Lawrence Gordon Clark

For other people with similar names, see Lawrence Clarke and Laurence Clark.
Lawrence Gordon Clark
Born (1938-06-15) June 15, 1938 (age 86)
Occupation(s)Television director, Television producer, Screenwriter, Author
Years active1964–present
Notable workA Ghost Story for Christmas, Casting the Runes
Websitehttps://www.lawrencegordonclark.com/

Lawrence Gordon Clark is an English television director and producer, screenwriter, and author, best known for creating the supernatural anthology series A Ghost Story for Christmas, which originally aired on BBC One from 1971–1978, with Clark directing all but the final instalment as well as writing and producing the first two, The Stalls of Barchester (1971) and A Warning to the Curious (1972).[1][2][3] The first five of these were based on the ghost stories of M. R. James, as was Casting the Runes (1979) which he directed for the ITV drama anthology series Playhouse.[4]

He began his career in documentary at the BBC, directing episodes of the series The Human Side (1964–1965)[5] and Six Sides of a Square (1966)[6] before being inspired by Jonathan Miller's Whistle and I'll Come to You (1968) to create A Ghost Story for Christmas. His other directing credits include the miniseries Harry's Game (1982) and Jamaica Inn (1983), A Pattern of Roses (1983),[7] two TV movies in the espionage series Frederick Forsyth Presents (1989–1990), and episodes of Flambards, Casualty, Pie in the Sky, and Dangerfield.

A collection of Clark's original short stories entitled Telling Stories was published late 2011 by Avalard Publishing.[8]

For his work on A Ghost Story for Christmas, Clark is regarded as one of the greatest British horror directors.[9] Additionally, he has been described as an auteur for his level of creative control on the first two instalments[10] and for setting the standard of the series being shot entirely on location on 16mm film.

Clark was interviewed by Mark Gatiss for a 2013 BBC programme about M.R. James: 'M R James: Ghost Writer'.

  1. ^ "Ghosts of Christmas past: M. R. James, Lawrence Gordon Clark and 'A Ghost Story for Christmas'". British Film Institute. 30 June 2015.
  2. ^ "Who is Lawrence Gordon Clark?". This Is Horror. 5 February 2014. Retrieved 20 April 2020.
  3. ^ "An Interview with Lawrence Gordon Clark, Master of Ghostly Horror | Smug Film (1/7/13 – 12/19/16)". Retrieved 20 April 2020.
  4. ^ "Casting the Runes (1979)". BFI. Archived from the original on 30 December 2018.
  5. ^ "The Human Side (1964–1965) Full Cast & Crew". IMDB. Retrieved 27 May 2024.
  6. ^ "Six Sides Of A Square (1966) Full Cast & Crew". IMDB. Retrieved 27 May 2024.
  7. ^ "A Pattern of Roses (1983)". BFI. Archived from the original on 30 December 2018.
  8. ^ "Coming Winter 2011: Two Chilling Books By Lawrence Gordon Clakr". Avalard Publishing. 4 June 2011. Retrieved 6 June 2011.
  9. ^ Newman, Kim; Hogan, Sean (5 December 2022) [Lost Hearts, first broadcast December 25, 1973]. Ghost Stories for Christmas: Volume 1: Disc 3: Commentary for Lost Hearts (DVD). BFI. Lawrence Gordon Clark as kind of a slightly unsung, you, know, horror, UK horror director - - Oh, absolutely.
  10. ^ Newman, Kim; Hogan, Sean (5 December 2022) [Lost Hearts, first broadcast December 25, 1973]. Ghost Stories for Christmas: Volume 1: Disc 3: Commentary for Lost Hearts (DVD). BFI. Yeah, although as you say, this is kind of the moment where the series slightly pivots away from what it was where, Lawrence Gordon Clarke was, was kind of the auteur of the series, he was the writer, the producer, the director, and now with Lost Hearts it, it, was initially the series was under the umbrella of the documentary department, and now it comes under the head of the drama department, and all of a sudden he's kept on a slightly tighter leash and isn't permitted to write his own scripts anymore.