- Ray Burdis
Ray Burdis (born
August 23 ,1958 inLondon ) is an Englishactor ,screenwriter , director andfilm producer . Ray Burdis started his Acting career at the age of eleven years old where he trained at the famousAnna Scher Theatre in Islington.His first major role was at the age of sixteen, in the hit Thames TV production of "You Must Be Joking", alongside a young "Birds of a Feather",Pauline Quirke andLinda Robson , which he co created, wrote and starred in. He also starred with QuadropheniasPhil Daniels in "Four Idle Hands", at the time having two hit TV network shows running alternately in the same hour.An actor from
adolescence , he starred in an episode of the classicBBC sitcom "Steptoe and Son " before he turned 16. He first came to real prominence when he took the part of cowardly inmate Eckersley in the controversial movie "Scum" in 1979. He had played the same role two years earlier in a BBC version of the story, although this was not transmitted for many years due to its nature, hence the cinematic re-make. He later had a small role alongsideDaniel Day-Lewis in the film "Gandhi".Burdis, whose younger brother Mark was a teenage heart-throb in the early 1980s with a leading role in children's drama "
Grange Hill ", then played a supporting role as Richard, a gay neighbour inChannel 4 's shortlived sitcom "Dream Stuffing" in 1984 (which featured a theme song performed by the lateKirsty MacColl ). After this, he played ambitiousphotographer Nick Tyler in the BBC comedy "Three Up, Two Down ". His character was the son and son-in-law respectively of the two lead characters, played byMichael Elphick andAngela Thorne .As a second string to his acting, Ray co-founded Fugitive as an independent film, television and music production company which started life as a premier music video producer, producing videos for internationally renowned artists such as
Elton John , Queen,Tina Turner andGeorge Michael , placing itself in the Top 5 international music video production companies. Burdis also produced for televisionThe Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert , the largest ever live outside broadcast at the time, it was transmitted in every country around the world to an audience 40% larger thanLive Aid . Ray Burdis’ first foray into television drama was creating the seriesThe Fear , forEuston Films , which was broadcast on the ITV Network. The series was critically acclaimed and was based on the unpublicised real-life gangster scene in the late 1980’s.Ray Burdis has subsequently concentrated more on writing - producing and directing. He was the producer of "The Krays", the critically-acclaimed biopic of the East End gangsters Reggie and Ronnie Kray, and also co-wrote-produced and directed the movies "Final Cut" and "
Love, Honour and Obey " starring such actors asJude Law ,Jonny Lee Miller ,Kathy Burke ,Ray Winstone ,Rhys Ifans . He also created, co wrote, produced, directed and starred in the television police fly on the wall docu-comedy "Operation Good Guys " for three seasons. The series was awarded the Silver Rose for Best Sitcom and the Prix de la Presse, voted for by the International Press, at the Montreux Golden Rose Festival.Turning his hand once again to acting he went on to star in "
Manchild "for two seasons. The program was a BBC comedy drama with Nigel Havers, Anthony Head and Don Warrington.External links
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