Allan McKeown facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Allan McKeown
McKeown at the 1990 Emmy Awards
Born	Allan John McKeown (1946-05-21)21 May 1946 Ealing, London, England
Died	24 December 2013(2013-12-24) (aged 67) Los Angeles, California, US
Occupation	Producer
Years active	1979–2013
Spouse(s)	Tracey Ullman ​ (m. 1983)​
Children	2

Allan McKeown (born 21 May 1946 – died 24 December 2013) was a talented British producer. He created many popular shows for television and plays for the stage.

Early Life and Career Start

Allan McKeown was born in Ealing, London, England, on 21 May 1946. His family later moved to Hainault, Essex. His father worked as a supervisor for building projects in their new neighborhood.

Allan went to Beal Grammar school. He left early to become a trainee hairdresser at a famous salon called Vidal Sassoon in Bond Street. He was part of the exciting London scene in the 1960s. In 1966, he opened his own hair salon. As a hairdresser, he even worked on TV shows like Sunday Night at the London Palladium. He also worked on movies such as if.... (1968), Villain, and Get Carter (both from 1971).

Becoming a Television Producer

In 1969, Allan decided to try something new. He became a producer at James Garrett and Partners, a big company that made TV commercials in the UK. He quickly became the Managing Director.

Later, he left to start his own production company called Witzend. He partnered with writers Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais. At first, they made commercials. Then, they produced a movie called Porridge in 1979. Allan was also a main producer for the popular TV show Auf Wiedersehen, Pet.

Allan was one of the first independent television producers in the UK. This meant his company made shows without being owned by a big TV network. He produced shows in Britain with Witzend. He also worked in the US for major TV networks there.

In 1986, Witzend grew bigger by buying another company called Selectv. This made Witzend a public company. They also added Alomo, another production company, which worked with writers Laurence Marks and Maurice Gran. In 1990, Allan helped start the Meridian group. This group won the right to broadcast ITV television in the South East of England.

Allan was in charge of all the comedy shows for Meridian. In 1994, Selectv launched its own cable channel. Most of its programs were produced by Allan. In 1996, Allan sold SelecTV to Pearson, a large company, for a lot of money.

After this, Allan went back to the US. He produced the HBO comedy series Tracey Takes On.... This show starred his wife, Tracey Ullman. The series was very successful and won six Emmy Awards. Allan also invested in a website called itstv.com. This site helped distribute TV shows around the world. He sold this company in 2000.

In 2007, Allan started a new company called Allan McKeown Presents, Ltd.. This company produced an Indian comedy series called Mumbai Calling. It also produced Tracey Ullman's State of the Union from 2008 to 2010.

Stage Productions

Allan McKeown also produced shows for the theater. He was involved in the West End play Anyone For Denis? in 1981. He also produced the Broadway show The Big Love in 1991. This was a one-woman show starring his wife, Tracey Ullman.

He produced the very popular musical Jerry Springer: The Opera. This show won an Olivier Award for Best Musical. He also produced Lennon, a musical about the life of the famous musician John Lennon.

Personal Life

Allan McKeown married actress and comedian Tracey Ullman in 1983. They had two children together. They lived in both England and the United States. In 2006, Allan and Tracey were listed as some of the wealthiest British comedians.

Death

Allan McKeown passed away on Christmas Eve, 24 December 2013. He was 67 years old. He died in Los Angeles, California, from prostate cancer.

Filmography

Television

Film

Theatre

See also

In Spanish: Allan McKeown para niños