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From producing films like Chariots of Fire to education and a seat in the Lords, David Puttnam meets his younger self in the Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ sound archive, in conversation with John Wilson.

From producing hit films like "Chariots of Fire" and "The Killing Fields" to work in education and a seat in the Lords, David Puttnam meets his younger self in the Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ sound archive and discusses his reaction to what he hears with John Wilson.

David Puttnam was a convert to the power of film as a youngster, attending regular screenings at his local cinema. As a young man he got his first experiences of using images to give out a message at the advertising agency Collett Dickenson Pearce. It was there that he forged associations with people such as Alan Parker with whom he would later collaborate on films like "Midnight Express", "Melody" and "Bugsy Malone".

"Chariots of Fire" and "The Killing Fields" made him one of the most famous producers in the business and he was eventually asked to run Columbia Pictures, becoming the first ever British head of a Hollywood studio. But he resigned after only a year and returned home. He continued to make films but also campaigned for the environment and forged a new career in education.

In the first in a new series of "Meeting Myself Coming Back", John Wilson takes Lord Puttnam through his life through the Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Sound archives. Among the extracts he hears are his first television interview on the set of "Melody", his triumph with "Chariots of Fire", a return to the Killing Fields and a surprise clip of one of his advertising accounts.

Producer: Emma Kingsley.

Available now

58 minutes

Last on

Sat 5 Jul 2014 20:00

Broadcast

  • Sat 5 Jul 2014 20:00