Michael Tommy Hodges (29 July 1932 – 17 December 2022) was a British screenwriter, film and television director, playwright and novelist. His films as writer/director include ''

Get Carter ''Get Carter'' is a 1971 British gangster film, gangster thriller film, written and directed by Mike Hodges in his directorial debut and starring Michael Caine, Ian Hendry, John Osborne, Britt Ekland and Bryan Mosley. Based on Ted Lewis (write ...

'' (1971), '' Pulp'' (1972), '' The Terminal Man'' (1974) and '' Black Rainbow'' (1989). He co-wrote and was the original director on '' Damien: Omen II''. As director, his films include ''

Flash Gordon Flash Gordon is the protagonist of a space adventure comic strip created and originally drawn by Alex Raymond. First published January 7, 1934, the strip was inspired by, and created to compete with, the already established ''Buck Rogers'' ...

'' (1980) and ''

Croupier A croupier or dealer is someone appointed at a gambling table to assist in the conduct of the game, especially in the distribution of bets and payouts. Croupiers are typically employed by casinos. Origin of the word Originally a "croupier" mean ...

'' (1998).

Early life

Hodges was born in Bristol on 29 July 1932, and was raised in

Salisbury Salisbury ( , ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and civil parish in Wiltshire, England with a population of 41,820, at the confluence of the rivers River Avon, Hampshire, Avon, River Nadder, Nadder and River Bourne, Wi ...

and

Bath Bath may refer to: * Bathing, immersion in a fluid ** Bathtub, a large open container for water, in which a person may wash their body ** Public bathing, a public place where people bathe * Thermae, ancient Roman public bathing facilities Plac ...

. He qualified as a chartered accountant and spent two years of

national service National service is a system of compulsory or voluntary government service, usually military service. Conscription is mandatory national service. The term ''national service'' comes from the United Kingdom's National Service (Armed Forces) Act ...

on the lower deck of a

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

minesweeper A minesweeper is a small warship designed to remove or detonate naval mines. Using various mechanisms intended to counter the threat posed by naval mines, minesweepers keep waterways clear for safe shipping. History The earliest known usage of ...

Career

Hodges found a job in British television as a

teleprompter A teleprompter, also known as an autocue, is a display device that prompts the person speaking with an electronic visual text of a speech or script. Using a teleprompter is similar to using cue cards. The screen is in front of, and usually bel ...

operator. The job allowed him to observe the workings of the studios, and gave him time to start writing scripts. One of these scripts was ''Some Will Cry Murder'', written for ABC's ''

Armchair Theatre ''Armchair Theatre'' is a British television drama anthology series of single plays that ran on the ITV network from 1956 to 1974. It was originally produced by ABC Weekend TV. Its successor Thames Television took over from mid-1968. The Ca ...

'' series. Although never performed, it served to get him enough writing commissions to quit his job as a technician. After that, Hodges quickly progressed to producer/director status, with series such as ''Sunday Break'' for

ABC Television ABC Television most commonly refers to: *ABC Television Network of the American Broadcasting Company, United States, or *ABC Television (Australian TV network), a division of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Australia ABC Television or ABC ...

, ''

World in Action ''World in Action'' was a British investigative current affairs programme made by Granada Television for ITV from 7 January 1963 until 7 December 1998. Its campaigning journalism frequently had a major impact on events of the day. Its product ...

'' for

Granada Television ITV Granada, formerly known as Granada Television, is the ITV (TV network), ITV franchisee for the North West of England and Isle of Man. From 1956 to 1968 it broadcast to both the north west and Yorkshire on weekdays only, as ABC Weekend TV, ...

and the arts programmes ''Tempo'' and ''New Tempo'' for

Thames Television Thames Television, commonly simplified to just Thames, was a franchise holder for a region of the British ITV television network serving London and surrounding areas from 30 July 1968 until the night of 31 December 1992. Thames Television broa ...

. He wrote, directed and produced two filmed thrillers, ''Suspect'' (1969) and ''Rumour'' (1970), again for Thames Television. These films formed the basis for the creation of

Euston Films Euston Films is a British film and television production company. It was originally a subsidiary of Thames Television, and operated from 1971 to 1994, producing various series for Thames, which were screened nationally on the ITV network. Euston ...

