Maurice Brendan Murphy (born 1939 in

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mounta ...

) is an Australian film and television director, producer, writer and actor. He is best known for his influential work as a director of TV comedy programs for the

Australian Broadcasting Corporation The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is the national broadcaster of Australia. It is principally funded by direct grants from the Australian Government and is administered by a government-appointed board. The ABC is a publicly-owne ...

– most notably ''

The Aunty Jack Show ''The Aunty Jack Show'' was a Logie Award-winning Australian television comedy series that ran from 1972 to 1973. Produced by and broadcast on ABC-TV, the series attained an instant cult status that persists to the present day. The lead chara ...

'' – and for his 1980 feature film adaptation of the Australian comic strip '' Fatty Finn''. After a month as a

Melbourne University The University of Melbourne is a public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in Victoria. Its main campus is located in Parkville, an inner suburb no ...

student, Murphy realised that his true calling was in the entertainment world. For the next three years, he financed his theatrical pursuits at The Little Theatre in South Yarra, by working at the

Victorian Railways The Victorian Railways (VR), trading from 1974 as VicRail, was the state-owned operator of most rail transport in the Australian state of Victoria from 1859 to 1983. The first railways in Victoria were private companies, but when these companie ...

. In 1960, Murphy joined the

Australian Broadcasting Commission The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is the national broadcaster of Australia. It is principally funded by direct grants from the Australian Government and is administered by a government-appointed board. The ABC is a publicly-owned ...

(ABC) where he worked his way up to being a director: 'The ABC was a great training institute at that time, and a place which allowed me much creative freedom. I learned a great deal there'. His first big break was in 1967 with the big budget 20-episode variety series, ''I'm Alright Now'', with

Reg Livermore Reginald Dawson Livermore (born 11 December 1938) is an Australian actor, singer, theatrical performer and former television presenter. Childhood From a young age, Livermore demonstrated an interest in the performing arts. Regular outings to ...

. In 1973, Murphy became Head of Entertainment at the ABC.

Influences

Murphy's show biz enthusiasm was well-developed long before his ABC years. As a young child he was enthralled by the physical comedy of the clowns at

Wirth's Circus Wirth's Circus, also known as Wirth Brothers' Circus, was Australia's largest and most prestigious circus company for eight decades. Billed as Australia's own 'Greatest show on Earth' (a reference to the slogan of the American P. T. Barnum Ci ...

. Later at boarding school he discovered

Abbott & Costello Abbott may refer to: People *Abbott (surname) *Abbott Handerson Thayer (1849–1921), American painter and naturalist *Abbott and Costello, famous American vaudeville act Places Argentina * Abbott, Buenos Aires United States * Abbott, Arkansas * ...

films, delighting in their vaudevillian routines. The cinema became an integral part of Murphy's school holidays with musicals,

Bob Hope Leslie Townes "Bob" Hope (May 29, 1903 – July 27, 2003) was a British-American comedian, vaudevillian, actor, singer and dancer. With a career that spanned nearly 80 years, Hope appeared in more than 70 short and feature films, with ...

and

Bing Crosby Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby Jr. (May 3, 1903 – October 14, 1977) was an American singer, musician and actor. The first multimedia star, he was one of the most popular and influential musical artists of the 20th century worldwide. He was a ...

'Road' movies and comedies his favourite genres and ones that would influence his future work. Throughout his school years Murphy would regularly escape into the wonders of radio hit parades, spending countless hours analysing pop song structures and writing down lyrics. He applied these skills to television comedies. 'I worked out how the shows were structured. I wrote down the scenes. Sketched the sets. Analysed the placement of dialogue and the positions for its delivery. I noticed the similarity in patterning and timing between various shows. I really got to understand how TV comedy was staged', says Murphy.

British comedy

Murphy spent 1968–1971 in England working at the BBC and

London Weekend Television London Weekend Television (LWT) (now part of the non-franchised ITV London region) was the ITV network franchise holder for Greater London and the Home Counties at weekends, broadcasting from Fridays at 5.15 pm (7:00 pm from 1968 un ...

