Gwyneth Hughes is a British documentary director and screenwriter who works mainly in television.

Career

She is a former newspaper

journalist A journalist is a person who gathers information in the form of text, audio or pictures, processes it into a newsworthy form and disseminates it to the public. This is called journalism. Roles Journalists can work in broadcast, print, advertis ...

from the north of England. Her credits include the crime drama '' Five Days'', ''

Cherished ''Cherished'' is the fourteenth studio album by American singer-actress Cher, released on June 4, 1977 as Cher's final studio album released by Warner Bros. Records. This album, like several other predecessors, was a commercial failure and fai ...

'', a film about the wrongful conviction of

Angela Cannings Angela Cannings was wrongfully convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment in the UK in 2002 for the murder of her seven-week-old son, Jason, who died in 1991, and of her 18-week-old son Matthew, who died in 1999. Her first child, Gemma, died ...

, an

adaptation In biology, adaptation has three related meanings. Firstly, it is the dynamic evolutionary process of natural selection that fits organisms to their environment, enhancing their evolutionary fitness. Secondly, it is a state reached by the p ...

Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English novelist, journalist, short story writer and Social criticism, social critic. He created some of literature's best-known fictional characters, and is regarded by ...

's unfinished work ''

The Mystery of Edwin Drood ''The Mystery of Edwin Drood'' is the final novel by English author Charles Dickens, originally published in 1870. Though the novel is named after the character Edwin Drood, it focuses more on Drood's uncle, John Jasper, a precentor, choirm ...

'', and '' The Girl'', which explores an alleged obsession

Alfred Hitchcock Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock (13 August 1899 – 29 April 1980) was an English film director. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of cinema. In a career spanning six decades, he directed over 50 featu ...

had with the actress

Tippi Hedren Nathalie Kay "Tippi" Hedren (born January 19, 1930) is a retired American actress. Initially a fashion model, appearing on the front covers of ''Life'' and '' Glamour'' magazines (among others), she became an actress after being discovered by d ...

. Her work on ''Five Days'' earned her a nomination at the 2008 Golden Globe Awards. In 2013, she wrote '' Remember Me'', a television drama serial that debuted on the BBC in November 2014. In 2018, Hughes executive-produced and adapted

William Makepeace Thackeray William Makepeace Thackeray ( ; 18 July 1811 – 24 December 1863) was an English novelist and illustrator. He is known for his Satire, satirical works, particularly his 1847–1848 novel ''Vanity Fair (novel), Vanity Fair'', a panoramic portra ...

's novel '' Vanity Fair'' into a seven-part television mini-series for ITV and

Amazon Studios Amazon MGM Studios is an American film and television production and distribution company owned by Amazon, and headquartered at the Culver Studios complex in Culver City, California. Launched on November 16, 2010, it took its current name on O ...

. Hughes wrote the true crime miniseries ''

Honour Honour (Commonwealth English) or honor (American English; American and British English spelling differences#-our, -or, see spelling differences) is a quality of a person that is of both social teaching and personal ethos, that manifests itself ...

'' in 2020, for ITV, Hughes adapted

Henry Fielding Henry Fielding (22 April 1707 – 8 October 1754) was an English writer and magistrate known for the use of humour and satire in his works. His 1749 comic novel ''The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling'' was a seminal work in the genre. Along wi ...

's novel ''

Tom Jones Tom Jones may refer to: Arts and entertainment *Tom Jones (singer) (born 1940), Welsh singer *Tom Jones (writer) (1928–2023), American librettist and lyricist *''The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling'', a novel by Henry Fielding published in 1 ...

'' into a

miniseries In the United States, a miniseries or mini-series is a television show or series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. Many miniseries can also be referred to, and shown, as a television film. " Limited series" is ...

broadcast on

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...

in 2023. In January 2024, ITV broadcast ''

Mr Bates vs The Post Office ''Mr Bates vs The Post Office'' is a four-part British television drama series for ITV, written by Gwyneth Hughes, directed by James Strong and starring an ensemble cast led by Toby Jones. The series is a dramatisation of the British Post Of ...

'', Hughes' four-part series about the

British Post Office scandal The British Post Office scandal, also called the Horizon IT scandal, involved the Post Office pursuing thousands of innocent subpostmasters for apparent financial shortfalls caused by faults in Horizon, an accounting software system developed b ...

, a

miscarriage of justice A miscarriage of justice occurs when an unfair outcome occurs in a criminal or civil proceeding, such as the conviction and punishment of a person for a crime they did not commit. Miscarriages are also known as wrongful convictions. Innocent ...

in which hundreds of sub-postmasters were wrongly prosecuted. The series also won a

Peabody Award The George Foster Peabody Awards (or simply Peabody Awards or the Peabodys) program, named for the American businessman and philanthropist George Foster Peabody, George Peabody, honor what are described as the most powerful, enlightening, and in ...

at the 85th Annual Ceremony. The Writers’ Guild of Great Britain awarded its highest Awards accolade, the Outstanding Contribution to Writing Award, to Hughes in January 2025.

Television

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hughes, Gwyneth British documentary film directors British film directors British journalists British television directors British television producers British television writers British women film directors British women screenwriters British women television directors British women television producers British women television writers Living people British women documentary filmmakers Year of birth missing (living people)