Action! My Life and Career by Director David Wickes (in collaboration with Simon J Ballard)
Autobiographies by behind-the-scenes filmmakers can be something of a gamble. There’s no guarantee that a director whose touch in the cinema is absolutely sure-footed will be equally adroit when it comes to the written word and a curated version of their career. In the case of the director David Wickes, celebrated for his distinctive work on such series as The Professionals, The Sweeney and Van der Valk, we are guaranteed a particularly enjoyable and informative read because of one particular factor: the presence of co-author Simon J Ballard, whose work in fashioning an accessible but detailed picture of the director’s career is top notch. Ballard writes for such genre magazine as The Dark Side, Infinity and Scream, and the enthusiasm for the subjects that comes across in that work is clearly apparent here, although perhaps the real achievement is the way the narrative is organised in coherent and logical fashion. Whether or not one uses the book as a reference point to Wickes’ career or reads it as a entrée into the filmmaking life, no reader will be disappointed.
One of Wickes’ key shows was The Sweeney, and its tough copper Regan was the brainchild of Ian Kennedy Martin (who had created Z-Cars), and acquainted audiences with a pre-Morse John Thaw and Dennis Waterman. It was shot on location in and around central London. The series was influential on many British television police series that followed with its unvarnished picture of British coppers lower down the social scale than the traditionally upper middle-class officers previously seen in the cinema. It was merely one of Wickes’ key projects.
As well as such series as The Professionals, Wickes also demonstrated his range with a film based on Shakespeare’s sonnets, covered here along with intriguing glimpses back into the filmmaker’s nonprofessional life, such as his celebrated magician father. As a picture of the film industry before digital disciplines took over, Wickes and Ballard supply some fascinating insights.
Action! My Life and Career is published by New Haven Publishing
