Roger Michell facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Roger Michell
Michell in 2019
Born	(1956-06-05)5 June 1956 Pretoria, Transvaal, Union of South Africa
Died	22 September 2021(2021-09-22) (aged 65)
Occupation	Director
Years active	1977–2021
Spouse(s)	Kate Buffery (m. 1992; div. 2002) Anna Maxwell Martin ​ ​ (m. 2010; sep. 2020)​
Children	4

Roger Michell (born June 5, 1956 – died September 22, 2021) was a famous British director. He directed plays, TV shows, and movies. He was born in South Africa because his dad was a diplomat.

Roger Michell is best known for directing popular films. These include Notting Hill and Venus. He also directed the TV movie Persuasion in 1995.

Roger Michell's Early Life and School

Roger Michell was born on June 5, 1956, in Pretoria, Union of South Africa. His father was a British diplomat. Because of his father's job, Roger lived in many different countries. He spent parts of his childhood in Beirut, Damascus, and Prague. His family was in Prague during the 1968 invasion.

He went to Clifton College in Bristol. There, he started directing and writing short plays. Later, he studied English at Queens' College, Cambridge. At Cambridge, he directed and acted in many plays. He won awards for his directing and for a play he wrote called Private Dick. He finished college in 1977.

Roger Michell's Career in Directing

After college, Roger Michell moved to Brighton. He directed plays there for the Brighton Actors Workshop. In 1978, he became an assistant director at the Royal Court Theatre. He worked with famous people like Samuel Beckett.

In 1979, he started working as a freelance writer and director. His play Private Dick was very successful. It moved to the West End, a famous theater area in London.

Working with the Royal Shakespeare Company

In 1985, Michell joined the Royal Shakespeare Company. He was a Resident Director for six years. He directed plays by Shakespeare and other writers. One of his plays, Some Americans Abroad, even went to Broadway in New York.

Directing for Television and Film

Roger Michell learned how to direct for TV through a special BBC course. His first TV project was a thriller called Downtown Lagos. Then he directed The Buddha of Suburbia. He also wrote the script for it with the author, Hanif Kureishi.

In 1995, he directed the BBC film Persuasion. This film was based on a novel by Jane Austen. It won a BAFTA award for Best Single Drama. He then directed My Night with Reg (1997) and Titanic Town (1998).

Directing Notting Hill and Other Big Films

Throughout the 1990s, Michell directed many plays at the Royal National Theatre. He directed Blue/Orange, which won many awards.

Later, he was asked to direct the movie Notting Hill. This film became a huge success and won awards. It was one of the biggest British box office hits ever. In 2002, he directed Changing Lanes, starring Ben Affleck and Samuel L. Jackson.

For a while, Michell chose to work only in the UK. In 2003, he directed The Mother. He worked again with writer Hanif Kureishi. He also directed Enduring Love (2004) and Venus (2006).

Michell was considered to direct a James Bond film, Quantum of Solace. However, he decided not to because the script wasn't ready. He felt there wasn't enough time to make a good film.

He continued to direct plays and films. In 2010, he directed Morning Glory, a comedy with Rachel McAdams and Harrison Ford. He also directed Hyde Park on Hudson, starring Bill Murray as FDR.

Later, he directed the award-winning film Le Week-End. He worked with Hanif Kureishi again on this movie. He also directed a two-part TV drama called The Lost Honour of Christopher Jefferies. This true story was about a retired teacher wrongly accused of murder. Roger Michell had actually been taught by Christopher Jefferies in school. The film won Michell another BAFTA award.

His other films include My Cousin Rachel (2017) and the documentary Nothing Like a Dame (2018). He also directed Blackbird (2019) and The Duke (2020). The Duke was shown at the Venice Film Festival and received great reviews.

Roger Michell's Personal Life

Roger Michell was married to actress Kate Buffery. They had two children, Rosanna and Harry. Rosanna became a theatrical agent. Harry became a writer, director, and actor.

After his divorce from Kate, he married Anna Maxwell Martin. They had two daughters, Maggie and Nancy. In 2020, Anna Maxwell Martin confirmed that she and Roger Michell had separated.

Roger Michell passed away on September 22, 2021, at the age of 65.

Roger Michell's Filmography

See also

In Spanish: Roger Michell para niños