Gordon Lewis is an Irish–British film producer and author. Known for producing numerous music films and concerts for George Michael, Soft Cell, The Pretenders, Queen, John Lydon, The Cure, Talk Talk, Paul Weller, Roger Taylor, Depeche Mode, Daryl Hall & John Oates, Neil Young, Elton John, and David Bowie.[1]

Gordon Lewis
Born
Gordon Lewis

Dublin, Ireland
Occupations
  • Producer
  • Author
Years active1970–present
Websitewww.secretchild.com

Early life

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Born in Dublin, Ireland, Lewis spent his childhood with his mother Cathleen at Regina Coeli, a haven for over 150 mothers and their children.[2][3][4] Lewis move to London and left school at 15, and he started as a messenger at London Weekend Television (LWT).[5]

Career

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In 1980, Lewis set up the Gordon Lewis Organisation (GLO). He produced co-productions with ABC network in the USA and  ITV, 'Where Were You' TV series. GLO had offices in London and Los Angeles. Music acts Lewis produced include Queen, Bananarama, Terence Trent D'arby, John Lydon, Dead or Alive, ABC, Men Without Hats, and Bryan Ferry; and the feature film, 'The Cure in Orange', for cinema.[6]

Lewis moved into making commercials. The first commercial, Tuborg Lager, featured the music of The Art of Noise and won nine International awards. The directors who worked for GLO were Tim Pope, Peter Care, Duncan Gibbons, Mark Romanek, Vaughan Arnell, and Jake Scott.

In 1987, Lewis moved into other businesses, opened the first stylish café bars and clubs in Soho, London, and became known as The Sultan of Soho. .[7]

Lewis wrote his debut book, Secret Child, in 2015, published by HarperCollins and became a Sunday Times bestseller. He released 2022 Little People and Soho Hustle in 2023. Coming in late 2024, Soho Hustle USA and Frank Duff, Forgotten Irish Hero.[8][9]

Lewis and Ho produced award-winning short films. Yewweng Ho directed Secret Child (2018) and Mical (2020), which received rave reviews and many international film festival awards. In 2024, Dream of the Return won 8 awards. Darius Shu was the cinematographer for the films.[10]

Filmography

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Music videos

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Some of the music videos produced by Gordon Lewis[11]

Year Artist Title
1976 Sex Pistols Anarchy in the UK
1977 Rod Stewart You're in My Heart
Sex Pistols Pretty Vacant
Bonnie Tyler It's A Heartache
1981 Soft Cell Tainted Love
1982 Wham! Young Guns
Soft Cell Sex Dwarf
1983 Kim Wilde Dancing in the Dark
Neil Young & The Shocking Pinks Wonderin'
Men Without Hats The Safety Dance
The Pretenders 2000 Miles
1984 Slade Run Runaway
Hall & Oates Adult Education
The Cars Magic
Queen It's a Hard Life
1985 Depeche Mode Shake the Disease
The Style Council Speak Like A Child
Thomas Dolby May The Cube Be With You
The Cure Close to Me
Depeche Mode It's Called A Heart
Talk Talk Life's What You Make It
Bonnie Tyler Loving You's a Dirty Job
1986 Talk Talk It's My Life
Bananarama Venus
Public Image Limited (John Lydon/Johnny Rotten) Rise
Jermaine Stewart We Don't Have to Take Our Clothes Off
1987 Terence Trent D'Arby Dance Little Sister
ABC King Without A Crown
1977 The The Infected
David Bowie Time Will Crawl
Lisa Lisa and Cult Jam Someone to Love Me for Me
1988 The Pretenders The Singles
1988 Mel & Kim That's the Way It Is
1990 Natural History The Very Best of Talk Talk
2000 The Pretenders Greatest Hits
2001 The Cure Greatest Hits
2003 David Bowie Best of Bowie
2003 Queen Greatest Video Hits

Films

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Year Title Director
1982 Soft Cell: Non Stop Erotic Cabaret Tim Pope
1987 The Cure in Orange Tim Pope
2018 Secret Child Yewweng Ho
2020 Mical Yewweng Ho
2021 Dream of the Return Yewweng Ho

Books

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  • Secret Child (2015)
  • Secret to Sultan (2020)

References

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  1. ^ "Soho Hustle | Gordon Lewis". Soho Hustle. Retrieved 14 September 2021.
  2. ^ ""Secret Child" – short film portrays pain of growing up in an Irish mother and babies home". IrishCentral.com. 17 May 2018. Retrieved 14 September 2021.
  3. ^ Association, British Dyslexia. "The accidental author: Gordon Lewis". British Dyslexia Association. Retrieved 14 September 2021.
  4. ^ "'Being there meant my mother and I could be together'". independent. Retrieved 15 September 2021.
  5. ^ McDonagh, Michael J. "How an Irish boy born in a home for unwed mothers became an international success story". The Irish Post. Retrieved 15 September 2021.
  6. ^ "Gordon Lewis | About". Secret Child. Retrieved 14 September 2021.
  7. ^ McDonagh, Michael J. "How an Irish boy born in a home for unwed mothers became an international success story". The Irish Post. Retrieved 14 September 2021.
  8. ^ "Andrew Lownie Literary Agency :: Book :: Secret Child". Andrew Lownie Literary Agency. Retrieved 14 September 2021.
  9. ^ "Gordon Lewis (author of Secret Child)". HarperCollins Publishers UK. Retrieved 15 September 2021.
  10. ^ "Mical | Official Film Site". Mical The Film. Retrieved 14 September 2021.
  11. ^ "Gordon Lewis". IMDb. Retrieved 14 September 2021.
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