Ray Austin (director)

For other uses, see Ray Austin (disambiguation).

Raymond John DeVere-Austin, Baron DeVere-Austin of Delvin
Born	Raymond John Austin (1932-12-05) 5 December 1932 London, England
Residence	Charlottesville, Virginia and Bath, England
Nationality	British
Occupation	TV director, producer, stunt performer, actor, writer
Spouse(s)	Wendy DeVere Knight-Bisley (1984–present)
Website
www.raymondaustin.com

Ray Austin, formally known as Raymond Austin or Baron DeVere-Austin of Delvin, (born 5 December 1932) is a British television director. He has worked on episodes as a director for some 50 different television series between 1968 and 1998.

Biography

He started his career as a stunt man on such films as North by Northwest (1959) and Spartacus (1960). Later he was stunt coordinator between 1965 and 1967 on 50 episodes of The Avengers, but became involved as a second unit director for TV on The Champions. He subsequently became a fully fledged director. Perhaps due to his background as a stuntman, his style of direction is often highly visual and physical with a great deal of movement. In 1967 he was one of the highest paid stunt performers in the world.

His work as director for TV includes episodes of The Avengers (1968), Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased) (1969-70). Space: 1999, The New Avengers (1976-77), and V (1984). He has also directed several television movies, including The Return of the Man from U.N.C.L.E. (1983). Unusually for a TV director, he has worked extensively both in the UK and the US. He directed the pilot episodes of many TV shows.

Austin has directed a handful of films, Virgin Witch (1972) and the sci-fi film House of the Living Dead (1973). He directed 50 out the 88 episodes of Zorro filmed in Madrid, Spain during 1989-1992 for the US ABC Family Channel.

In October 2009 he was charged with stealing "numerous items" including cast iron statues of Humpty Dumpty, a dog and a horse's head collectively valued at $740.52 from the Antiquer's Mall in Ruckersville, Virginia. He found guilty of petit larceny, and was given a suspended six-month jail sentence and fined $1,000.

Television

Director

• The Baron, 1966
• The Saint, 1968 (2 episodes)
• The Avengers, 1968 (2 episodes)
• The Champions, 1968
• Journey to the Unknown, 1968–1969
• The Ugliest Girl in Town, 1968–1969
• Department S, 1969 (4 episodes)
• Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased), 1969-1970 (6 episodes)
• Strange Report, 1971
• Shirley's World, 1971–1972
• The Adventures of Black Beauty, 1974
• Space: 1999, 1975–1976
• The New Avengers, 1976 (1 episode)
• The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries, 1977–1979
• W.E.B., 1978
• The Professionals, 1978 (2 episodes)
• Return of the Saint, 1978 (1 episode)
• Barnaby Jones, 1978 (1 episode)
• Sword of Justice, 1978 (2 episodes)
• Vega$, 1978–1981
• Salvage 1, 1979 (2 episodes)
• A Man Called Sloane, 1979 (1 episode)
• Hawaii Five-O, 1979 (1 episode)
• B. J. and the Bear, 1979–1980 (1 episode)
• Hart to Hart, 1979–1980, 1984 (5 episodes)
• Wonder Woman, 1979
• From Here to Eternity, 1980
• The Love Boat, 1980 (4 episodes)
• House Calls, 1980–1982
• Quincy, M.E., 1981 (2 episodes)
• Magnum, P.I., 1981–1986
• Simon & Simon, 1982 (2 episodes)
• The Mississippi, 1983–1984
• Jessie, 1984
• The Master, 1984
• Airwolf, 1984 (1 episode)
• The Fall Guy, 1984 (2 episodes)
• Lime Street, 1985, 1987 (5 episodes)
• V, 1985 (1 episode)
• Our House, 1986–1987
• Snoops, 1989
• The New Alfred Hitchcock Presents, 1989 (1 episode)
• Zorro, 1992
• The Boys of Twilight, 1992
• Highlander: The Series, 1992–1993
• Pensacola: Wings of Gold, 1997 (1 episode)
• CI5: The New Professionals, 1999 (2 episodes)

TV pilots

• Tales of the Gold Monkey, 1982
• The Return of the Man from U.N.C.L.E., 1983
• Lime Street, 1985
• The Return of the Six Million Dollar Man and the Bionic Woman, 1987

Television appearances

• Ghost Squad, 1964
• The Saint, 1963–1964
• The Avengers, 1965
• The Saint, 1966
• Magnum, P.I., 1981, 1985

Stunts

• Highway Patrol, 1955–1959 (stunt performer)
• Have Gun Will Travel, 1957–1963 (stunt performer)
• Peter Gunn, 1958–1960, 1960–1961 (stunt performer)
• The Avengers, (stunt arranger)

Producer

• Shirley's World, 1971–1972
• JAG, 1995–1996, 1997
• The Perfume Garden

Writer

Television episodes

• Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased), 1969
• Department S, 1971
• Shirley's World, 1971–1972
• Black Beauty, 1974
• Magnum, P.I., 1980–1986
• Hart to Hart, 1984
• The Master, 1984
• Airwolf, 1985
• Lime Street, 1985
• V, 1985
• Spenser: For Hire, 1986
• Our House, 1986–1988

Television pilots

• Return of the Six Million Dollar Man and the Bionic Woman, 1987

TV movies

• The Zany Adventures of Robin Hood, 1984

Film

Director

• It's the Only Way to Go, 1970
• 1,000 Convicts and a Woman (aka Fun and Games and Story of a Nympho), 1971
• Virgin Witch (aka Lesbian Twins), 1972
• House of the Living Dead (aka Doctor Maniac, Curse of the Dead, and Kill, Baby, Kill), 1973

2nd unit director

• Saturday Night and Sunday Morning, 1961

Stunt director

• Saturday Night and Sunday Morning, 1961
• The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner, 1962
• Cleopatra, 1963
• Tom Jones, 1963

Stunt performer

• North by Northwest, 1959
• Operation Petticoat, 1959
• Spartacus, 1960

Actor

• The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner, 1962 — Craig
• The V.I.P.s, 1963 — Rolls Chauffeur
• Clash by Night (aka Escape by Night), 1963 — The Intruder

Author

• The Eagle Heist
• Dead Again
• Your Turn To Die
• Find Me A Spy
• Catch Me A Traitor

See also

• Delvin

External links

• Ray Austin at the Internet Movie Database
• Raymond Austin official web site
• Raymond Austin Blog