. He was mentored by

Frank Muir Frank Herbert Muir (5 February 1920 – 2 January 1998) was an English comedy writer, radio and television personality, and raconteur. His writing and performing partnership with Denis Norden endured for most of their careers. Together they wro ...

and worked with many British comedy stars including

Ronnie Barker Ronald William George Barker (25 September 1929 – 3 October 2005) was an English actor, comedian and writer. He was known for roles in British comedy television series such as ''Porridge'', ''The Two Ronnies'', and '' Open All Hours''. ...

Tommy Cooper Thomas Frederick Cooper (19 March 1921 – 15 April 1984) was a Welsh prop comedian and Magic (illusion), magician. As an entertainer, his appearance was large and lumbering at , and he habitually wore a red Fez (hat), fez when performing. He ...

Harry Corbett Harry Corbett OBE (28 January 1918 – 17 August 1989) was an English magician, puppeteer and television presenter. He was best known as the creator of the glove puppet character Sooty in 1952. Biography Corbett was born in Bradford, Wes ...

and

Wendy Craig Anne Gwendolyn "Wendy" Craig (born 20 June 1934) is an English actress who is best known for her appearances in the sitcoms '' Not in Front of the Children'', '' ...And Mother Makes Three'', '' ...And Mother Makes Five'' and ''Butterflies''. ...

. He directed '' Doctor in the House'', starring

Robin Nedwell Robin Courteney Nedwell (27 September 1946 – 1 February 1999) was an English actor. He is best remembered for his role as Duncan Waring in the television comedy series '' Doctor in the House'' and its sequels; he also featured in other televisi ...

, which was the first non-American comedy series to be bought by US television. In 1968 Murphy directed the 6-episode series of '' Complete and Utter History of Britain'' starring

Michael Palin Sir Michael Edward Palin (; born 5 May 1943) is an English actor, comedian, writer, television presenter, and public speaker. He was a member of the Monty Python comedy group. Since 1980, he has made a number of travel documentaries. Palin w ...

and

Terry Jones Terence Graham Parry Jones (1 February 1942 – 21 January 2020) was a Welsh comedian, director, historian, actor, writer and member of the Monty Python comedy team. After graduating from Oxford University with a degree in English, Jones and ...

. It was a highly original look at medieval history using television techniques to satirise the events. For instance, the Battle of Hastings was broadcast as a soccer match. The series is regarded as the precursor to ''

Monty Python's Flying Circus ''Monty Python's Flying Circus'' (also known as simply ''Monty Python'') is a British surreal sketch comedy series created by and starring Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, Michael Palin and Terry Gilliam, who became ...

'' and until 2004 it was believed that no copies of the series had survived.

Australian comedy

On his return to Australia in 1972, Murphy helped to create the ground-breaking anarchistic comedy, ''

'', starring Grahame Bond, Rory O'Donoghue, John Derum and Sandra McGregor. He used some unorthodox methods to get the show to air. After the first episode was screened, the ABC received more than 1000 complaints and Murphy knew he had a winner. A spin-off from ''

'' was ''

The Norman Gunston Show Norman Gunston was a satirical TV character performed by Australian actor and comedian Garry McDonald. Norman Gunston was primarily well known in his native Australia, and to a lesser extent, the United States during the mid to late 1970s. He w ...

'', a comic satire featuring an unsophisticated reporter from

Wollongong Wollongong ( ), colloquially referred to as The Gong, is a city located in the Illawarra region of New South Wales, Australia. The name is believed to originate from the Dharawal language, meaning either 'five islands/clouds', 'ground near w ...

. The Gunston character was devised by Wendy Skelcher and played by

Garry McDonald Garry George McDonald AO (born 30 October 1948) is an Australian actor, satirist and comedian. In a career spanning five decades he has had many theatre, television and film roles, and has been listed as a National Living Treasure. He is bes ...

