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Hettie Macdonald

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Hettie Macdonald
Born
England, United Kingdom
Alma materBristol University
Occupation(s)Film director, theatre director, television director

Hettie Macdonald is an English film,[1] theatre and television director.[2] Macdonald is known as the director of the Hugo Award-winning 2007 episode of Doctor Who, "Blink".[3][4] She has won numerous awards including one BAFTA Television Award for Best Single Drama,[5] one Hugo Award,[4] and a Grand Prix award. She has been nominated for numerous awards, including two BAFTA Television Awards.[6][7][8]

"Blink" is frequently named as the best episode of Doctor Who since the series' 2005 revival. In 2009, SFX named the episode's climax as the scariest moment in Doctor Who's history, citing its "perfect direction".[9] Macdonald would return to the series in 2015 to direct the year's opening story.

She has also directed for the stage. She studied English at Bristol University, before training as a director at the Royal Court Theatre, and was formerly associate director at the Wolsey Theatre, Ipswich.

Career

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Macdonald made her feature-length film directorial debut on 1996's Beautiful Thing, which received mostly positive reviews and is considered by many to be an LGBTQ+ classic.[10] She did not direct another film for cinemas until 2023's The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry, which has also received positive reviews.

Selected credits

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Film

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Year Title Notes
1996 Beautiful Thing [11]
2023 The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry

Television

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Year Title Notes
1997 Casualty 2 episodes
2001 In a Land of Plenty Miniseries[12]
2003 Servants 3 episodes[13]
2005–13 Poirot Episodes: "The Mystery of the Blue Train", "Curtain"
2006 Banglatown Banquet TV movie
2007–15 Doctor Who Episodes: "Blink",[3] "The Magician's Apprentice", "The Witch's Familiar"[14]
2008 White Girl TV movie[15]
2008 The Fixer 2 episodes
2010 Wallander Episode: "Faceless Killers"
2010 Law & Order: UK Episode: "Masquerade"
2012 Hit & Miss 3 episodes
2013 The Tunnel 2 episodes
2015–17 Fortitude 6 episodes[15][16]
2017 Howards End 4 episodes[15][16][17]
2020 Normal People 6 episodes[17][18]

Theatre

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Year Title Venue Notes
1997 The Northern Fox Ambassadors Theatre
1998 Hey Persephone! Aldeburgh Festival / Almeida Theatre
1998 The Storm Almeida Theatre
2002 She Stoops to Conquer Theatre Royal, Margate
2002 Top Girls Citizens Theatre
2004 M.A.D. Bush Theatre
2006 On Insomnia and Midnight Royal Court

Awards and nominations

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Year Award Category Work Result Notes
2008 Hugo Award Best Dramatic Presentation, Short Form "Blink", Doctor Who Won [4]
2009 BAFTA Television Awards Best Single Drama White Girl Won [5]
2013 BAFTA Television Craft Awards Best Director: Fiction Hit & Miss Nominated [6]
2018 BAFTA Television Awards Best Mini-Series Howards End Nominated [7]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Holden, Stephen (9 October 1996). "Beautiful Thing (1996) Finally Finding a Mate, in Working-Class London". The New York Times.
  2. ^ Jaafar, Ali (7 June 2016). "Hettie Macdonald To Direct 'Howards End' Adaptation For BBC". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 9 April 2018.
  3. ^ a b "Doctor Who - Fact File - Blink". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 15 January 2023.
  4. ^ a b c admin (10 August 2008). "2008 Hugo Award Results Announced". The Hugo Awards. Retrieved 15 January 2023.
  5. ^ a b "2009 Television Single Drama | BAFTA Awards". awards.bafta.org. Retrieved 15 January 2023.
  6. ^ a b "2013 Television Craft Director - Fiction | BAFTA Awards". awards.bafta.org. Retrieved 15 January 2023.
  7. ^ a b "2018 Television Mini-Series | BAFTA Awards". awards.bafta.org. Retrieved 15 January 2023.
  8. ^ "BAFTA Awards Search | BAFTA Awards". awards.bafta.org. Retrieved 15 January 2023.
  9. ^ "21 Scariest Doctor Who Moments 7". SFX. 1 February 2009. Retrieved 14 April 2012.
  10. ^ Tensley, Brandon (22 June 2016). "Beautiful Thing Is a Masterpiece of Gay Storytelling". The Atlantic. Retrieved 4 August 2023.
  11. ^ Holden, Stephen (9 October 1996). "Finally Finding a Mate, in Working-Class London". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 15 January 2023.
  12. ^ "BBC Programme Index". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 31 January 2001. Retrieved 15 January 2023.
  13. ^ "BBC - Drama - Servants". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 15 January 2023.
  14. ^ "BBC One - Doctor Who, Series 9, The Magician's Apprentice - The Magician's Apprentice: The Fact File". BBC. Retrieved 15 January 2023.
  15. ^ a b c "Howards End". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 15 January 2023.
  16. ^ a b Kilkenny, Katie (15 April 2018). "'Howards End': How a 1910 Novel Became a Progressive Miniseries". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 15 January 2023.
  17. ^ a b "Normal People". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 15 January 2023.
  18. ^ Cain, Sian (17 December 2020). "The 50 best TV shows of 2020, No 4: Normal People". the Guardian. Retrieved 15 January 2023.
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