Beeban Kidron facts for kids

Quick facts for kids The Right Honourable The Baroness Kidron OBE
Official portrait, 2024
Member of the House of Lords Lord Temporal
Incumbent
Assumed office 26 June 2012 Life peerage
Personal details
Born	Beeban Tania Kidron (1961-05-02) 2 May 1961 (age 64) North London, England
Spouse	Lee Hall ​ (m. 2003)​
Children	2
Parent	Michael Kidron (father)
Alma mater	National Film School
Occupation	Film director, producer, campaigner

Beeban Tania Kidron, Baroness Kidron (born 2 May 1961), is a British politician and a champion for children's rights. She works to make the internet a safer and more private place for young people. She has helped create important rules for online safety around the world.

Baroness Kidron is a member of the House of Lords in the United Kingdom. This is part of the UK's Parliament, where she helps make laws. She is also an advisor at Oxford University and leads the 5Rights Foundation. This group works to protect children online.

Before her political work, she was a successful film director and producer. She also started a charity called Filmclub, which is now known as Into Film.

Early Life and Education

Beeban Kidron was born in North London. Her parents, Nina and Michael Kidron, ran a publishing company from their home.

When she was young, Beeban became interested in photography. She got her first camera after a throat operation. Later, she worked for a famous photographer named Eve Arnold. At age 20, she went to the National Film and Television School. She first studied to be a camerawoman. Then, she decided to become a director.

Film Career Highlights

Beeban Kidron started making documentaries in the 1980s. In 1983, she co-directed her first documentary, Carry Greenham Home. It was about women protesting against nuclear weapons.

She became well-known for her TV show Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit in 1989. This show won three awards, including Best Drama Series. The Guardian newspaper later called it one of the best TV series ever.

Kidron also directed films in Hollywood. In 1992, she made Used People with famous actors. In 1995, she directed To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar. This was a fun road movie about drag queens.

She also directed Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason in 2004. This popular movie starred Renée Zellweger and Colin Firth.

In 2013, Kidron directed a documentary called InRealLife. This film looked at how teenagers use the internet. Making this film inspired her to start campaigning for children's online rights.

Filmclub and Into Film

In 2006, Beeban Kidron started Filmclub. This charity helped schools create after-school film clubs. These clubs were free for all state primary and secondary schools.

Filmclub allowed children to watch many different types of movies. These included blockbusters, classic films, and foreign language movies. Students could also write reviews on the Filmclub website. The clubs often invited film professionals to visit schools.

In 2013, Filmclub joined with another group to become Into Film. This new charity still runs film clubs. It also organizes a youth film festival and awards.

Becoming a Baroness

In 2012, Beeban Kidron was honored for her work in drama. She was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE).

Soon after, she became a life peer and was named Baroness Kidron. This means she became a member of the House of Lords for life. She was introduced to the House of Lords on June 26, 2012. She sits as a "crossbencher," meaning she does not belong to a specific political party.

Since 2019, Baroness Kidron has been on a committee in the House of Lords. This committee looks at how democracy and digital technology work together. She has also helped write reports about children and the internet.

5Rights Foundation and Online Safety

Baroness Kidron founded the 5Rights Foundation in 2013. This organization works to protect children's rights in the digital world. She wanted to make the internet more open and safe for young people.

The 5Rights Foundation helps create policies and rules for digital issues. They work with experts from different fields. They have helped develop child online protection policies for countries like Rwanda. They also work with the United Nations to create standards for digital services.

Baroness Kidron is also part of other important groups. She is on the UNESCO Broadband Commission for Sustainable Development. She also advises UNICEF on artificial intelligence and child rights.

Age Appropriate Design Code

Baroness Kidron helped create a very important law called the Age Appropriate Design Code. She worked with politicians from different parties to make this happen. This law is part of the Data Protection Act 2018.

The Code makes sure that online services protect children's data. It requires online services to be "age appropriate." This means they must consider the different needs of children at various ages. It also follows the rules of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.

When the Code was proposed in 2020, Baroness Kidron said it would change things. She explained that children and parents would finally have control over their online safety. The Code became law in September 2021. It was the first law of its kind in the world.

Some lawmakers in the United States have also supported this Code. They have encouraged American companies to follow its practices.

Other Important Roles

In 2010, Kingston University gave Baroness Kidron an honorary doctorate. This was for her work in education. She also served on the board of the UK Film Council. Later, she became a governor of the BFI.

In 2015, she won an award for her work with Filmclub. This award also recognized her efforts to empower young people online.

Baroness Kidron is a patron of Law Action Worldwide. She also used to be part of a group working to prevent cyberbullying. She often speaks about how children interact with technology. She believes that online systems should be designed with people, especially children, in mind.

Personal Life

Beeban Kidron is married to Lee Hall. He is a playwright. They have two children.

Filmography

Title	Year	Director	Editor	Cinemat-ographer	Producer	Production Company	Notes
Victoria & Abdul	2017
InRealLife	2013					Studio Lambert	Documentary film
..., Death and the Gods	2011					BBC, Cross Street Films	series documentary
Hippie Hippie Shake	2010					Universal, Working Title	Unreleased
Anthony Gormley: Making Space	2007					C4, Cross Street Films
Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason	2004					Universal, Working Title
Murder	2002					BBC	TV miniseries
Cinderella	2000					C4	TV movie
Texarkana	1998					Sacret, NBC	TV movie
Swept from the Sea	1997					Sony, Tapson Steel
Eve Arnold in Retrospect	1996					BBC, Omnibus
To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar	1995					Universal, Amblin
Great Moments in Aviation	1993					BBC, Miramax
Used People	1992					20th Century Fox, Largo
4 Play	1991					C4, Chrysalis	Episode: Itch
Antonia and Jane	1991					BBC, Miramax
Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit	1989					BBC, A&E
Vroom	1988					Film 4
Global Gamble	1985					Diverse, C4
Alex	1985					NFTS
Carry Greenham Home	1983					Contemporary Films, C4

Awards and Nominations

See also

In Spanish: Beeban Kidron para niños

• List of members of the House of Lords
• List of female film and television directors
• List of LGBT-related films directed by women