. The series achieved considerable success and inspired several contemporary comedians. Norman Gunston has the distinction of being the only television character, as opposed to an actor known for playing a character, to win a

Gold Logie The Gold Logie Award for Most Popular Personality on Australian Television, commonly referred to simply as the Gold Logie, is an award presented annually at the Australian Logie Awards. The Gold Logie was first awarded at the 2nd Annual TV We ...

, the premier Australian television accolade. In 1975, the first colour television to appear on Australian screens was a brilliant sketch devised by Murphy and Grahame Bond, in which a black and white Aunty Jack tried in vain to stop colour slowly seeping into the scene. Murphy believes that comedy has a very important social role to play, and is also important for us individually. One of his recurrent themes is that the children within us are able to overcome the adult world with absurdist humour.

Films

Murphy has written, directed or produced a number of independent feature films. His first films were ones for children, '' Fatty Finn'' and ''Doctors and Nurses'', stories in which children were at odds with the adult world. Then a young adult satirical comedy with the emphasis on fun, ''Exchange Lifeguards'' (aka '' Wet and Wild Summer!'') starring

Julian McMahon Julian Dana William McMahon (born 27 July 1968) is an Australian actor, former model, and the son of a former Prime Minister of Australia, Sir William McMahon. He is best known for his roles as Detective John Grant in '' Profiler'', Cole Tur ...

Christopher Atkins Christopher Atkins Bomann (born February 21, 1961) is an American actor and businessman, perhaps best known for his debut in the 1980 film '' The Blue Lagoon'' and playing Peter Richards in ''Dallas'' (1983–1984). Early life Christopher Atki ...

and

Elliott Gould Elliott Gould (; né Goldstein; born August 29, 1938) is an American actor. He began acting in Hollywood films during the 1960s. Elliott's breakthrough role was in the '' Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice'' (1969), for which he received a nomination ...

. More serious was his family tale of love in wartime, ''

15 Amore ''15 Amore'' is a 1998 Australian film directed by Maurice Murphy (director), Maurice Murphy and starring Lisa Hensley (actress), Lisa Hensley and Steve Bastoni. Cast * Lisa Hensley (actress), Lisa Hensley as Dorothy * Steve Bastoni as Alfredo ...

'' starring Lisa Hensley and

Steve Bastoni Steve Bastoni (born 4 March 1966) is an Award winning, Italian-born Australian actor. He became a household name in Australia for his role as Constable Yannis 'Angel' Angelopoulos in ''Police Rescue'' and as Steve Parker in ''Neighbours''. H ...

. ''15 Amore'' was voted the Audience Favourite Feature at the Aspen Filmfest in 1998 and was awarded the Crystal Palm Award at the Marco Island Film Festival in 2000. More recently, the ethereal singing of the students of New Zealand's Toi Whakaari inspired Murphy to create a musical feature film, ''Zenolith'', as a vehicle for their talents. He co-wrote the song lyrics with Lee Hatherly and secured the collaboration of New Zealand composer, Gareth Farr, and the

Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra The Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra (TSO) is a symphony orchestra based in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia. It is the smallest of the six orchestras established by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). History The Tasmanian Symphony Orchestr ...

. In 2014, he wrote and directed a feature-length historical documentary about

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states during ...

, ''When the Queen Came to Town''.

Ethos

Murphy has always enjoyed having fun with technology and pushing it to the limits, often with budgetary constraints. He believes such limitations inspire innovation. In 1965 he invented a way of reversing video tape to enable images to be run backwards. In 1990, Murphy made ''Let's Do Lunch'', the first television series in the world to be filmed on Handicam. Murphy's work is characterised by variety and diversity. He continues to challenge himself with new adventures and projects. He has recently written, produced and starred in several one-man stage shows. In 2016 he was the consultant editor for ''The Mathematics Book'', a

coffee table book A coffee table book, also known as a cocktail table book, is an oversized, usually hard-covered book whose purpose is for display on a table intended for use in an area in which one entertains guests and from which it can serve to inspire convers ...

