Ray Burdis

Ray Burdis (born August 23, 1958 in London) is an English Actor, Screenwriter Director and Film Producer. Ray Burdis started his Acting career at the age of eleven years old where he trained at the famous Anna Scher Theatre in Islington. His first major role was at the age of sixteen, in the hit Thames TV production of You Must Be Joking, alongside a young ‘Birds of a Feather’, Pauline Quirke and Linda Robson, which he co created, wrote and starred in. He also starred with Quadrophenia’s Phil Daniels in Four Idle Hands, at the time having two hit TV network shows running alternately in the same hour

An actor from adolescence, he starred in an episode of the classic BBC sitcom Steptoe and Son before he turned 16. He first came to real prominence when he took the part of cowardly inmate Eckersley in the controversial movie Scum in 1979. He had played the same role two years earlier in a BBC version of the story, although this was not transmitted for many years due to its nature, hence the cinematic re-make. He later had a small role alongside Daniel Day-Lewis in the film Gandhi.

Burdis, whose younger brother Mark was a teenage heart-throb in the early 1980s with a leading role in children’s drama Grange Hill, then played a supporting role as Richard, a gay neighbour in Channel 4’s short-lived sitcom “Dream Stuffing” in 1984 (which featured a theme song performed by the late Kirsty MacColl). After this, he played ambitious photographer Nick Tyler in the BBC comedy Three Up, Two Down. His character was the son and son-in-law respectively of the two lead characters, played by Michael Elphick and Angela Thorne.

As a second string to his acting Ray co – formed Fugitive as an independent Film, Television and Music Production Company which started life as a premier music video producer, producing videos for internationally renowned artists such as Elton John, Queen, Tina Turner, George Michael, etc, placing itself in the Top 5 international music video production companies. Ray Burdis’ first foray into television drama was creating the series ‘The Fear’, for Euston Films, which was broadcast on the ITV Network. The series was critically acclaimed and was based on the unpublicised real-life gangster scene in the late 1980s.

Ray Burdis has subsequently concentrated more on writing – producing and directing. He was the producer of The Krays, the critically-acclaimed biopic of the East End gangsters Reggie and Ronnie Kray, and also co-wrote-produced and directed the movies Final Cut and Love, Honour and Obey starring the cream of British and International cinema – Jude Law, Jonny Lee Miller, Kathy Burke, Ray Winstone, Rhys Ifans. He also created, co wrote, produced, directed and starred in the television police fly on the wall docu-comedy Operation Good Guys for three seasons – which was awarded the Silver Rose for Best Sitcom and the Prix de la Presse, voted for by the International Press, at the Montreux Golden Rose Festival.

Turning his hand once again to acting he went on to star in Manchild for two seasons – a BBC comedy drama with Nigel Havers, Anthony Head and Don Warrington.

Ray Burdis wrote and directed the film, ‘The Wee Man’, starring Martin Compston and John Hannah, which won two Scottish BAFTAs. Contemporary titles include ‘To Be Someone’, described in IMDb as “A light-hearted adventure movie set in the world of Mods”, was shot in Oct of 2020. Ray has also completed the film ‘Miss The Kiss’, starring Charlie Clapham, John Hannah and Martin Kemp, to be released in the spring of 2023. Ray’s next project in the director’s chair is ‘The Last Tandem in Paris’, expected to start production in the summer of 2023.