Geoff Posner
Encyclopedia
Geoffrey Posner is a British
television producer and director. Posner has directed and produced some of Britain's most successful comedy shows since the early 1980s.
Starting off as a director on the satirical show Not the Nine O'Clock News
, he then went on in 1982 to direct the groundbreaking BBC2 anti-sitcom The Young Ones
. Working also as an assistant producer on that show, he went on to produce in the same year the unshown pilot of the Rowan Atkinson
historical sitcom Blackadder
. One of his biggest successes came in 1985, when he produced and directed the multi-award winning Victoria Wood As Seen On TV
, a sketch show written by (and starring) the popular comedienne.
Posner has since produced and directed some of the most popular British television comedies of the 1990s and 2000s. They include Harry Enfield's Television Programme
, French & Saunders
, Paul Calf's Video Diaries, and dinnerladies
. More recently he was one of the TV directors covering the Live 8
concert. He was also producer of the second and third series of Little Britain
.
His shows have won six BAFTA awards and been nominated for another seven.
Posner formed Pozzitive Television
with fellow TV producer David Tyler (UK)
in 1992.
Posner also directed the Eurovision Song Contest 1998
in Birmingham
.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
television producer and director. Posner has directed and produced some of Britain's most successful comedy shows since the early 1980s.
Starting off as a director on the satirical show Not the Nine O'Clock News
Not the Nine O'Clock News
Not the Nine O'Clock News is a television comedy sketch show which was broadcast on BBC 2 from 1979 to 1982.Originally shown as a comedy "alternative" to the BBC Nine O'Clock News on BBC 1, it featured satirical sketches on current news stories and popular culture, as well as parody songs, comedy...
, he then went on in 1982 to direct the groundbreaking BBC2 anti-sitcom The Young Ones
The Young Ones (TV series)
The Young Ones is a British sitcom, first broadcast in 1982, which ran for two series on BBC2. Its anarchic, offbeat humour helped bring alternative comedy to television in the 1980s and made household names of its writers and performers...
. Working also as an assistant producer on that show, he went on to produce in the same year the unshown pilot of the Rowan Atkinson
Rowan Atkinson
Rowan Sebastian Atkinson is a British actor, comedian, and screenwriter. He is most famous for his work on the satirical sketch comedy show Not The Nine O'Clock News, and the sitcoms Blackadder, Mr. Bean and The Thin Blue Line...
historical sitcom Blackadder
Blackadder
Blackadder is the name that encompassed four series of a BBC1 historical sitcom, along with several one-off instalments. All television programme episodes starred Rowan Atkinson as anti-hero Edmund Blackadder and Tony Robinson as Blackadder's dogsbody, Baldrick...
. One of his biggest successes came in 1985, when he produced and directed the multi-award winning Victoria Wood As Seen On TV
Victoria Wood As Seen On TV
Victoria Wood As Seen On TV was a British comedy sketch series starring comedienne Victoria Wood, with Julie Walters, Celia Imrie, Duncan Preston, Susie Blake and Patricia Routledge...
, a sketch show written by (and starring) the popular comedienne.
Posner has since produced and directed some of the most popular British television comedies of the 1990s and 2000s. They include Harry Enfield's Television Programme
Harry Enfield's Television Programme
Harry Enfield's Television Programme was a British sketch show starring Harry Enfield and Paul Whitehouse...
, French & Saunders
French & Saunders
French and Saunders is a British sketch comedy television show written by and starring comic duo Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders. It is also the name by which the performers are known on the occasions when they appear elsewhere as a double act....
, Paul Calf's Video Diaries, and dinnerladies
Dinnerladies
Dinnerladies is a British sitcom written, co-produced by and starring Victoria Wood. It ran on BBC One for 16 episodes from 1998 to 2000.-Plot:...
. More recently he was one of the TV directors covering the Live 8
Live 8
Live 8 was a string of benefit concerts that took place on 2 July 2005, in the G8 states and in South Africa. They were timed to precede the G8 Conference and summit held at the Gleneagles Hotel in Auchterarder, Scotland from 6–8 July 2005; they also coincided with the 20th anniversary of Live Aid...
concert. He was also producer of the second and third series of Little Britain
Little Britain
Little Britain is a British character-based comedy sketch show which was first broadcast on BBC radio and then turned into a television show. It was written by comic duo David Walliams and Matt Lucas...
.
His shows have won six BAFTA awards and been nominated for another seven.
Posner formed Pozzitive Television
Pozzitive Television
Pozzitive Television is a production company formed by producers Geoff Posner and David Tyler in 1992. Between them, they have produced and directed comedy shows in the UK including Spitting Image, Coogan's Run, Not The Nine O'Clock News, French & Saunders, Harry Enfield and Chums, dinnerladies,...
with fellow TV producer David Tyler (UK)
David Tyler (UK)
David Tyler is a British television and radio comedy producer, executive producer and director. He is also the co-founder of the independent production company Pozzitive Television, which he set up in 1992 with Geoff Posner....
in 1992.
Posner also directed the Eurovision Song Contest 1998
Eurovision Song Contest 1998
The Eurovision Song Contest 1998 was the 43rd Eurovision Song Contest and was held on 9 May 1998 at the National Indoor Arena in Birmingham, United Kingdom. The presenters were Terry Wogan and Ulrika Jonsson...
in Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
.