Claude Whatham

Claude Whatham
Born(1927-12-07)7 December 1927
Manchester, Lancashire, England
Died4 January 2008(2008-01-04) (aged 80)
Anglesey, Wales
EducationOldham Art School
Occupation(s)Film and television director

Claude Whatham (7 December 1927 – 4 January 2008) was an English film and television director, mainly known for his work on dramas.

Early life

In 1940, Whatham, a teenage evacuee art student, had been commissioned to paint fairytale pictures by the young Princess Elizabeth and Princess Margaret at Windsor Castle. During the Second World War, the series of portraits by Sir Thomas Lawrence that usually line the walls of the Waterloo Chamber were removed from their frames for safe keeping and replaced by his fairytale pictures, painted on wallpapers rolls. In 2020, Whatham's works were exhibited in the Waterloo Chamber.[1][2]

Career

Whatham attended Oldham Art School and was a set designer for the Oldham Repertory Company,[3] before joining Granada Television, where he made documentaries and dramas including The Younger Generation featuring a young John Thaw, and You in Your Small Corner. He then moved to the BBC, where he worked on The Wednesday Play, Play for Today, Disraeli and the 1969 adaptation of A Voyage Round My Father. Other television directing included the adaptation of Laurie Lee's childhood/coming-of-age memoir Cider with Rosie and Jumping the Queue.

Filmography

References

  1. ^ Purser, Philip (10 January 2008). "Obituary: Claude Whatham". The Guardian. Retrieved 4 August 2020.
  2. ^ Furness, Hannah (22 July 2020). "Queen's wartime pantomime paintings revealed during Windsor Castle works". The Telegraph. Retrieved 4 August 2020.
  3. ^ "Claude Whatham".


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