by Helen Prochazka created to make mathematics accessible for adults who would like to know more about the subject. Murphy and Prochazka have co-written the lyrics for a cycle of 14 mathematics songs that complements the book. The pop song poetry project was presented at the 2014 Bridges Organization conference in Seoul. The album was released in 2016, the music written and performed by Nic Courto and Craig M Wood. Currently Murphy is also developing an opera about

Sir Edmund Hillary Sir Edmund Percival Hillary (20 July 1919 – 11 January 2008) was a New Zealand mountaineer, explorer, and philanthropist. On 29 May 1953, Hillary and Sherpa mountaineer Tenzing Norgay became the first climbers confirmed to have reached ...

and an animation feature film, ''Marsupia''. Murphy has always sought out and encouraged new talent and continues to work with emerging film makers and entertainers.

Director

Television shows

* ''The Whole Show'' (2000) TV special * ''Let's Do Lunch'' (1990) TV series (6 episodes) * ''News Free Zone'' (1985) TV series (50 episodes) * ''The Tea Ladies'' (1978) TV series (9 episodes) * ''Freddy Starr Special'' (1978) TV special * ''The Little Big Show'' (1978) TV special * ''The Off Show'' (1977) TV series aka ''The Of Show'' (Australia) (9 episodes) * ''

Alvin Purple ''Alvin Purple'' is a 1973 Australian sex comedy film starring Graeme Blundell in the title role; the screenplay was written by Alan Hopgood and directed by Tim Burstall, through his production company Hexagon Productions and Village Roadshow ...

'' (1976) TV series (13 episodes) * ''Flash Nick from Jindavick'' (1974–75) TV series (6 episodes) * ''The Very Best of The Aunty Jack Show'' (1973) TV special * ''Aunty Jack Rox On'' (1972) TV special * ''

Doctor in Charge ''Doctor in Charge'' is a British television comedy series based on a set of books by Richard Gordon about the misadventures of a group of doctors. The series follows directly from its predecessor '' Doctor at Large''. It was produced by London ...

'' (1972) TV series (6 episodes) * ''A Nice Day at the Office'' (1972) (6 episodes) * ''

'' (1971–72) TV series (13 episodes) * ''The Comedy Game'' (1971–73) TV series (14 episodes) * ''Not Only… But Also'' (1971) TV special * ''The

Dudley Moore Dudley Stuart John Moore CBE (19 April 193527 March 2002) was an English actor, comedian, musician and composer. Moore first came to prominence in the UK as a leading figure in the British satire boom of the 1960s. He was one of the four writ ...

Trio'' (1971) TV special * '' Six Dates with Barker'' (1970) TV series (6 episodes) * '' Hark at Barker'' (1970) TV series (6 episodes) * '' Doctor in the House'' (1969) TV series (9 episodes) * '' Complete and Utter History of Britain'' (1969) TV series (6 episodes) * ''I'm Alright Now'' (1967) TV series (20 episodes)

Feature films

* ''When the Queen Came to Town'' (documentary) (2014) * ''Zenolith'' (2008) * ''

'' (1998) * ''Wet and Wild Summer!'' (1992) aka "Exchange Lifeguards" (Australia) * ''Doctors & Nurses'' (1981) * '' Fatty Finn'' (1980)

Stage shows

* ''My Imaginary Family'' (2011) * ''Maurice'' (2007) * ''Aunty Jack Show and Tell'' (2006) * ''Good Story'' (2003) * ''Screenplay'' (2003) * ''Razzle Dazzle'' (1975) * ''Hamlet on Ice'' (1974) * ''Aunty Jack and the Gong in Bloody Concert'' (1973)

Producer

Television shows

* ''The Whole Show'' (2000) TV special * '' I Do! I Do!'' (1997) TV series (13 episodes) * ''Just Kidding'' (1994–95) TV series (75 episodes) * ''Let's Do Lunch'' (1990) TV series (6 episodes) * ''News Free Zone'' (1985) TV series (50 episodes) * ''Freddy Starr Special'' (1978) TV special * ''The Little Big Show'' (1978) TV special * ''The Off Show'' (1977) TV series aka The of Show (Australia) (9 episodes) * ''

'' (1976) TV series (13 episodes) * ''

Wollongong the Brave Aunty Jack's ''Wollongong the Brave'' is a collection of four comedy specials derived from the Australian television series, ''The Aunty Jack Show''. The fourth and final episode was the precursor to '' The Norman Gunston Show''. The episodes we ...

