Jon Ivay (born 1966) is an English writer, director, actor, and producer. JonIvayonMotorcycle

Early years

Ivay was born on the

Isle of Portland An isle is an island, land surrounded by water. The term is very common in British English. However, there is no clear agreement on what makes an island an isle or its difference, so they are considered synonyms. Isle may refer to: Geography * Is ...

Dorset Dorset ( ; archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the unitary authority areas of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole and Dorset (unitary authority), Dors ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, and grew up near the town of

Blandford Forum Blandford Forum ( ), commonly Blandford, is a market town in Dorset, England, sited by the River Stour, Dorset, River Stour about northwest of Poole. It was the administrative headquarters of North Dorset District until April 2019, when this ...

. He studied at the

Oxford School of Drama The Oxford School of Drama is a drama school in the United Kingdom. It is based at Wootton, ten miles north of Oxford. The school is an independent, vocational drama school which runs a three-year acting course and a one-year acting course, bot ...

and the

Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art Webber may refer to: *Webber, Kansas, a US city *Webber Township, Jefferson County, Illinois, USA *Webber Township, Lake County, Michigan, USA *Webber International University, in Babson Park, Florida, USA *Webber (surname) Webber (/ˈwɛbər/) i ...

in London.

Career

Early in his career, Ivay formed a theatrical production company (ITF Productions Ltd) with two friends. Over a nine-year period they produced over thirty-five national touring productions working with some of Britain's best known theatres and promising directors. Whilst with ITF, he wrote the stage plays ''Inside the Firm'' (Edinburgh Festival and the Queens theatre Hornchurch) which told the story of Tony Lambrianou's involvement with the ''Kray Twins'' and Freebird (Bristol Old Vic, Cockpit London, Pleasance - Edinburgh Festival and tour) a motorcycle based comedy. After leaving ITF, Ivay adapted and directed the screen version of Freebird. Working with the producers and production team from the British movies

Layer Cake A layer cake (US English) or sandwich cake (UK English) is a cake consisting of multiple stacked sheets of cake, held together by frosting or another type of filling, such as jam or other preserves. Most cake recipes can be adapted for lay ...

and Kick-Ass. Freebird was shot in London, Hay-on- Wye, Brecon Wales and Los Angeles. The film starred

Phil Daniels Philip William Daniels (born 25 October 1958) is an English actor, musician and singer, most noted for film and television roles playing Londoners, such as the lead role of Jimmy Cooper in ''Quadrophenia'', Richards in '' Scum'', Stewart in ''Th ...

Gary Stretch Gary Stretch (born 4 November 1965) is a British actor, model, and former boxing champion. During his boxing career, Stretch won 29 of his 31 fights, 20 of those by KO. He became the WBC International Super Welterweight Champion. In his modelli ...

and Geoff Bell. Supporting cast included

Peter Bowles Peter Bowles (16 October 1936 – 17 March 2022) was an English television and stage actor. He gained prominence for television dramas such as '' Callan: A Magnum for Schneider'' and ''I, Claudius''. He is however, best remembered for his roles ...

, Arthur Brown (

The Crazy World of Arthur Brown The Crazy World of Arthur Brown are an English rock band formed by singer Arthur Brown in 1967. The original band included Vincent Crane (Hammond organ and piano), Drachen Theaker (drums), and Nick Greenwood (bass). This early incarnation were ...

), Laila Rouass and Caroline Hunnisett. The film was released in cinemas across the UK in spring 2008. The film's London premiere was at the Empire, Leicester Square. Freebird's American premiere was at the Sunset 5 Movie Theater on Sunset Boulevard Los Angeles on 27 October 2008. The film was an entry at the 2009 Academy Awards. In 2009 Freebird was screened at the Berlin and Cannes film festivals. The film was re-released on DVD in 2011 by Anchor Bay Entertainment as a Triple Bill along with

Withnail and I ''Withnail and I'' is a 1987 British black comedy film written and directed by Bruce Robinson. Loosely based on Robinson's life in London in the late 1960s, the plot follows two unemployed actors, Withnail and "I" (portrayed by Richard E. Gran ...

