Chris Lethbridge

WRITER/DIRECTOR - CV & PROFILE

Contact

Additional Language:

French - Fluent spoken

 OVERVIEW

 CREATIVE WRITER / DIRECTOR &  STORYLINE / INTERPRETATION CONSULTANT

 As an independent Writer/Director,  working with Sarner International, I have written audio-visual and live performance scripts for 878AD, a celebration of Anglo-Saxon life in Winchester. I have developed content for a multi-award-winning visitor experience in Gozo (Malta), a journey through the history and fabrication of Calvados in France and the storyline/interpretation for a dramatic ‘Dark Walk’, set in 18th/ 19th Century Cornwall, for Bodmin Jail.

I specialise in finding an exciting, informative path back into the past, to illuminate the present.

HIGHLY EXPERIENCED TV DOCUMENTARY WRITER/ PRODUCER/ DIRECTOR

I have created over 60 hours of TV documentaries for UK and International broadcast.

With topics covering a wide range of history and science, from the Ancient Greeks to Black Ops to the Cold War, the common thread is my passion for strong storytelling.

BONZA TV, INDEPENDENT TV PRODUCTION COMPANY

I created Bonza TV to produce a 10 part series on the history of technology for Discovery Channel.

In two years, I pitched and won contracts for 3 international TV series worth over £1.5 million.

TVWalks  

I set up TVwalks, to produce and distribute online a new series of Videoguides for the UK’s favourite National Trails. Written and presented by author Anthony Burton, this series also pioneered the first

GPS-activated mobile videoguides for visitors to Hadrian's Wall.

EXPERIENCE
Creative Content Producer/ Writer/ Director

Sarner International ( for Hampshire Cultural Trust)

2022

878 AD - Winchester in Peril

Writer/ Research / Storyline development on Exhibition and Audiovisual content

Scripted 12 characters for live performance dialogues

2020 - 2022

‘The Redemption of William Wynne’ - an historical novel set in 18th C. London & Paris

Sarner International Ltd
Jul 2016 – November 2019
Seaton Tramway

Writing and developing content for new interpretation/ video installations at Seaton Tramway,  the highly popular attraction in East Devon

Bodmin Jail, Cornwall

Storyline Conception and Interpretation

Developing the storyline for the new Visitors Journey from a Dark Walk through historic Cornwall through jail cell interpretation to the story of Bodmin Jail’s Executions.

The Calvados Experience

Pont L’Evêque, France

Writer/ Director

Creating a series of multi-projector films and the content/ storylines for a multi-sensory experience exploring the history of the Calvados region and the creation of its most popular  spirit, the Apple Brandy for which the area is most famous.

Writer/ Producer / Director
World Media Rights
Jan 2016 – Jun 2016  
London, United Kingdom
Wrote and directed two history docs in the Ancient Assassins TV series, combining expert interviews with historical re-enactment. For Discovery Channel USA (American Heroes Channel)  

and International distribution.

        

  ALEXANDER THE GREAT'S SPIDERMEN

  Afghanistan 327 BC. Alexander the Great confronts a rebel warlord in an impregnable mountain stronghold. He despatches 300 hand-picked warriors to scale the sheer rock face, at night,

without being detected. It’s a brutal test of climbing skill and raw courage.

        

  THE SACRED BAND OF THEBES

  371 BC. The Spartan army, the superpower of Ancient Greece, confronts three hundred warriors

  of the Sacred Band of Thebes. Can this unique shock force of 150 pairs of lovers deliver one of

  the greatest military upsets in the history of warfare ?

        

  Creative Media Producer
  Sarner International Ltd
  2014 – Jan 2016

  The Cittadella, Gozo (Malta) - Wrote, produced and directed a 16 projector historical show 'in-the-round' on 8 x 5metre high screens telling the story of Gozo from its origins to 19th Century.

 Researched and wrote copy for all interactive touch screens in Visitors Centre Exhibition area

        

Fort St Elmo, Malta - Wrote, produced and directed historical videos and a multi-projector show

 installed in the newly restored Fort St Elmo in Malta. The stories celebrate Malta's strategic role

 in the Mediterranean from its heroic resistance against the Turks, during the Great Siege of

1565, to its remarkable endurance during months of relentless bombing during the Second

World War. One video projection celebrates Operation Pedestal -a massive last-ditch convoy of ships bringing vital supplies to the island. In the 16th Century stronghold, the Cavalier, the

Main Show reveals how this fortified lookout has played a key role for centuries - coordinating  the artillery bombardment in WW11 which destroyed an attempted raid by Italian Special Forces

on Malta's Grand Harbour.

  Writer/ Producer/ Director
  World Media Rights
  2014  
  
Wrote and directed two episodes in the Ancient Black Ops series, combining expert interviews

 with historical re-enactment. For Yesterday Channel, UK and International distribution.

        

 The Assassins - the story of the 12th Century Ismailis - the original Assassins, who defended themselves against overwhelming odds, perfecting the techniques of highly targeted political assassination.

The Spartans - reveals how the harsh training regime of the Spartan elite prepared them for deadly combat both on the battlefield and on covert night time operations.

