News
2022 Roundup
The year started off a little bit differently than usual with a premiere of new music and a much awaited recording of the work for cello and choir ‘Five Elements’.
In February, the Delta Sax Quartet premiered the piece I had written for them at the beginning of the pandemic “Amsterdam Lockdown’ together with a new piece that works as a sequel to the original piece, called ’Summer, Autumn, Winter’.
This piece was written to accompany footage taken by my eldest son of scenes in Amsterdam as the city awoke from lockdown in the summer of 2021, before the omicron variant took hold towards the end of the year, and the Netherlands was once again placed under full lockdown. The music was premiered at a concert in February at the brand new Creative Centre at York St John University.
In March it was finally possible (after a few pandemic-related postponements) to record Five Elements. With soloist Justin Pearson and a superb choir assembled by conductor Jonathan Darbourne, movements of the piece have been broadcast on BBC Radio 3 and in the Netherlands on NPO Klassiek.
The remainder of the year was as busy as ever with various productions including the feature length documentary The People’s Piazza: A History of Covent Garden. The film received it’s first showing at the London Film Festival and was then broadcast on BBC2 in November.
The soundtrack album to the film has just been released by Air Edel Records and is available on all streaming platforms such as Apple Music, Spotify, Amazon and Tidal.
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Reflections on 2021
As yet another strange year comes to a close, my overall feeling is one of relief that I have been able to keep working over the past 12 months. Of course this hasn't been the case for many of my playing friends and colleagues and I consider myself very lucky to be working in the TV and Film sector rather than my previous life as a performer.
The year started off with a large orchestration project for the Emmy winning series Secrets Of The Whales (National Geographic/Disney+). Composed by the New York based composer Raphaelle Thibault, narrated by Sigourney Weaver and exec produced by James Cameron, the series has been concised down to a 90 minute film which will be shown with the score performed by a live symphony orchestra. This concert version was due to be premiered in early Spring of this year but as infections in the US soared, sadly it wasn’t possible. Hopefully early 2022 will see the premiere take place.
I also worked on series 4 of A House Through Time this summer and the series was premiered on BBC2 in the late summer. The house in question was a bit of a departure from the first three that have featured as it was set in Leeds rather than a major port city.
In between this year’s commissions I have been able to busy myself with writing production music and it was a pleasant surprise to have nominations in both the Mark Awards in the US and the Music and Sound awards here in the UK. One nomination was for an online campaign for reserved.com and the other for the trailer for the major BBC series Roadkill that aired last year.
Looking forward to 2022, I am hoping to finally record the piece for cello and choir, 5 Elements. Sadly, as the pandemic worsened in the Spring of 2020 we had no choice but to cancel the recording date but plans are afoot to record early in 2022. I am also looking forward to the live premiere of Amsterdam Lockdown in York in early February and I’ll shortly be starting a new piece for the Delta Sax Quartet as part of their Project Flicks series that features more footage from Amsterdam as life slowly returned to normal this Autumn.
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Composing in the time of Coronavirus
As the country slowly comes out of lockdown, it has been important to keep busy and creative through these strange times. The acclaimed series 'A House Through Time' has returned to BBC2 for its 3rd series. This time, David Olusoga investigates the residents of a house in the Redcliffe area of Bristol. The series has received rave reviews and the opening episode received the highest viewing figure for BBC2 that week at just under 4m viewers. This clip is from Episode 2.
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The Atom: A Love Affair
Following the successful premiere of Vicki Lesley’s feature documentary 'The Atom: A Love Affair' at the Leeds International Film Festival last year, the film was due for general release in May. However, as cinemas were closed that wasn’t going to be possible but the film is available online on Curzon Home Cinema - www.curzonhomecinema.com/film/watch-atom-a-love-affair-online
The film received many favourable reviews and I appeared on Radio 3’s Sound of Cinema where I discussed the score with the presenter Matthew Sweet. The score is now available on Spotify and will shortly be available on Amazon and Apple Music.
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Amsterdam Lockdown
A commission for the Delta Saxophone Quartet was also completed right in the middle of lockdown. As part of the Arts Council England funded Project Flicks, the composition accompanies footage filmed by my eldest son Alex, who lives and works in Amsterdam. During lockdown, when out going to the shops for food or going into work, he captured some very atmospheric film of the empty streets of the city. The piece was recorded by the quartet’s members in their own home studios. Chris Caldwell of the quartet and I discuss the conception of the piece (and the general state of the music business amongst other things!) here.
This is the film ...
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Poignant endings, exciting new beginnings
As 2020 gets under way, the never ending quest for new opportunities continues and I’m really looking forward to working on a few works for the concert platform. Five Elements, a work for cello and choir with words by the poet Gregory Warren Wilson will be recorded by the cellist Justin Pearson and the Locrian Singers. I will also be working with the Delta Sax Quartet on a piece for part of their Arts Council funded Project Flicks.
