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| Sir Denis Forman dies aged 95 | Sir Denis Forman dies aged 95 |
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| Sir Denis Forman, the former Granada TV chairman who was responsible for The Jewel in the Crown, World in Action and Coronation Street, has died aged 95. | Sir Denis Forman, the former Granada TV chairman who was responsible for The Jewel in the Crown, World in Action and Coronation Street, has died aged 95. |
| In a remarkable 50-year career Forman, who died on Sunday night in a nursing home in London, was also director of the British Film Institute and deputy chairman of the Royal Opera House but it was his work in television of which he was most proud. | In a remarkable 50-year career Forman, who died on Sunday night in a nursing home in London, was also director of the British Film Institute and deputy chairman of the Royal Opera House but it was his work in television of which he was most proud. |
| One of the founding executives of Granada TV in the mid 1950s, Forman went on to become is joint managing director and chairman between 1974 and 1987. | One of the founding executives of Granada TV in the mid 1950s, Forman went on to become is joint managing director and chairman between 1974 and 1987. |
| He was responsible for a new generation of programmes that helped to redefine British TV, including long-running ITV shows Coronation Street and World in Action, which ran until 1998, and acclaimed dramas such as Brideshead Revisited and The Jewel in the Crown. | He was responsible for a new generation of programmes that helped to redefine British TV, including long-running ITV shows Coronation Street and World in Action, which ran until 1998, and acclaimed dramas such as Brideshead Revisited and The Jewel in the Crown. |
| In an interview with the Guardian at the end of last year, Forman remembered: "We had a determination to democratise television, so that the viewer could share the political processes; a determination to make television funny, interesting and relevant, World in Action being the best example; and a determination to create great television drama and we succeeded a bit in all of them." | In an interview with the Guardian at the end of last year, Forman remembered: "We had a determination to democratise television, so that the viewer could share the political processes; a determination to make television funny, interesting and relevant, World in Action being the best example; and a determination to create great television drama and we succeeded a bit in all of them." |
| ITV's director of television Peter Fincham said on Monday: "Sir Denis Forman was one of the great pioneers of British broadcasting. | ITV's director of television Peter Fincham said on Monday: "Sir Denis Forman was one of the great pioneers of British broadcasting. |
| "He made a lasting contribution to quality drama and investigative journalism, being at the helm of Granada Television for the commissioning of Coronation Street, and responsible for programmes such as World in Action, 7UP, Jewel in the Crown and Brideshead Revisited. He was a remarkable man and will be sadly missed." | "He made a lasting contribution to quality drama and investigative journalism, being at the helm of Granada Television for the commissioning of Coronation Street, and responsible for programmes such as World in Action, 7UP, Jewel in the Crown and Brideshead Revisited. He was a remarkable man and will be sadly missed." |
| Ray Fitzwalter, the long-serving former editor and later executive producer of World in Action, said: "Denis was a brave leader and a pioneer on the commercial side of the television industry. | |
| "Coming in at the birth of Granda in the middle of the 1950s, he was always a leader until he left television in 1987. | |
| "The things that stand out – without a question – are his support and defence of current affairs through the vehicle of World in Action." | |
| Fitzwalter said there were three occasions which shone out, including the battle with the then television regulator, the Independent Broadcasting Authority, over a series of World in Action programmes about the Poulson bribery affair in the early 1970s. | |
| Banned by the IBA, which led to ITV screens going blank for an hour when it should have been broadcasting World in Action, Fitzwalter described it as an "outrageous piece of censorship" which was eventually overturned by Forman. | |
| Fitzwalter also highlighted two other World in Action programmes, one about Idi Amin after he seized power in Uganda – "one of the most far-sighted programmes World in Action ever made" – and another about the British Steel strike in the early 1980s, over which Forman withstood huge political pressure. | |
| Forman, who lost a leg at the Battle of Monte Cassino in Italy in 1944, led the BFI after a stint as chief production officer in the Central Office of Information's Film Division. | Forman, who lost a leg at the Battle of Monte Cassino in Italy in 1944, led the BFI after a stint as chief production officer in the Central Office of Information's Film Division. |
| He joined Granada TV at its launch in 1956 and was also responsible for shows such as What the Papers Say, A Family at War and The Verdict is Yours, a series of fictional trials improvised by the actors and featuring a real jury. | He joined Granada TV at its launch in 1956 and was also responsible for shows such as What the Papers Say, A Family at War and The Verdict is Yours, a series of fictional trials improvised by the actors and featuring a real jury. |
| Forman also wrote three volumes of memoirs and several books about music, including a 1971 survey of Mozart's piano concertos and The Good Opera Guide. He was deputy chairman of the Royal Opera House in the 1970s. | Forman also wrote three volumes of memoirs and several books about music, including a 1971 survey of Mozart's piano concertos and The Good Opera Guide. He was deputy chairman of the Royal Opera House in the 1970s. |
| Forman's father lived to be 100, but he told the Guardian last year that he did not want to emulate him. He said: "There comes a time when you've done it all, and I would like to make an exit." | Forman's father lived to be 100, but he told the Guardian last year that he did not want to emulate him. He said: "There comes a time when you've done it all, and I would like to make an exit." |
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