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Sydney Lotterby

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Sydney Lotterby
OBE
Born
Sydney Warren Lotterby

(1926-11-30)30 November 1926
London, England
Died28 July 2020(2020-07-28) (aged 93)
London, England
Occupation(s)Television producer, television director
Years active1948–2005
Notable workLast of the Summer Wine
Open All Hours
Porridge
The Liver Birds
Spouse
Marcia Dos Santos
​
(m. 1997)​

Sydney Warren Lotterby, OBE (30 November 1926 – 28 July 2020) was a British television producer and director who produced numerous BBC comedy series.

Life and career

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Lotterby was born in Paddington, London, to Winifred (née Warren) and Sidney Lotterby, a shop fitter, and grew up in Edgware, Middlesex.[1] In 1941, on leaving Stag Lane school aged 14, he joined the BBC as a storekeeper in the electrical department at Broadcasting House, then worked in the sound control room at BBC Radio until his national service in the British Army from 1946 until 1948.[2] After national service he returned to the BBC and became a cameraman and progressed to becoming technical manager. He joined the BBC's Entertainment Department in 1958 and in 1963, became a producer/director.[1]

Lotterby married Marcia Dos Santos in 1997.[3] He died at his home in Chiswick on 28 July 2020, at the age of 93.[1][4][5]

Production and direction

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Television comedy series which he produced or directed included: As Time Goes By, May to December, Last of the Summer Wine, Yes, Minister and Yes, Prime Minister, Ever Decreasing Circles, Brush Strokes, Open All Hours, The Old Boy Network, Butterflies, Ripping Yarns, Porridge, Going Straight, Broaden Your Mind, the final series of Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em, The Liver Birds, Up Pompeii! and Sykes and A....[1]

A sketch in At Last The 1948 Show in which four exactly alike men all called Sydney Lotterby ("The Four Sydney Lotterbies") was written by John Cleese, because he liked the name. The men were played by Cleese, Marty Feldman, Tim Brooke-Taylor, and Graham Chapman. Cleese also gave the name to the character played by Robert Lindsay in Fierce Creatures (1997).[6]

Awards

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Lotterby won four BAFTA awards for comedy, including for Porridge (and also for a special in 1975), Going Straight (1978) and Yes Minister (1980). He was also nominated for 11 more. In 1994, Lotterby was appointed OBE.

Filmography

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Year Title Credit Notes
Producer Director
1960 Charlie Drake 2 episodes Series 4
1961 Does the Team Think? 1 episode Series 1
1961 What's My Line? 2 episodes Series 11
1962 Steptoe and Son Production assistant (unknown episodes)
1962 Twist! 4 episodes 6 episodes Series 1
1962–64 Sykes and a... 15 episodes 19 episodes Series 5–7
1962 A Christmas Night with the Stars Segment director; TV special
1963–74 Comedy Playhouse 4 episodes 1 episode Series 3, 8, 10 & 14
1964 The Graham Stark Show 7 episodes Series 1
1965 The Likely Lads Associate producer; Series 1 (2 episodes)
1966 On the Margin 6 episodes Series 1
1967–68 Dee Time 6 episodes 28 episodes Series 1–3
1967 Three of a Kind 5 episodes Series 2
1968 BBC Show of the Week 1 episode
1968 Kindly Leave the Stage 7 episodes Series 1
1968–69 Broaden Your Mind 13 episodes Series 1
1969–75 The Liver Birds 45 episodes 22 episodes Pilot & Series 1–5 (uncredited director)
1969 The Gnomes of Dulwich 5 episodes Series 1
1969 Harry Worth 2 episodes Series 4
1970 Up Pompeii! 6 episodes Series 2
1971 Me Mammy 7 episodes Series 3
1971 Now Take My Wife 7 episodes Series 1
1972 Grubstreet 1 episode Pilot
1972 A Christmas Night with the Stars 1 episode TV special: segment: "The Liver Birds"
1973 The World of Cilla 1 episode TV special
1973-78 Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em 7 episodes 9 episodes Series 1 & 3 (uncredited director)
1973 7 of 1 4 episodes 3 episodes Series 1
1974–77 Porridge 20 episodes 20 episodes Series 1–3 (uncredited director)
1974 The Last Turkey in the Shop Show TV movie short
1976–85 Open All Hours 25 episodes 25 episodes Series 1–4
1976–83 Last of the Summer Wine 31 episodes 26 episodes Series 3–7
1978 Going Straight 6 episodes 6 episodes Series 1 (uncredited director)
1979 Ripping Yarns Executive producer; Series 2 (2 episodes)
1980 Yes Minister 6 episodes 6 episodes Series 1 (uncredited director)
1980–83 Butterflies 14 episodes 6 episodes Series 3 & 4
1981 Coming Home 6 episodes Series 1
1981–83 The Last Song 13 episodes 13 episodes Series 1 & 2
1984 The Magnificent Evans 6 episodes 6 episodes Series 1
1984 Ever Decreasing Circles 13 episodes 13 episodes Series 1 & 2
1986–88 Yes, Prime Minister 16 episodes 16 episodes Series 1 & 2
1986 Brush Strokes 13 episodes Series 1
1987–89 Foreign Bodies 18 episodes 17 episodes Series 1–3
1988 A Gentleman's Club 6 episodes 6 episodes Series 1
1989–90 May to December 13 episodes 13 episodes Series 1 & 2
1990 One Foot in the Grave Studio director; Series 2 (1 episode)
1991 Tonight at 8.30 1 episode Series 1
1992–2005 As Time Goes By 67 episodes 67 episodes Series 1–9 & specials
1992 The Old Boy Network 7 episodes 7 episodes Series 1
1997 Bloomin' Marvellous 8 episodes — Series 1
1999 Comedy Greats: Ronnie Barker Video
2000 Butterflies Reunion Special TV short

References

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  1. ^ a b c d Morgan-Russell, Simon (2024). "Lotterby, Sydney Warren (1926–2020), television director and producer". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/odnb/9780198614128.013.90000382046. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
  2. ^ "Sydney Lotterby obituary". The Times. 5 August 2020. Retrieved 16 January 2022.
  3. ^ Hayward, Anthony (3 August 2020). "Sydney Lotterby obituary". The Guardian.
  4. ^ "Sydney Lotterby OBE". BAFTA. Retrieved 31 July 2020.
  5. ^ "Porridge director Sydney Lotterby leaves 'true legacy of laughter'". BBC News. 30 July 2020. Retrieved 31 July 2020.
  6. ^ Michael Palin Diaries 1969-1979: The Python Years, Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 2006
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