2019 came to a close with the completion of Series 3 of the BBC2 series A House Through Time (12x60mins). Presented by David Olusoga, the house in question is situated in the Redcliffe area of Bristol. The series will air on BBC2 later this year.
The feature documentary The Atom: A Love Affair finally received its premiere at the Leeds International’s Film Festival in November with cinematic release happening sometime in 2020. Directed by Vicki Lesley, the score was recorded at Air Edel in the summer.
A few weeks after the Atom session, we headed back into Air Edel to record Series 2 of the BAFTA-nominated BBC children’s drama Molly and Mack. The series is now airing on the BBC.
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Atoms and Andrew Marr
2017 kicks off with a busy few months. In January, Paul completed the score to the forthcoming documentary Andrew Marr: My Brain and Me. Directed by award winning documentary maker Liz Allen, the programme looks at Andrew Marr’s recovery from his stroke, and follows him as he flies to Florida to undergo a new radical yet controversial treatment. The programme airs on the 14th of February at 9pm on BBC2.
Paul has also started work on the feature documentary The Atom: A Love Affair. The film reveals the world’s 70 year relationship with nuclear power and how various countries have fallen in and out of love with the industry. The film is directed by Vicki Lesley and will be released later this year.
Paul is also working on a new series of the BAFTA winning Old Jack’s Boat: Rockpool Tales. The orchestral score was recorded last November in Cardiff with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales and Paul is currently writing additional music in readiness for broadcast on CBeebies sometime later in the year.
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More BAFTA nominations and wins and 'The Miracle'
As 2015 draws to a close, Old Jack's Boat and All At Sea garnered further nominations at the Children's BAFTA awards, with yet another win for Old Jack's Boat.
Paul is at present composing the music for the forthcoming documentary series 'The Miracle' (working title). The series will follow people who undergo pioneering, transformative medical procedures that change their lives, be it having their sight restored or being able to walk. The series is being produced by Tom Clarke for Optomen and will be broadcast on ITV1 in the early part of next year.
More information with clips from the programme can be found here: www.optomen.com
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Earth’s Wildest Waters: The Big Fish comes to BBC2
Eight amateur anglers travel the globe, crossing four continents and facing extreme cold and tropical heat in some of the most dramatic fishing locations in the world. The programme is fronted by Ben Fogle and angling expert Matt Hayes and premieres at 8pm on BBC2 on Sunday 11th October. The series is produced by the BBC Natural History Unit in Bristol with Sam Beddoes producing and exec produced by Tim Martin and features a suitably epic score by Paul.
More information with clips from the programme can be found here: www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p02d9xfp
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Bernard Cribbins returns as Old Jack
in a brand new CBeebies series
Old Jack’s Boat: Rockpool Tales has Old Jack recalling adventures from his childhood with a mix of live action and animation to help bring the tales to life. The score was composed by Paul and was recorded in June with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales in Cardiff, with Ben Foster conducting. The series airs on CBeebies this September and October.
Orchestra: BBC National Orchestra of Wales
Conductor: Ben Foster
Music score: Paul Honey
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Genius of the Ancient World
Historian Bettany Hughes travels to India, Greece and China on the trail of three giants of ancient philosophy - Buddha, Socrates and Confucius. First broadcast on 5th August 2015.
Presenter: Bettany Hughes
Series Producer: Rob Cowling
Executive Producer: Mike Smith
Music score: Paul Honey
More details about the series can be found here »
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Written and directed by David Whitney
Starring Ian McKee and Naomi Radcliffe
Music score by Paul Honey
Millhouse Films
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The year seems to have flown by already, so here is quick roundup of what has been happening over the past few months. Three of the productions that Paul worked on last year received BAFTA nominations; All At Sea, Children of the Holocaust and Old Jack's Boat, which won the BAFTA for best best pre-school programme for the Russell T Davis penned Christmas special 'The Christmas Quest'.
Towards the end of 2014, Paul completed scoring the second series of All At Sea and also the short film Summer's Gift. Directed by film and TV director David Whitney and set in the Forest Of Dean in the early 1940's, the film tells of the kindness shown to a former soldier struggling with the emotional trauma of his wartime experiences.
As Winter now turns to Spring, Paul is gearing up for 3 major projects for the BBC. The first, The Big Fish, features UK based anglers coming to grips with fishing in areas as far afield as North America and Central Africa. The 6 part programme will be produced by Samantha Beddoes and exec produced by Tim Martin for the Natural History Unit in Bristol.
