David Hammond (1928-2008) was a
broadcaster, documentary
film-maker
Filmmaking (film production) is the process by which a motion picture is produced. Filmmaking involves a number of complex and discrete stages, starting with an initial story, idea, or commission. It then continues through screenwriting, castin ...
and folk-singer from
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
.
Life and work
Hammond was born in
Belfast
Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdo ...
in 1928 and educated at
Methodist College. He then trained as a teacher at
Stranmillis College
Stranmillis University College is a university college of Queen's University Belfast. The institution is located on the Stranmillis Road in Belfast. It had students in . The school offers the BEd, PGCE and TESOL, as well as other courses.
Hi ...
. He taught for several years in primary schools and then took up a post as a teacher at
Orangefield Boys' Secondary School. Among his many pupils were
Van Morrison
Sir George Ivan Morrison (born 31 August 1945), known professionally as Van Morrison, is a Northern Irish singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist whose recording career spans seven decades. He has won two Grammy Awards.
As a teenager in t ...
and
Brian Keenan.
In 1964 he was appointed to the education department of
BBC Northern Ireland
BBC Northern Ireland ( ga, BBC Thuaisceart Éireann; Ulster-Scots: ''BBC Norlin Airlan'') is a division of the BBC and the main public broadcaster in Northern Ireland. It is widely available across both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ire ...
. In this role he collaborated with others in the production of many films about life in
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
. These included ''Today and Yesterday in Northern Ireland'', ''Explorations'', and the memorial of life in the Belfast shipyards, ''Steel Chest'', ''Nail in the Boot'', and ''the Barking Dog''.
Culture Northern Ireland; accessed 5 September 2018
He left the BBC in 1986 and established Flying Fox film company. He produced many award-winning programmes including ''Dusty Bluebells'' (1971) about Belfast children's street games.
He was a member of the board of the Field Day Theatre Company
The Field Day Theatre Company began as an artistic collaboration between playwright Brian Friel and actor Stephen Rea. In 1980, the duo set out to launch a production of Friel's recently completed play, ''Translations''. They decided to rehearse a ...
.
Awards
His films and life were celebrated at the 2003 Celtic Film Festival in Belfast.
BBC Northern Ireland commissioned a six-part series on his life and work called ''David Hammond’s Ireland''.
Dublin City University
Dublin City University (abbreviated as DCU) ( ga, Ollscoil Chathair Bhaile Átha Cliath) is a university based on the Northside of Dublin, Ireland. Created as the ''National Institute for Higher Education, Dublin'' in 1975, it enrolled its f ...
awarded him an honorary doctorate.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hammond, David
Male writers from Northern Ireland
1928 births
2008 deaths
Writers from Belfast
Film producers from Northern Ireland
20th-century educators from Northern Ireland
People educated at Methodist College Belfast
Alumni of Stranmillis University College
Schoolteachers from Northern Ireland
20th-century British businesspeople