Ken Russell

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Ken Russell

Profession: Film Director
Place/Date of Birth: Southampton, 03 July 2020

He entered the Merchant Navy as sixth officer on a cargo ship bound for the Pacific. However, after World War Two, Russell’s fascination with the sea had ended, and his family assumed he would enter their shoe business. Horrified by the thought, Russell tried to break into the film business, but without success.

In his early twenties, Russell turned his attention to ballet and Classical music. For nearly five years he attended dance school and toured with dance tropes, yet in the end he woke up to the fact that he was not a very good dancer.

Overall, Russell would make 32 films for the BBC Monitor and Omnibus programs and had established a reputation of being one of the finest directors working in British television.

Ken Russell became famous in the 1970s for films like The Devils, The Music Lovers, and Women in Love which featured a naked wrestling scene between Oliver Reed and Alan Bates. Another film, Tommy, included stars like Elton John and Tina Turner, and told the story of a deaf, dumb and blind kid who becomes a pinball wizard.

Ken lives with his fourth wife Lisi near Beaulieu in the New Forest. He continues to direct, produce, write and act to this day and his films are still purchased and screened worldwide.

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