The second is a 3 part documentary series produced by BBC Religion and Ethics in Manchester for BBC4. Presented by historian Bettany Hughes, 'The World In Three Minds' will look at the teachings of Buddha, Socrates and Confucius, three figures who lived within a similar timeframe, some 2500 years ago. Details of the 3rd BBC production are under wraps at the moment, however, it will be for Cbeebies and transmission is scheduled for later in the year.
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A lot has been going on in the past few months. Paul completed the score for Children Of The Holocaust and the programme has aired on BBC2 to great acclaim, both from ordinary viewers and Holocaust Survivor associations. One of the stories featured in the programme can be seen here »
Paul has also completed a few other projects - the short film Edit, written and directed by Christopher Cornwell, and the documentary Raiders of the Lost Art - Vermeer, broadcast both on Yesterday in the UK and internationally.
Paul is currently working on Series 2 of the popular CBBC comedy All At Sea starring Nicola Stephenson, Steve Edge and Ryan Wilkinson, produced by Simon Nelson. He is also just about to start work on the 2014 Christmas Special of Old Jack’s Boat, starring Bernard Cribbins, Paul Hawkyard, Freema Agyeman et al. This one-off 30 minute episode will be broadcast on BBC1 at Christmas time.
This Autumn, Paul will also be scoring Set The Thames On Fire, the debut feature by avant-garde director Ben Charles Edwards. Paul has worked with Ben twice before on The Actress and Dotty (currently showing at the Raindance Film Festival in London). The film is produced by Blonde To Black Pictures, the production company run by Sadie Frost and Emma Conley, and stars Michael Winder, Max Bennett, Sally Phillips and Noel Fielding. The film will be released in 2015.
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Paul is currently working on the music for a forthcoming series in which Jewish men and women give first hand accounts of their lives as children in Nazi Germany in the 1930's and 1940's.
The series is produced by Kath Shackleton for Fettle Animation. The Exec Producer is Katy Jones for the BBC and the films will be aired on BBC2 later this year.
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Blandings returns to BBC1
The second series of the comedy drama, adapted from the stories by PG Wodehouse will be broadcast from the 16th of February for 7 weeks. Starring Timothy Spall, Jennifer Saunders, Jack Farthing and Tim Vine, the score was recorded in January at Air Edel Studios in Central London.
The series also boasts an impressive cast of guest stars, including Harry Enfield, Matthew Baynton, Celia Imrie, Robert Bathurst, John Sessions and James Fleet.
More details about the forthcoming series can be found here »
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Old Jack's Boat Returns on Christmas Day on BBC1
In this special episode, written by Russell T Davies, Jack (Bernard Cribbins) tells the story of how he goes on a quest to find 3 special gifts that turn out to have a huge significance for his life.
Paul recorded the music with the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra in October. Be warned, it's a real tear-jerker! The programme airs on Christmas Day at 9.40am on BBC1. Paul has also scored the music for a further 20 episodes which will be aired early in the New Year.
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Blandings Returns to BBC1
Scoring is now underway on the second series of Blandings. The seven episodes will be aired early in the New Year and stars Timothy Spall as Clarence, Jennifer Saunders as Connie, and Jack Farthing as Freddie.
Tim Vine steps into the role of Beach the Butler. The music will be recorded in January at Air Edel Studios in London. The programme also boasts an impressive list of guest stars, including Julian Rhind-Tutt, Celia Imrie, John Sessions and Harry Enfield. Find out more »
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All at Sea
Paul has just commenced working on the original music for 'All At Sea' a comedy drama that follows the chaotic life of a family who relocate from London to Scarborough and open a Bed and Breakfast. Produced by Juliet Charlesworth and written by Brian Lynch, the 13 episode series airs initially on CBBC in the Autumn.
The months ahead promise to be a very busy time, as Paul will then be working on the second series of Old Jack's Boat before Blandings returns for a second series of 7 episodes towards the end of the year.
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Old Jack's Boat - music written by Paul Honey
Bernard Cribbins marks his return to children's television in a brand new series for CBeebies, Old Jack's Boat. The music was written by Paul and a large part was recorded by the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra at their studio at MediaCityUK in Salford. The programme airs from Monday, January 21 at 5.40pm on the CBeebies channel. More information about the programme and about the music can be seen on www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/mediapacks/oldjacksboat
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Paul Honey creates music for new BBC1 Blandings
January 2013
Blandings comes to BBC1 on Sunday January 13th at 6.30 pm. Based on the Blandings stories by P.G. Wodehouse, the series features an all star cast (Timothy Spall, Jennifer Saunders, Mark Williams and David Walliams), a very large pig called The Empress and music by Paul Honey.
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Surprise Surprise returns with music by Paul Honey
October 2012
The classic entertainment show, Surprise Surprise, is to return to ITV this Sunday (21st October) with theme music and other incidental music specially composed by Paul Honey and his co-writer, Arthur Dick.