    

 Writer/ Producer / Director
World Media Rights (WMR)
  Feb 2013 – Jul 2013    

  London, United Kingdom

  The Final Solution.

  Plots and Delusions - 1944
Two 50 min historical documentaries for Discovery Channel UK and international distribution by IMG combining interviews, location filming and drama reconstruction.

        

 Writer/ Producer / Director
World Media Rights (WMR)
Apr 2012 – Aug 2012
London, United Kingdom
TOP SECRET WEAPONS REVEALED

 In the Cold War, the Superpowers spend billions on weird weapons technology... from jetpacks for flying soldiers to supersonic seaplanes...

        

 Two 50min historical documentaries for Discovery Military Channel.

(Self-shot interviews on Canon 305)

 Edit Producer
World Media Rights (WMR)
Jan 2012 – Feb 2012
AIR CRASH CONFIDENTIAL 2 - Systems Failure

 Scripting and Supervising Edit on 50 min Documentary:

      

 Writer, Producer, Director
World Media Rights (WMR)
Feb 2011 – Sep 2011
NARROW ESCAPES OF THE SECOND WORLD WAR

 3 x 50 mins for Yesterday (UK) and International Distribution

 Interviews with survivors, historical archive and dramatic reconstruction

 Writer / Producer / Director
World Media Rights (WMR)
Mar 2010 – Nov 2010
AIR CRASH CONFIDENTIAL (First Series)

 2 X 50 mins for Discovery Channel

 Reveals how aviation accidents and terrorist attacks have led to improvements in aircraft design and safety over past 30 years

 Writer / Director
ITN Productions
  Jan 2010 – Mar 2010
GREAT RAILWAY ADVENTURES WITH DAN CRUICKSHANK

 2 x 50mins for National Geographic International

  Writer / Producer / Director
World Media Rights (WMR)
May 2009 – Dec 2009
THE NAZI HUNTERS

3 x 50mins for 'Yesterday' UK and international distribution

Historical documentary on the men and women who tracked down Nazi war criminals,  with interviews, archive and dramatic reconstruction.

 Founder, Executive Producer and Series Producer,

Bonza TV limited
Oct 2004 – 2007
In 2004, I set up Bonza TV limited, an independent TV production company specialising in history and science documentaries. We made 3 x 10 part series for Discovery Channel UK  and Europe.

 MORE INDUSTRIAL REVELATIONS was presented by Mark Williams (Fast Show).

 Dutch Actor, Ronald Top, then presented, INDUSTRIAL REVELATIONS EUROPE and INVENTING HISTORY - tracing the history of inventions to the present-day.

Producer Director - Observational Documentary
Darlow Smithson Productions
   2003 – 20041 year
ANCIENT SUPERWEAPONS:

THE CLAW

1hr Ob. Doc. for Discovery USA:

A team of US Engineers reconstruct Archimedes Claw.

 Could this weapon have sunk a fleet of Roman Galleys 2200 years ago?

        

THE LOCH NESS MONSTER - THE ULTIMATE EXPERIMENT

90min Ob Doc Special for FIVE and A&E USA

Follows a covert operation to release a 15ft animatronic 'Nessie' into the Loch...

Series Producer, Producer/Director
Independent TV Production Companies
1996 – 2003
Produced and Directed Series and individual history and science documentary programmes

for a  range of independent production companies:

        

ATLANTIC PRODUCTIONS - For Discovery USA

7 WONDERS OF ANCIENT GREECE

Dramatic Reconstructions in studio / on location, combined  with CGI and interviews with international experts

        

WHO KILLED ALEXANDER THE GREAT?

Former Scotland Yard detective leads an international team of history and medical experts investigating the suspicious death of Alexander in 323 BC

Dramatic Reconstructions in studio / on location, combined with CGI and interviews  with international experts

        

3BM FOR CHANNEL 4

ADAM'S STORY (THE TORSO IN THE THAMES)

Ob doc following police and forensic science investigation into the murder of young boy whose torso was found in the Thames. Nominated for Indie Award

        

BBC SCIENCE LANDMARK

HOW TO BUILD A HUMAN - Episode: Forever Young

        Exploring the mysteries of ageing using the latest genetic and cellular discoveries

        

PRINCIPAL FILMS FOR DISCOVERY CHANNEL & LA CINQ (FRANCE)

UNDER THE KNIFE

3 x 1hrs The mpact of technology on the future of surgery, including Robotic keyhole operations; Tissue Engineering and transplantation

        

 FLASHBACK TV FOR CHANNEL 4 EDUCATION

 RACE IN THE 20TH CENTURY / WOMEN IN THE 20TH CENTURY

Nominated for RTS Education

Award

        

DISCOVERY CHANNEL, NHK & CANAL PLUS

THE SCI-FI FILES

2x 1hr history/science documentaries on the Story of

Science Fiction and its 20th Century impact

        

TRANSATLANTIC FILMS FOR THE LEARNING CHANNEL

HISTORY'S TURNING POINTS: THE BATTLE OF BRITAIN

30min combination of archive and dramatic reconstruction

        

A&E BIOGRAPHY NETWORK USA

MARIE ANTOINETTE & RICHARD THE LIONHEART

2 x 1hr Historical Documentaries