Mark Kermode

Mark Kermode
Kermode at the 2018 BFI London Film Festival
Born
Mark Fairey

(1963-07-02) 2 July 1963 (age 61)
London, England
EducationSt Mary's CoE Primary School, Finchley,[1] Haberdashers' Aske's Boys' School
Alma materUniversity of Manchester
Occupations
  • Film critic
  • presenter
  • writer
  • musician
Employer(s)BBC
The Observer
TelevisionThe Film Review
The Culture Show
Mark Kermode's Secrets of Cinema[2]
Spouse
​
(m. 1991)​
[3]
Children2

Mark Kermode (/ˈkɜːrˌmoʊd/, KUR-moh-d;[4] né Fairey;[5] born 2 July 1963)[6][7] is an English film critic, musician, radio presenter, television presenter, author and podcaster. He is the co-presenter, with Ellen E. Jones, of the BBC Radio 4 programme Screenshot and co-presenter of the film-review podcast Kermode & Mayo's Take, alongside long-time collaborator Simon Mayo. Kermode is a regular contributor to The Observer, for which he was chief film critic between September 2013 and September 2023.[8]

He is the author of several books on film and music, including It's Only A Movie, Hatchet Job, How Does It Feel? and The Movie Doctors (with Simon Mayo). Kermode has also written three volumes for the BFI's Modern Classics series, on The Exorcist, The Shawshank Redemption and Silent Running. Since the late 1980's he has contributed to the BFI's film magazine Sight & Sound and its predecessor The Monthly Film Bulletin, and since January 2016 he has presented a monthly live show, MK3D, at the British Film Institute (BFI), South Bank. It is the BFI's longest running live show.[9]

Kermode previously co-presented the BBC Radio 5 Live show Kermode and Mayo's Film Review, and previously co-presented the BBC Two arts programme The Culture Show. Between 2018 and 2021, he co-wrote and presented three seasons of the BBC Four film documentary series Mark Kermode's Secrets of Cinema, and between 2019 and 2024 he presented a weekly film music show on Scala Radio. He is a member of the British Academy of Film and Television Arts and a founding member of the skiffle band the Dodge Brothers, for which he plays double bass. Since 2008, The Dodge Brothers (with Neil Brand) have provided live accompaniment for silent films such as Beggars of Life, Hell's Hinges, White Oak (film) and The Ghost That Never Returns.

  1. ^ https://planetradio.co.uk/scala-radio/presenters/mark-kermode/ [bare URL]
  2. ^ "BBC Four - Mark Kermode's Secrets of Cinema".
  3. ^ "26 years ago today, and still seems like yesterday. @lindaruth1 x". Twitter. Retrieved 21 December 2017.
  4. ^ "The Film Review". BBC iPlayer. Retrieved 1 November 2020.
  5. ^ Norman, Matthew (24 January 2005). "Matthew Norman's Media Diary". The Independent. Archived from the original on 23 February 2009. Retrieved 31 August 2016.
  6. ^ "Birthdays". The Guardian. 2 July 2009. p. 35.
  7. ^ "Film critic honoured by University of Manchester". University of Manchester. 14 December 2009. Retrieved 19 December 2009.
  8. ^ Thorpe, Vanessa (19 August 2023). "Mark Kermode: Observer chief film critic leaves role after 10-year stint". The Observer.
  9. ^ "Buy cinema tickets for Mark Kermode Live in 3D at the BFI | BFI Southbank".