June to 12 July 1985. The Golden Prizes were awarded to the Soviet film ''Come and See'' directed by Elem Klimov, the American film '' A Soldier's Story'' directed by Norman Jewison and ...

. For television, Bridges directed several works by David Mercer and

Dennis Potter Dennis Christopher George Potter (17 May 1935 – 7 June 1994) was an English television dramatist, screenwriter and journalist. He is best known for his BBC television serials '' Pennies from Heaven'' (1978), ''The Singing Detective'' (198 ...

Peter Bradshaw Peter Bradshaw (born 19 June 1962) is a British writer and film critic. He has been chief film critic at ''The Guardian'' since 1999, and is a contributing editor at ''Esquire''. Early life and education Bradshaw was educated at Haberdashers ...

on theguardian.com film blog wrote: "Bridges was a brilliant poet and cinematic satirist – in tones both mordant and melancholy – of the English class system of the early 20th century, and a director with a flair for psychology and interior crisis, as evidenced by movies like ''The Return of the Soldier'' (1982) and ''The Shooting Party'' (1985)."Peter Bradsha
"Alan Bridges: a director of genuine if occasionally overlooked brilliance"
theguardian.com (film blog), 24 January 2014

Selected filmography

* '' Act of Murder'' (1964) * ''

Invasion An invasion is a military offensive in which large numbers of combatants of one geopolitical entity aggressively enter territory owned by another such entity, generally with the objective of either: conquering; liberating or re-establishing con ...

'' (1965) * ''

'' (TV, 1967) * '' Les Miserables'' (TV, 1967) * ''

Traitor Treason is the crime of attacking a state authority to which one owes allegiance. This typically includes acts such as participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its diplo ...

'' (TV, 1971) * '' Follow the Yellow Brick Road'' (TV, 1972) * ''

'' (1973) * ''

Brief Encounter ''Brief Encounter'' is a 1945 British romantic drama film directed by David Lean from a screenplay by Noël Coward, based on his 1936 one-act play ''Still Life''. Starring Celia Johnson, Trevor Howard, Stanley Holloway, and Joyce Carey, ...

'' (TV film, 1974) * '' Joe's Ark'' (TV, 1974) * '' Out of Season'' (1975) * ''

Little Girl in Blue Velvet ''Little Girl in Blue Velvet'' (french: La petite fille en velours bleu) is a 1978 French drama film written and directed by Alan Bridges and starring Michel Piccoli, Claudia Cardinale and Lara Wendel.James L. Limbacher. ''Sexuality in world cinema ...

'' (1978) * ''

Rain on the Roof ''Rain on the Roof'' is a television drama by Dennis Potter, broadcast by ITV on 26 October 1980. It is the second in a loosely connected trilogy of plays exploring language and betrayal, produced for London Weekend Television by the independen ...

'' (TV, 1980) * ''

The Return of the Soldier ''The Return of the Soldier'' is the debut novel of English novelist Rebecca West, first published in 1918. The novel recounts the return of the shell shocked Captain Chris Baldry from the trenches of the First World War from the perspective ...

'' (1982) * ''

'' (1985) * '' The Tale of Pig Robinson'' (1990)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bridges, Alan 1927 births 2013 deaths Broadcast mass media people from Liverpool English film directors English television directors Alumni of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art Directors of Palme d'Or winners