The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (2010) as Director
Enough (2002) as Director
Gorillas in the Mist (1988) as Director
Short Info
Spouse
Paige Simpson
Fact
He was awarded the C.M.G. (Companion of the Most Distinguished Order of St. Michael and St. George) for his services to British film and television industries in the 2008 Queen's Birthday Honors List.
Michael Apted, CMG, is a British director, producer, writer and actor. He is one of the most prolific British film directors of his generation, and has directed numerous documentaries and feature films.
Apted was born on 10 February 1941 in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, the son of Audrey (née Bazeley), a nurse, and William Apted, a solicitor. His father died when he was seven years old, and he was brought up by his mother. He was educated at Charterhouse School and then at Wadham College, Oxford.
Apted began his career in television as a researcher on the groundbreaking Granada Television series World in Action (1963–64). He then worked as a director on such series as Coronation Street (1964–65) and The Newcomers (1965–66). In 1968, he directed his first feature film, Up the Junction, a gritty kitchen sink drama about working class life in London.
Apted’s breakthrough film was the 1971 drama 10 Rillington Place, based on the true story of John Christie, a serial killer who murdered several women in his London flat. The film starred Richard Attenborough as Christie and John Hurt as one of his victims.
Apted’s next film was the James Bond spoof Casino Royale (1967), which was a huge box office success. He then directed the highly acclaimed coal miners’ strike drama Stardust (1974), which starred David Essex and Robert Powell.
Apted continued to work in both television and film throughout the 1970s and 1980s. His films from this period include the crime thrillers The Squeeze (1977) and Agatha (1979), the war film Gorky Park (1983), and the historical drama Young Sherlock Holmes (1985). He also directed several episodes of the popular television series The Professionals (1977-1981).
In 1984, Apted directed the first instalment of the hugely successful 7 Up documentary series, which followed a group of 14 British children from a variety of backgrounds as they grew up every seven years. He has directed all subsequent instalments of the series, most recently 56 Up (2012).
Apted has also had a successful career in Hollywood, directing such films as Gorillas in the Mist (1988), Coal Miner’s Daughter (1990), Nell (1994) and The World Is Not Enough (1999). He was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Director for Gorillas in the Mist.
Apted is married to Paige Simpson, with whom he has three children. He was previously married to Joanne Killick, with whom he has two children.
Apted has a net worth of $20 million.
General Info
Full Name
Michael Apted
Height
1.88 m
Profession
Actor, Film director, Film producer, Screenwriter, Television Director, Television producer
Education
University of Cambridge, Downing College, Cambridge
Family
Spouse
Paige Simpson
Children
Paul Apted, John Apted, Jim Apted, Lily Mellis
Parents
Amelia Thomas, Ronald William Apted
Accomplishments
Awards
Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directing – Drama Series, DGA Robert B. Aldrich Achievement Award, Grammy Award for Best Music Film, British Academy Television Award for Best Single Documentary, Christopher Award for Feature Films, British Academy Television Award for Best Single ...
Nominations
Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directing – Feature Film, British Independent Film Award for Best Director, News & Documentary Emmy Award for Outstanding Interview, British Academy Television Award for Best Single Drama, British Academy Television Award for Best Factual Series...
Movies
The World Is Not Enough, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, 56Up, Gorillas in the Mist, Coal Miner's Daughter, Amazing Grace, Chasing Mavericks, Seven Up!, Nell, Enigma, Thunderheart, Unlocked, Extreme Measures, Gorky Park, 49 Up, 42: Forty Two Up, Enough, Incident at Oglala, ...
[on the Up documentaries] There aren't many pieces of work, especially in film, that have the patience or the longevity or the time to honor the drama of ordinary life; and after all, the drama of what we all have to go through - children, jobs, marriage, the things that touch us - is the big drama of life, far more so than the drama of movies and television.
2
I've never much been interested in doing films that no one gets to see.
3
When I joined Granada - which, you don't want to start crying about these things, but Granada was a very, very hot place to be, it was my good fortune to be there at that time - the BBC was firmly asleep.
He was awarded the C.M.G. (Companion of the Most Distinguished Order of St. Michael and St. George) for his services to British film and television industries in the 2008 Queen's Birthday Honors List.
5
Member of the Board of Governors of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (Documentary Branch) [2002-]
6
(2003-) President of the Directors Guild of America (DGA).
7
Elected as the new President of the Director's Guild of America. He replaces Martha Coolidge and has been a DGA member since 1978. [June 2003]