Francis George "Franc" Roddam (born 29 April 1946) is an English film director, businessman, screenwriter, television producer and publisher, best known as the creator of Auf Wiedersehen, Pet and Masterchef and as the director of Quadrophenia (1979). He is a graduate of the London Film School.

Franc Roddam
Roddam in 2014
Born
Francis George Roddam

(1946-04-29) 29 April 1946 (age 78)
Alma materLondon Film School
Occupations
  • film director
  • businessman
  • screenwriter
  • television producer
  • publisher
Years active1969–present
TelevisionAuf Wiedersehen, Pet (1983–86, 2002–04)
MasterChef (1990–2001, 2005–present)
WebsiteZiji Publishing

Career

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Roddam with an Arriflex film camera on the set of The Bride (1985)
 
Roddam on the set of Cleopatra (1999)

Roddam's films include Quadrophenia,[1] K2, Aria, The Lords of Discipline and War Party. He created the worldwide TV franchise, MasterChef,[2][3] which is shown in 200 countries worldwide and there are over 50 locally-produced versions.[4][5]

He also produced formats for Auf Wiedersehen, Pet, Making Out, and Harry, all of which were highly successful TV dramas. He directed the award-winning TV drama Dummy, which won the prestigious Prix Italia Drama Prize. He directed the Grammy-nominated/Golden Globe nominated US mini-series Moby Dick and Cleopatra.[6]

Roddam won awards for his BBC documentaries Mini and The Family.[7] He is the Director of Ziji Publishing,[8] whose titles include the bestseller The Last Templar.[9] He is a sponsor and former Governor of the London Film School,[9] and is an active member of the Greenworld Campaign.[10]

Filmography

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Films

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Television

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References

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  1. ^ "Franc Roddam: from parkas to the perfect souffle". The Guardian. 9 November 2011. Retrieved 29 June 2020.
  2. ^ "Endemol Shine lands multiple 'MasterChef' deals in Nordics". TBI Vision. 16 April 2020. Retrieved 29 June 2020.
  3. ^ Dams, Tim (2 March 2020). "Endemol Shine Cooks Up 'MasterChef' Deals Across Asia". Variety. Retrieved 29 June 2020.
  4. ^ "MasterChef Canada's Alvin Leung: 'Untalented people need not apply'". thestar.com. 31 January 2015. Retrieved 15 October 2020.
  5. ^ "MasterChef". Banijay. Banijay Group. Retrieved 8 November 2023.
  6. ^ Welford, Joanne (14 May 2022). "Norton born Auf Wiedersehen Pet creator sets up £60,000 scholarship to help wannabe film makers on Teesside". Teesside Live. Retrieved 8 November 2023.
  7. ^ Glynn, Stephen (2014). Quadrophenia. Wallflower Press. p. 29. ISBN 9780231167413. Roddam's twelve-part 'fly-on-the-wall' documentary series followed the everyday dealings of the Wilkins family of Reading and won both healthy viewing figures and the 1974 Critics Award. Roddam won the award again in 1975 for Mini
  8. ^ "Francis George RODDAM". Companies House. Retrieved 8 November 2023.
  9. ^ a b "Patrons". London Film School. Retrieved 8 November 2023.
  10. ^ "Green World, Meet the Team, BOARD OF DIRECTORS". 2020. Retrieved 15 March 2021.
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