Otto Benjamin Charles Bathurst (born 18 January 1971) is a British television and film director. In 2014, he won a

BAFTA 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 ...

for his work on BBC drama ''

Peaky Blinders The Peaky Blinders were a street gang based in Birmingham, England, which operated from the 1880s until the 1920s. The group consisted largely of young criminals from lower- to working-class backgrounds. They engaged in robbery, violence, racke ...

''. He was also previously BAFTA nominated for his work on BBC series ''

Criminal Justice Criminal justice is the delivery of justice to those who have been accused of committing crimes. The criminal justice system is a series of government agencies and institutions. Goals include the rehabilitation of offenders, preventing other ...

'' and '' Five Days''.

Early life

Bathurst was born on 18 January 1971, the son of Elizabeth Mary (Thompson) and

Christopher Bathurst, 3rd Viscount Bledisloe Christopher Hiley Ludlow Bathurst, 3rd Viscount Bledisloe, QC (24 June 1934 – 12 May 2009), was a British barrister and politician. Bledisloe was the son of Benjamin Bathurst, 2nd Viscount Bledisloe. He was educated at Eton – having won ...

. He grew up in

Dudley Dudley ( , ) is a market town in the West Midlands, England, southeast of Wolverhampton and northwest of Birmingham. Historically part of Worcestershire, the town is the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley. In the ...

and

Bridgnorth Bridgnorth is a market town and civil parish in Shropshire, England. The River Severn splits it into High Town and Low Town, the upper town on the right bank and the lower on the left bank of the River Severn. The population at the United Kingd ...

. He began to study engineering at university, but dropped out to move to London and work in film.

Family life

Bathurst lives in

Somerset, England Somerset ( , ), archaically Somersetshire ( , , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel, Gloucestershire, and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to ...

. He has three children, the first, Eric, was born in 2006 and the second, Ursula, in 2008. The Bathurst family has resided in the town of

Bath, Somerset Bath (Received Pronunciation, RP: , ) is a city in Somerset, England, known for and named after its Roman Baths (Bath), Roman-built baths. At the 2021 census, the population was 94,092. Bath is in the valley of the River Avon, Bristol, River A ...

since 2013, Otto enjoys cooking and his favourite restaurant serves classic Indian cuisine. The Bathursts are followers of the “socially dangerous”

Universal Medicine Universal Medicine, abbreviated as UniMed or UM, is a cult founded and led by Serge Benhayon, a former bankrupt tennis coach from New South Wales (NSW) Australia who has no medical qualifications. It sells " esoteric healing" products, music, pu ...

cult and dedicated to its leader, Serge Banhayon’s teachings. Based in

Frome Frome ( ) is a town and civil parish in Somerset, England, on uneven high ground at the eastern end of the Mendip Hills and on the River Frome, south of Bath. The population of the parish was 28,559 in 2021. Frome was one of the largest tow ...

, Somerset, the sect is reportedly popular with middle-class professionals and in 2019 it was ruled as a "socially harmful cult" by the Supreme Court of New South Wales. ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...

'' reported that Bathurst "is the best known of the group's British adherents" and first identified him as a follower.

Career

Bathurst began his career in editing and then worked on commercials, before moving into television. He has taught filmmaking at Oxford and London universities. In 2009, Bathurst directed ''Margot'', a biopic of

Margot Fonteyn Dame Margaret Evelyn de Arias Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire, DBE ( Hookham; 18 May 191921 February 1991), known by the stage name Margot Fonteyn (), was an English ballerina. She spent her entire career as a dancer with th ...

starring

Anne-Marie Duff Anne-Marie Duff (born 8 October 1970) is an English actress and narrator. She is best known for her BAFTA nominated television roles in '' Shameless'' and '' The Virgin Queen'', and her performance as Grace Williams in '' Bad Sisters'', for wh ...

, which focused upon the relationship between Fonteyn and

Rudolf Nureyev Rudolf Khametovich Nureyev (17 March 19386 January 1993) was a Soviet-born ballet dancer and choreographer. Nureyev is widely regarded as the preeminent male ballet dancer of his generation as well as one of the greatest ballet dancers of all ...

