Philip Hinchcliffe
Philip Hinchcliffe | |
---|---|
Born | Philip Michael Hinchcliffe 1 October 1944 |
Alma mater | University of Cambridge |
Occupation(s) | Television producer, screenwriter, script editor |
Years active | 1968–2001, 2021 |
Spouse |
Deirdre Hanefey (m. 1970) |
Children | Celina Hinchcliffe (born 1976) |
Philip Michael Hinchcliffe[1] (born 1 October 1944) is a retired English television producer, screenwriter and script editor. After graduating from Cambridge University, he began his career as a writer and script editor at Associated Television before joining the BBC to produce Doctor Who in one of its most popular eras from 1974 to 1977. In 2010, Hinchcliffe was chosen by Den of Geek as the best ever producer of the series.[2]
Following Doctor Who, Hinchcliffe remained with the BBC as a producer for several years, working on series such as
Background and early work
Hinchcliffe was born in
Doctor Who
Hinchcliffe's agent and contacts from his time as a script editor won him the position as the new producer of the BBC's Doctor Who.[5] In Spring 1974, at the age of 29, he was approached by the corporation's head of serials to take his first full production job, initially trailing and then succeeding long-serving producer Barry Letts. Although he trailed Letts on Tom Baker's first story, Robot, he was first credited on The Ark in Space. Throughout his first year he was mostly producing scripts that had been commissioned by the previous production team prior to their departure.
Hinchcliffe, together with script editor Robert Holmes, ushered in a change in tone for the series, which became darker and more adult than previously, with a gothic atmosphere influenced by the horror films produced by Hammer Film Productions.[7] This horror influence is especially evident in serials like Planet of Evil, Pyramids of Mars, The Brain of Morbius, The Hand of Fear and The Talons of Weng-Chiang, all of which have content which directly recalls well known horror novels and movies. Hinchcliffe also aspired to give the programme a more literary feel with a stronger science fiction basis.[8] Working closely with Holmes, Hinchcliffe tried to "tighten the whole storytelling up a bit and pay more attention to the design", but he conceded that it was improved "in some stories more than others".[9] As part of the effort to "tighten" the storytelling they were permitted to reduce the number of six-parters to just one a season (the previous team of Barry Letts and Terrance Dicks made three six-parters per season in their last three seasons).
Hinchcliffe was reluctant to use characters and monsters from the series' past: the
The early Tom Baker era of the series is cited by
Hinchcliffe also wrote three novelisations of Doctor Who serials for Target Books, adapting the William Hartnell era story The Keys of Marinus, as well as two stories from his own era, The Seeds of Doom and The Masque of Mandragora.[12]
Subsequent career
After
Hinchcliffe has made numerous appearances on DVD releases of Doctor Who serials made during his time as producer. The documentary Serial Thrillers, included on the Pyramids of Mars DVD release, focuses on his three-year reign as producer in depth, examining what made the show so successful during that period. In 2012, Life After Who: Philip Hinchcliffe was included on The Android Invasion DVD release, in which his daughter Celina Hinchcliffe interviewed him about his career in British television and film after his work on Doctor Who.[13]
In 2021, Hinchliffe came out of retirement, returning to Doctor Who to help Big Finish Productions produce audio dramas based on "lost" story ideas from his era on Doctor Who.[15]
Personal life
Hinchcliffe married Deirdre Hanefey in 1970 and has two children. His daughter, Celina Hinchcliffe (born 1976), is a television presenter, primarily on sports programmes, and has worked extensively for the BBC, ITV & Sky News.[citation needed]
References
- ^ "UK Corporations from A to Z". www.checkdirector.co.uk.
- ^ Westthorp, Alex (1 April 2010). "Top 10 Doctor Who producers: Part Two". Den of Geek. Retrieved 19 May 2020.
- ^ "Search Results for England & Wales Births 1837-2006". www.findmypast.co.uk.
- ^ "Cambridge Tripos Examination results", The Times, 23 June 1966, p. 18.
- ^ ISBN 9781291174076.
- ^ "Philip Hinchcliffe". BFI. Archived from the original on 17 August 2019.
- ^ Mellor, Louisa (3 September 2013). "Philip Hinchcliffe on producing Doctor Who, Tom Baker, special effects, Russell T Davies, Big Finish audio plays & more…". Den of Geek. Retrieved 5 October 2015.
- ^ "Philip Hinchcliffe | Doctor Who Interview Archive". Drwhointerviews.wordpress.com. 7 October 2009. Retrieved 5 October 2015.
- ^ Voice-over commentary on the BBC DVD "The Robots of Death" (1977, 2000)
- ^ a b Clark, Anthony. "Doctor Who (1963–89, 2005–)". Screenonline. Retrieved 6 January 2015.
- ^ "Doctor Who Classic Episode Guide – Season 14". BBC. 24 September 2014. Retrieved 5 October 2015.
- ^ "Summary Bibliography: Philip Hinchcliffe". www.isfdb.org.
- ^ a b "Doctor Who: U.N.I.T Files Review". The Digital Fix.
- ^ a b "Dr Who producer Philip Hinchcliffe talks about the programme's ongoing success (From The Argus)". Theargus.co.uk. 16 August 2013. Retrieved 5 October 2015.
- ^ Jeffery, Morgan (19 August 2021). "Philip Hinchcliffe: 'I was pushing the envelope on Doctor Who, but not irresponsibly'". Radio Times.