Peter Rogers
Encyclopedia
Peter Rogers was a British
film producer.
Rogers began his career as a journalist for his local paper before graduating to scriptwriting religious informational films. He progressed to film production, working with director Gerald Thomas
, the first work being a production for the Children's Film Foundation.
Rogers is best known as producer of the Carry On series of British comedy films, beginning with Carry On Sergeant
in 1958. There were 31 films in all. Rogers had also been linked with a further instalment, Carry On London, which has been in pre-production for several years, but since his death is now unlikely to be made.
The majority of Rogers' work, including all the Carry On films, were made at Pinewood Studios
in Iver Heath, Bucks.
Rogers' other production ventures include the television series Ivanhoe
with Roger Moore
and the film adaptation of the long-running sitcom Bless This House with Carry On regular Sid James
.
His wife was the film producer Betty Box
, responsible for the Doctor
series of films. They did not have children. Their godson
was actor & theatre producer Marc Sinden
who appeared in Carry On Columbus
, the son of Sir Donald Sinden, who starred in Doctor in the House
and Doctor at Large
. Peter and Betty lived for many years at a large home in Beaconsfield, Drummers Yard that had been purchased from the actor Dirk Bogarde
.
An authorized biography, Mr Carry On - the Life and Work of Peter Rogers (BBC), by Morris Bright and Robert Ross (author of The Carry On Companion and the Monty Python Encyclopedia) was published in 2000, with extensive input from Peter Rogers himself. It attempts to defend him against charges that he exploited the cast of the Carry On films by paying the lead actors an unchanged £5,000 per film from the first in 1958 to the penultimate movie.
Rogers attended the 50th anniversary
of the Carry On films held at Pinewood Studios
in March 2008. He died on 14 April 2009, having been ill for several months.
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...
film producer.
Rogers began his career as a journalist for his local paper before graduating to scriptwriting religious informational films. He progressed to film production, working with director Gerald Thomas
Gerald Thomas
Gerald Thomas was an English film director, born in Hull.-Early life:Thomas was training in medicine when the Second World War began. He then served in the British army during the war, in Europe and the Middle East...
, the first work being a production for the Children's Film Foundation.
Rogers is best known as producer of the Carry On series of British comedy films, beginning with Carry On Sergeant
Carry On Sergeant
Carry On Sergeant is the first Carry On film. Its first public screening was on 1 August 1958 at Screen One, London. Actors in this film who went on to be part of the regular team in the series were Kenneth Williams, Charles Hawtrey, Hattie Jacques, Kenneth Connor and Terry Scott...
in 1958. There were 31 films in all. Rogers had also been linked with a further instalment, Carry On London, which has been in pre-production for several years, but since his death is now unlikely to be made.
The majority of Rogers' work, including all the Carry On films, were made at Pinewood Studios
Pinewood Studios
Pinewood Studios is a major British film studio situated in Iver Heath, Buckinghamshire, approximately west of central London. The studios have played host to many productions over the years from huge blockbuster films to television shows to commercials to pop promos.The purchase of Shepperton...
in Iver Heath, Bucks.
Rogers' other production ventures include the television series Ivanhoe
Ivanhoe (1958 TV series)
Ivanhoe is a British television series first shown on ITV in 1958-59. It featured Roger Moore, in his first starring role, as Sir Wilfred of Ivanhoe, in a series of adventures aimed at a children's audience...
with Roger Moore
Roger Moore
Sir Roger George Moore KBE , is an English actor, perhaps best known for portraying British secret agent James Bond in seven films from 1973 to 1985. He also portrayed Simon Templar in the long-running British television series The Saint.-Early life:Moore was born in Stockwell, London...
and the film adaptation of the long-running sitcom Bless This House with Carry On regular Sid James
Sid James
Sid James was an English-based South African actor and comedian. He made his name as Tony Hancock's co-star in Hancock's Half Hour and also starred in the popular Carry On films. He was known for his trademark "dirty laugh" and lascivious persona...
.
His wife was the film producer Betty Box
Betty Box
Betty Evelyn Box was a prolific British film producer. She is considered one of the best of her generation, with a flair for making genuinely popular British films....
, responsible for the Doctor
Doctor Series
The Doctor series are a series of comic novels by British physician Richard Gordon covering the antics of a group of young doctors. The Doctor film series were developed from them. The early films featured Dirk Bogarde in the lead as Doctor Sparrow and Donald Sinden as Benskin...
series of films. They did not have children. Their godson
Godson
Loongson is a family of general-purpose MIPS-compatible CPUs developed at the Institute of Computing Technology , Chinese Academy of Sciences in the People's Republic of China. The chief architect is Professor Hu Weiwu....
was actor & theatre producer Marc Sinden
Marc Sinden
Marc Sinden is an English theatre producer, documentary director and actor. His father is the actor Sir Donald Sinden.-Theatre:...
who appeared in Carry On Columbus
Carry On Columbus
Carry On Columbus is the 31st and last film in the Carry On series, following 1978's Carry On Emmannuelle. The only main series regulars present are Jim Dale , Bernard Cribbins , Leslie Phillips , Jon Pertwee and June Whitfield...
, the son of Sir Donald Sinden, who starred in Doctor in the House
Doctor in the House
Doctor in the House is a 1954 British comedy film, directed by Ralph Thomas and produced by Betty Box. The screenplay, by Nicholas Phipps, Richard Gordon and Ronald Wilkinson, is based on the novel by Gordon, and follows a group of students through medical school.It was the most popular box office...
and Doctor at Large
Doctor at Large (film)
Doctor at Large is a 1957 British comedy film, the third installment of the Doctor in the House series. It stars Dirk Bogarde, Muriel Pavlow, Donald Sinden, and James Robertson Justice.-Cast:* Dirk Bogarde as Dr. Simon Sparrow...
. Peter and Betty lived for many years at a large home in Beaconsfield, Drummers Yard that had been purchased from the actor Dirk Bogarde
Dirk Bogarde
Sir Dirk Bogarde was an English actor and novelist. Initially a matinee idol in such films as Doctor in the House and other Rank Organisation pictures, Bogarde later acted in art-house films such as Death in Venice...
.
An authorized biography, Mr Carry On - the Life and Work of Peter Rogers (BBC), by Morris Bright and Robert Ross (author of The Carry On Companion and the Monty Python Encyclopedia) was published in 2000, with extensive input from Peter Rogers himself. It attempts to defend him against charges that he exploited the cast of the Carry On films by paying the lead actors an unchanged £5,000 per film from the first in 1958 to the penultimate movie.
Rogers attended the 50th anniversary
Anniversary
An anniversary is a day that commemorates or celebrates a past event that occurred on the same day of the year as the initial event. For example, the first event is the initial occurrence or, if planned, the inaugural of the event. One year later would be the first anniversary of that event...
of the Carry On films held at Pinewood Studios
Pinewood Studios
Pinewood Studios is a major British film studio situated in Iver Heath, Buckinghamshire, approximately west of central London. The studios have played host to many productions over the years from huge blockbuster films to television shows to commercials to pop promos.The purchase of Shepperton...
in March 2008. He died on 14 April 2009, having been ill for several months.
External links
- What a Carry On
- Carry On Films at The Whippit Inn
- Obituary, Daily Telegraph, 15 April 2009
- Obituary, The TimesThe TimesThe Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
, 16 April 2009