John Bridcut
2021Britten's Endgame
John Bridcut
John Bridcut
To mark the centenary of Benjamin Britten's birth, Britten’s Endgame explores the composer's creativity in the face of death. Those closest to him watched anxiously as he raced to complete his final opera, Death in Venice, in defiance of medical advice, tackling an edgy subject with many resonances in his own life. His eventual heart operation left him incapacitated and prematurely old and frail, yet somehow he rediscovered his creative urge to produce two late masterpieces. This is a rich and poignant film about Britten’s final years, and the impact of what Peter Pears called 'an evil opera'.
Britten's Endgame
Elizabeth at 90: A Family Tribute
John Bridcut
Prince Charles, Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom
A unique celebration of the Queen's ninety years as she reaches her landmark birthday in April. Film-maker John Bridcut has been granted special access to the complete collection of Her Majesty's personal ciné films, shot by the Duke of Edinburgh and the Queen herself, as well as by King George VI and Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother. Much of it has never been seen publicly before. Various members of the Royal Family are filmed watching this private footage and contributing their own personal insights and their memories of the woman they know both as a member of their own close family and as queen. Among those taking part are the Prince of Wales, the Duke of Cambridge, Prince Harry, the Princess Royal, the Duke of Kent and his sister Princess Alexandra, who has never before given an interview.
Elizabeth at 90: A Family Tribute
Prince, Son and Heir: Charles at 70
John Bridcut
Paapa Essiedu, Prince Charles
A special documentary to mark the seventieth birthday of HRH the Prince of Wales. For this observational documentary, film-maker John Bridcut has had exclusive access to the prince over the past 12 months, both at work and behind the scenes, at home and abroad. He speaks to those who know him best, including HRH the Duchess of Cornwall and the Dukes of Cambridge and Sussex. His sons discuss their upbringing and their feelings about the prince's working life.
Prince, Son and Heir: Charles at 70
Britten's Children
John Bridcut
Benjamin Britten, David Hemmings
Children and childhood fascinated Benjamin Britten throughout his life and inspired some of his greatest music. John Bridcut's compelling film sheds light on the composer's own inner child throiugh interviews with several of Britten's former companions and muses.
Britten's Children
Bernard Haitink: The Enigmatic Maestro
John Bridcut
Bernard Haitink
After conducting for 65 years, Bernard Haitink has retired at the age of 90. The musicians he has worked with are puzzled by the secrets of his technique. He himself says his job is to embrace the orchestra without suffocating them.
Bernard Haitink: The Enigmatic Maestro
Janet Baker: In Her Own Words
John Bridcut
Janet Baker
In her first documentary for more than 35 years, the great British classical singer Dame Janet Baker talks more openly and emotionally than ever before about her career and her life today. With excerpts of her greatest stage roles (as Dido, Mary Stuart, Julius Caesar and Orpheus), as well as of her appearances in the concert hall and recording studio (works by Handel, Berlioz, Schubert, Elgar, Britten and Mahler), she looks back at the excitements and pitfalls of public performance.
Janet Baker: In Her Own Words
Karajan's Magic and Myth
John Bridcut
Plácido Domingo, Anne-Sophie Mutter
Over twenty-five years after his death in July 1989, the controversial Austrian conductor Herbert von Karajan remains an enigma. He was the most successful conductor in the history of classical music. Many of his recordings - of Italian opera, of Wagner and Richard Strauss, of Sibelius, Beethoven and Brahms - are treasured by music lovers around the world. Yet, even at the peak of his fame, his performances were variously criticised for being too opulent, too manicured, lacking warmth or spiritual depth. This musical profile explores the many paradoxes in the life and music of this controversial figure, who forged his international reputation in London with the Philharmonia Orchestra shortly after the end of the Second World War and went on to reign supreme in the classical music world during his three decades with the Berlin Philharmonic. The film also examines Karajan's belief in the visual power of music, and his determination to leave behind a substantial legacy of music on film.
Karajan's Magic and Myth
