John Madden (director)

Madden was born in Portsmouth, Hampshire, England. He was educated at Clifton College in Bristol. He was in the same house as Roger Michell, who became a friend and later also a director. He began his career in British independent films, and graduated from Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge in 1970 with a B.A. in English literature.

He started work in television, including directing Helen Mirren in Prime Suspect 4, episodes of The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (ITV, 1984–1994), and Inspector Morse.

Perhaps his most notable achievement to date was directing Shakespeare in Love, which won the Oscar for Best Picture in 1998, and for which he was also nominated as Best Director. He lost to Steven Spielberg who directed Saving Private Ryan. The film also won the Silver Bear at the 49th Berlin International Film Festival.

Madden has since directed several films, including Proof (2005), The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2011), and its sequel, The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2015).

Madden is serving as a Jury Member for the digital studio Filmaka, a platform for undiscovered filmmakers to show their work to industry professionals.

Television

• Poppyland 1984 (UK TV film, Screen 2)
• Prime Suspect 4
• After The War (UK TV Series)
• Inspector Morse episodes
• The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes episodes
• The Widowmaker 1990. Madden insisted on casting David Morrissey in the lead.
• Masters of Sex pilot

Plays

Plays he has directed include Arthur Kopit's Wings, and the world premiere in 1980 of Jules Feiffer's Grown Ups at the American Repertory Theater.

Radio

Between 1981 and 1996, Madden directed a series of radio adaptations of Star Wars in a BBC/NPR co-production, which included versions of Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope (1981), The Empire Strikes Back (1983) and Return of the Jedi (1996) scripted for radio by Brian Daley.

Before it was produced for the stage, Madden directed Wings for NPR's Earplay series, in a production that won the Prix Italia.