The theme departs from the previous 1980s theme sung by Cilla Black and is in tune with the fresh, modern look and feel of the show.
Surprise Surprise launched in 1984 and its last appearance in the ITV schedule was a Christmas special in 2001.
A host of stars on board with new BBC children's show.
September 2012
Star of both stage and screen, Bernard Cribbins (Fawlty Towers, Doctor Who, Jackanory) returns to television next year as Old Jack in Old Jack’s Boat, a 25-part CBeebies series about the past adventures of a fisherman and his dog.
Cribbins will be joined by Freema Agyeman (Doctor Who, Torchwood, Law and Order UK), as Shelley, with Doctor Who writer Russell T Davies penning two episodes of the show - the first time he has written for pre-schoolers. The score will be composed by Paul.
The series features a retired fisherman (Cribbins) who lives in a picturesque real-life village on the North Yorkshire Coast, Staithes, as he regales tall stories from inside his old fishing boat. The series is a mix of live action and animation which will see Old Jack, accompanied by his faithful dog, Salty, wander along the seabed, visit tropical islands and fly high in the air on balloons - with some exciting musical pieces to accompany his adventures.
A large part of Paul's score for the series will be recorded by the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra at Media City UK in October. Old Jack's Boat will be shown on CBeebies early in 2012.
Read the official press release »
Stellar cast joins "The Actress".
September 2012
Set in a cinema in the present day, The Actress tells the story of Mable (Sadie Frost - Bram Stoker's Dracula, Love Honor and Obey), a grand old star of the big screen in the final stages of life, who relives her life on an emotive journey spanning her illustrious and glamorous career.
Celebrated actress Sally Phillips (Bridget Jones's Diary, Smack The Pony) also joins the cast in the film which will premiere at The Smalls Film Festival.
The film, with a score composed by Paul, shoots on location in London this September. It is made by The Smalls, a web-based community founded to promote short-filmmakers and is written by Al Joshua and produced by Ben Charles Edwards and Kate Tancred.
New BBC comedy series with music by Paul Honey
Paul will be composing the score for Blandings, a new comedy series based on the celebrated stories by PG Wodehouse, hailed as one of the greatest comic writers in the English language.
Set in 1929, the six part series produced by Mammoth Screen follows a chaotic family at the fictional Blandings Castle.
It will star Timothy Spall (The King's Speech, Harry Potter, Auf Wiedersehen, Pet) as the amiable and befuddled Lord Emsworth (Clarence to his friends), with Jennifer Saunders (Absolutely Fabulous, French and Saunders) as his indomitable sister Connie.
Amongst others, David Walliams (Come Fly With Me, Little Britain), David Bamber (Hotel Babylon, Midsomer Murders), Harry Potter actor Mark Williams and pop singer Paloma Faith have also signed up to star in the show.
The series is written by Guy Andrews (Lost In Austen, Absolute Power) and is produced by Spencer Campbell (Cold Feed, Mad Dogs), with BAFTA winning Paul Seed directing.
Blandings will air on BBC 1 later this year.
The Games - New tracks released by MadeUpMusic.
Music for the 2012 Olympiad and beyond! Featuring tracks by Paul and guitarist Arthur Dick. The album can be heard here »
Paul to compose music for 5 BBC dramas produced by Red Productions.
The series of short dramas includes episodes written by Bill Gallagher (Larkrise To Candleford), Lena Rae (Moving On, Taggart, Casualty), Sanjeev Kholi (Goodness Gracious Me, My Life As A Popat) and Debbie Horsfield (Cutting It, Sex,Chips And Rock And Roll). The films, produced by Manchester-based Red Production Company (Bedlam, Exile, Scott and Bailey), will explore universal emotional issues such as sibling rivalry, parental illness and friendship. They will be shown on the BBC this Spring.
The Age of Enlightenment now released by
In-spired Music Productions
Science, Power & Politics - thinking from then for now. Production music composed by Paul Honey. The album can be heard here »
Tales From The City now released by
In-spired Music Productions
A collection of weird and wonderful vintage sounds from then for now... Composed by Paul and Andy Findon, the album can be heard here »
Celtic Album now released by MadeUpMusic Ltd
Featuring music written by Paul, Dermot Crehan, Luke Daniels and Andy Findon. Listen to the album on the MadeUpMusic website »
New Celtic Music Album in production
Paul, together with Dermot Crehan, Luke Daniels and Andy Findon, has just completed writing an album of Celtic-based music for the Production Music company MadeUpMusic. The album is due for release very soon. Click here to visit the MadeUpMusic website »
Paul is also working with Andy Findon on a substantial project for another major production music library. More details soon.