, the influential television production company that continued into the 1980s. These two films also led to Hodges being asked to write and direct ''

'' (1971), which has been described as "one of the great British gangster films of all time." Hodges worked with ''Carter'' star

Michael Caine Sir Michael Caine (born Maurice Joseph Micklewhite, 14 March 1933) is a retired English actor. Known for his distinct Cockney accent, he has appeared in more than 160 films over Michael Caine filmography, a career that spanned eight decades an ...

again in '' Pulp'' (1972), before proceeding to make films such as the

Michael Crichton John Michael Crichton (; October 23, 1942 – November 4, 2008) was an American author, screenwriter and filmmaker. His books have sold over 200 million copies worldwide, and over a dozen have been adapted into films. His literary works heavil ...

adaptation '' The Terminal Man'' (1974) and the space opera ''

'' (1980). Some of Hodges' later films include ''

A Prayer for the Dying ''A Prayer for the Dying'' is a 1987 thriller film about a former IRA member trying to escape his past. The film was directed by Mike Hodges, and stars Mickey Rourke, Bob Hoskins, Alan Bates and Liam Neeson. The film is based on the 1973 Jack ...

'' (1987), ''

'' (1998) and '' I'll Sleep When I'm Dead'' (2003). Interspersed with Hodges's cinema work are some critically successful television films, including ''The Manipulators'' (1973), ''Squaring The Circle'' (1984; scripted by

Tom Stoppard Sir Tom Stoppard (; born , 3 July 1937) is a Czech-born British playwright and screenwriter. He has written for film, radio, stage, and television, finding prominence with plays. His work covers the themes of human rights, censorship, and politi ...

), '' Dandelion Dead'' (1994; scripted by Michael Chaplin), and ''The Healer'' (1994; scripted by G. F. Newman). Hodges also collaborated on the English language version of

Federico Fellini Federico Fellini (; 20 January 1920 – 31 October 1993) was an Italian film director and screenwriter. He is known for his distinctive style, which blends fantasy and baroque images with earthiness. He is recognized as one of the greatest and ...

's '' And the Ship Sails On'' (1983). Hodges wrote and narrated the biographical documentary ''All At Sea'', which was in post production in 2022.

Theatre and radio

Hodges's theatre plays included ''Soft Shoe Shuffle'' (1985) and ''Shooting Stars and Other Heavenly Pursuits'' (2000), which was adapted for

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 ...

radio. Other radio plays included ''King Trash'' (2004). His first novel, ''Watching The Wheels Come Off'', was published first in French by Rivagse/Noir (Quand Tout Se Fait La Malle) in 2009 then in English in 2010. In 2018 his trio of novellas ('Bait', 'Grist' & 'Security') was published by Unbound.

Personal life and death

Hodges was married twice. His first marriage was to Jean Alexandrov; they had two sons and later divorced. He then married Carol Laws. Hodges died from heart failure at his home in

Dorset Dorset ( ; Archaism, archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by Somerset to the north-west, Wiltshire to the north and the north-east, Hampshire to the east, t ...

on 17 December 2022, at the age of 90.

Recognition

Hodges was awarded the degree of 'Doctor of Letters' by the

University of the West of England, Bristol The University of the West of England (also known as UWE Bristol) is a Public university, public research university, located in and around Bristol, England, UK. With more than 39,912 students and 4,300 staff, it is the largest provider of hi ...

in 2005.

Selected filmography

Feature films

Television

*'' The Tyrant King'' (1968) *''Rumour'' (1969) *''Suspect'' (1970) *''The Manipulators'' (1972) *''Missing Pieces'' (1982) *''Squaring the Circle'' (1984) *'' The Hitchhiker'' season 3, episode 4: " W.G.O.D." (1985) *''

Florida Straits The Straits of Florida, Florida Straits, or Florida Strait () is a strait located south-southeast of the North American mainland, generally accepted to be between the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean, and between the Florida Keys (U.S.) ...

'' (1986) *'' Dandelion Dead'' (1994) *''The Healer'' (1994) *''Murder by Numbers'' (2001 – documentary)

References

External links

* *

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hodges, Mike 1932 births 2022 deaths 20th-century Royal Navy personnel British film directors British male screenwriters British science fiction film directors British television directors Deaths from congestive heart failure in the United Kingdom Film people from Bristol Military personnel from Bristol People from Salisbury Royal Navy sailors