Dennis Potter
- Known for
- Writing
- Born
- May 17, 1935
- Died
- June 7, 1994 (aged 59)
- Birthplace
- Berry Hill, UK
Biography
Dennis Christopher George Potter (17 May 1935 – 7 June 1994) was an English television dramatist, screenwriter and journalist. He is best known for his BBC TV serials Pennies from Heaven (1978), The Singing Detective (1986), and the television plays Blue Remembered Hills (1979) and Brimstone and Treacle (1976). His television dramas mixed fantasy and reality, the personal and the social, and often used themes and images from popular culture. Potter is widely regarded as one of the most influential and innovative dramatists to have worked in British television. Born in Gloucestershire and graduating from Oxford University, Potter initially worked in journalism. After standing for parliament as a Labour candidate at the 1964 general election, his health was affected by the onset of psoriatic arthropathy which necessitated Potter changing careers and led to him becoming a television dramatist. His new career began with contributions to the BBC's Wednesday Play anthology series in 1965, and he continued to work in the medium for the rest of his life. He also wrote screenplay adaptations for the Hollywood studios. He died of pancreatic cancer in 1994.
Known For
Filmography
The Singing Detective
Movie · Screenplay
The Bittersweet
Movie · Theatre Play, Writer
Karaoke
TV · Writer · 4 eps
Cold Lazarus
TV · Writer · 4 eps
Midnight Movie
Movie · Writer
Mesmer
Movie · Writer
Message for Posterity
Movie · Writer
Lipstick on Your Collar
TV · Writer · 6 eps
Secret Friends
Movie · Novel, Screenplay
Follow the Yellow Brick Road
Movie · Writer
Performance
TV · Writer · 1 ep
Blackeyes
TV · Novel, Writer · 4 eps
Track 29
Movie · Writer
Christabel
TV · Writer · 4 eps
Visitors
Movie · Writer
The Singing Detective
TV · Writer · 6 eps
Dreamchild
Movie · Writer
Tender Is the Night
TV · Writer · 6 eps
Screen Two
TV · Writer · 2 eps
Gorky Park
Movie · Screenplay
Brimstone & Treacle
Movie · Screenplay, Original Story
Pennies from Heaven
Movie · Writer
Blade on the Feather
Movie · Writer
Rain on the Roof
Movie · Writer
Cream in My Coffee
Movie · Writer
Blue Remembered Hills
Movie · Writer
Pennies from Heaven
TV · Writer · 6 eps
The Mayor of Casterbridge
TV · Writer, Screenplay · 7 eps
Brimstone and Treacle
Movie · Writer
Where Adam Stood
Movie · Writer
Double Dare
Movie · Writer
Late Call
TV · Writer · 4 eps
Schmoedipus
Movie · Writer
Joe's Ark
Movie · Writer
Only Make Believe
Movie · Writer
Wessex Tales
TV · Writer · 1 ep
Follow the Yellow Brick Road
Movie · Writer
The Sextet
TV · Writer · 1 ep
Paper Roses
Movie · Writer
Traitor
Movie · Writer
Casanova
TV · Writer · 6 eps
Lay Down Your Arms
Movie · Writer
Angels Are So Few
Movie · Writer
Play for Today
TV · Writer · 7 eps
Moonlight on the Highway
Movie · Writer
Son of Man
Movie · Writer
ITV Saturday Night Theatre
TV · Writer · 3 eps
A Beast with Two Backs
Movie · Writer
The Bone Grinder
Movie · Writer
Shaggy Dog
Movie · Writer
The Company of Five
TV · Writer · 1 ep
ITV Playhouse
TV · Writer · 1 ep
Where the Buffalo Roam
Movie · Writer
Emergency Ward 9
Movie · Writer
VOTE, VOTE, VOTE for Nigel Barton
Movie · Writer
Stand Up, Nigel Barton
Movie · Writer
Alice
Movie · Screenplay
Thirty-Minute Theatre
TV · Writer · 1 ep
The Wednesday Play
TV · Writer · 8 eps
Not So Much a Programme, More a Way of Life
TV · Writer · 62 eps
That Was the Week That Was
TV · Writer · 16 eps
Between Two Rivers
Movie · Writer