'' (1975) TV series (4 episodes) * ''Flash Nick from Jindavick'' (1974–75) TV series (6 episodes) * ''The Very Best of The Aunty Jack Show'' (1973) TV special * ''Our Man in the Company'' (1973) TV series (10 episodes) * ''The Comedy Game'' (1971–73) TV series (14 episodes) * ''Aunty Jack Rox On'' (1972) TV special * ''A Nice Day at the Office'' (1972) (6 episodes) * ''

'' (1971–72) TV series (13 episodes) * ''Not Only… But Also'' (1971) TV special * ''The Dudley Moore Trio'' (1971) TV special

Feature films

* ''Zenolith'' (2008) * ''

'' (1998) * '' Doctors & Nurses'' (1981)

Stage shows

* ''Maurice'' (2007) * ''Aunty Jack Show and Tell'' (2006) * ''Good Story'' (2003) * ''Screenplay'' (2003) * ''Razzle Dazzle'' (1975) * ''Hamlet on Ice'' (1974) * ''Aunty Jack and the Gong in Bloody Concert'' (1973)

Radio

* ''Nude Radio'' (1974) Radio Show

Writer

Television shows

* ''The Whole Show'' (2000) TV special * ''Let's Do Lunch'' (1990) TV series (6 episodes) * ''News Free Zone'' (1985) TV series (50 episodes) * ''The Tea Ladies'' (1978) TV series (9 episodes) * ''The Little Big Show'' (1978) TV special * ''The Off Show'' (1977) TV series aka The of Show (Australia) (9 episodes) * ''

'' (1976) TV series (13 episodes) * ''Scattergood: Friend of All'' (1975) TV series * ''Wollongong the Brave'' (1975) TV series (4 episodes) * ''Flash Nick from Jindavick'' (1974–75) TV series (6 episodes) * ''The Very Best of The Aunty Jack Show'' (1973) TV special * ''The Comedy Game'' (1971–73) TV series (14 episodes) * ''Aunty Jack Rox On'' (1972) TV special * ''A Nice Day at the Office'' (1972) (6 episodes) * ''

'' (1971–72) TV series (13 episodes) * '' Six Dates with Barker'' (1970) TV series (6 episodes) * '' Hark at Barker'' (1970) TV series (6 episodes) * ''I'm Alright Now'' (1967) TV series (20 episodes)

Feature films

* ''When the Queen Came to Town'' (documentary) (2014) * ''Zenolith'' (2008) * ''

'' (1998) * ''Channel Chaos'' (1984) * ''Doctors & Nurses'' (1981)

Stage shows

* ''Maurice'' (2007) * ''Aunty Jack Show and Tell'' (2006) * ''Good Story'' (2003) * ''Screenplay'' (2003) * ''Aunty Jack and the Gong in Bloody Concert'' (1973)

Radio

* ''Nude Radio'' (1974) Radio Show

Book

* ''The Mathematics Book'' (2016), consultant editor

Songs

* ''Songs from The Mathematics Book'' (to be released in 2016)

Actor

Television shows

* ''Benny Hill Down Under'' (1977) TV series – various roles * '' Consider Your Verdict'' (1962) one episode Queen Versus Brooks (1962)

Stage shows

* ''Maurice'' (2007) * ''Aunty Jack Show and Tell'' (2006) * ''Good Story'' (2003) * ''Screenplay'' (2003)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Murphy, Maurice Living people Australian film directors Australian television directors People from Sydney 1939 births