. In 2011, he directed " The National Anthem", the first episode of the anthology television series ''

Black Mirror ''Black Mirror'' is a British anthology series, anthology television series created by Charlie Brooker. Most episodes are set in near-future dystopias containing Science fiction, sci-fi technology—a type of speculative fiction. The series i ...

''. He has also directed episodes of ''

Urban Gothic Urban Gothic is a sub-genre of Gothic fiction, film horror, and television dealing with industrial and post-industrial urban society. It was pioneered in the mid-19th century in Britain, Ireland, and the United States, before being developed i ...

'', ''

Teachers A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching. ''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. w ...

'', and '' Hustle''. In 2013, he was described by ''

Express & Star The ''Express & Star'' is a regional evening newspaper in Britain. Founded in 1889, it is based in Wolverhampton, England, and covers the West Midlands county and Staffordshire. Currently edited by Martin Wright, the ''Express & Star'' publis ...

'' as "Britain's most exciting director". In 2018, he made his feature film directorial debut with ''

Robin Hood Robin Hood is a legendary noble outlaw, heroic outlaw originally depicted in English folklore and subsequently featured in literature, theatre, and cinema. According to legend, he was a highly skilled archer and swordsman. In some versions o ...

''. It starred

Jamie Dornan James Peter Maxwell Dornan (; born 1 May 1982) is an actor, model, and musician from Northern Ireland. The recipient of two Irish Film and Television Awards, he has been nominated for a BAFTA Television Award and a Golden Globe Award. In 202 ...

Will Scarlett Will Scarlet (also Scarlett, Scarlock, Scadlock, Scatheloke, Scathelocke and Shacklock) is a prominent member of Robin Hood's Merry Men. He is present in the earliest ballads along with Little John and Much the Miller's Son. The confusion of su ...

Jamie Foxx Eric Marlon Bishop (born December 13, 1967), known professionally as Jamie Foxx, is an American actor, comedian, and singer. Known for his work in both the screen and music industries, his accolades include an Academy Award, a Grammy Award ...

Little John Little John is a companion of Robin Hood who serves as his chief lieutenant and second-in-command of the Merry Men. He is one of only a handful of consistently named characters who relate to Robin Hood and one of the two oldest Merry Men, alo ...

Tim Minchin Timothy David Minchin Order of Australia#Levels of membership, AM (born 7 October 1975) is an Australian comedian, actor, writer, musician, poet, composer, and songwriter. Minchin has released six CDs, five DVDs, and live comedy shows that he ...

Friar Tuck Friar Tuck is one of the Merry Men, the band of heroic outlaws in the folklore of Robin Hood. History The figure of the jovial friar was common in the May Games festivals of England and Scotland during the 15th to 17th centuries. He appears ...

Eve Hewson Memphis Eve Sunny Day Iris Hewson (born 7 July 1991) is an Irish actress. A daughter of activist Ali Hewson and singer Bono, she had her first major role in the 2011 drama film '' This Must Be the Place'', and subsequently starred in the 2014 ...

Maid Marian Maid Marian is the heroine of the Robin Hood legend in English folklore, often taken to be his lover. She is not mentioned in the early, medieval versions of the legend, but was the subject of at least two plays by 1600. Her history and circums ...

, and

Taron Egerton Taron Egerton ( ; born 10 November 1989) is a Welsh actor. After graduating from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, he performed in stage plays before gaining recognition for his starring role as a spy in the action comedy films '' Kingsman: Th ...

as the eponymous hero. The film was universally panned and was estimated to have lost the studio US$83.7 million. He directed episodes of the historical drama series '' Lockerbie: A Search for Truth'', broadcast in January 2025.

Filmography

Feature film * ''

'' (2018) Television

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bathurst, Otto Living people 1971 births English television directors English film directors Film directors from London People from Dudley People from Hammersmith Television commercial directors