and

The Long Good Friday ''The Long Good Friday'' is a 1980 British gangster film directed by John Mackenzie from a screenplay by Barrie Keeffe, starring Bob Hoskins and Helen Mirren. Set in London, the storyline weaves together events and concerns of the late 1970s, ...

under the heading - The Brit Collection. The original soundtrack for the film was produced by

Youth Youth is the time of life when one is young. The word, youth, can also mean the time between childhood and adulthood ( maturity), but it can also refer to one's peak, in terms of health or the period of life known as being a young adult. You ...

who also produced

Urban Hymns ''Urban Hymns'' is the third studio album by English alternative rock band the Verve, released on 29 September 1997 on Hut Records. It earned nearly unanimous critical praise upon its release, and went on to become the band's best-selling rel ...

The Verve The Verve were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Wigan in 1990 by lead vocalist Richard Ashcroft, guitarist Nick McCabe, bass guitarist Simon Jones (musician), Simon Jones and drummer Peter Salisbury. Guitarist and keyboard player Simo ...

amongst many other notable British and world artists including

Embrace Embrace may refer to: * A hug, a form of physical intimacy * Acceptance Music Bands * Embrace (American band), a post-hardcore band from Washington, D.C. * Embrace (English band), a post-Britpop band from West Yorkshire * Embrace (duo), a Dan ...

The Prodigy The Prodigy are an English electronic dance music band formed in Braintree, Essex, in 1990 by producer, keyboard player and songwriter Liam Howlett. The original line-up also featured dancer and singer Keith Flint and dancer and occasional l ...

Paul McCartney Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained worldwide fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John Lennon. One ...

Primal Scream Primal Scream are a Scottish rock band originally formed in 1982 in Glasgow by Bobby Gillespie (vocals) and Jim Beattie. The band's current lineup consists of Gillespie, Andrew Innes (guitar), Simone Butler (bass), and Darrin Mooney (drums) ...

JAMES James is a common English language surname and given name: *James (name), the typically masculine first name James * James (surname), various people with the last name James James or James City may also refer to: People * King James (disambiguat ...

and

The Cult The Cult are an English rock band formed in 1983 in Bradford, West Yorkshire. Before settling on their current name in January 1984, the band performed under the name Death Cult, which was an evolution of the name of lead singer Ian Astbury's ...

. The soundtrack from the film was released in Spring 2010. Ivay's latest project 'Delorean' tells the story of John Deloreans struggle to build the DeLorean Sports car in Belfast between 1978 and 1982. The play premiered at the Assembly rooms as part of the 2017

Edinburgh Festival Fringe The Edinburgh Festival Fringe (also referred to as The Fringe, Edinburgh Fringe, or Edinburgh Fringe Festival) is the world's largest arts and media festival, which in 2019 spanned 25 days and featured more than 59,600 performances of 3,841 dif ...

. It gained five-star ratings fro
''British Theatre Guide''
and th
''Edinburgh Reporter''
and four-star ratings from the ''Daily/Sunday Mail'', ''Daily Record'' an

''The Telegraph'' rated it as one of the ten best shows at that year's festival. A further production is being planned as a National Tour. As an actor, he has appeared many times on stage. His film and television credits include

The Gigolos ''The Gigolos'' is a 2005 British comedy film directed by Richard Bracewell, starring Sacha Tarter, Trevor Sather and Ben Willbond alongside Susannah York, Anna Massey, Angela Pleasence and Siân Phillips. Bracewell's debut feature, ''The Gig ...

Telstar Telstar is the name of various communications satellites. The first two Telstar satellites were experimental and nearly identical. Telstar 1 launched on top of a Thor-Delta rocket on July 10, 1962. It successfully relayed through space the fi ...

and Freebird, BBC Drama Spooks,

The Bill ''The Bill'' is a British police procedural television series, first broadcast on ITV from 16 August 1983 until 31 August 2010. The programme originated from a one-off drama, '' Woodentop'', broadcast in August 1983. The programme focused on ...

, The Vet and The 10 Percenters.

Personal life

Ivay is married to the actress Caroline Hunnisett. The couple have a daughter Tawney and a son Ned.

Other work

Ivay is the Creative Director of a project to build a theatre in his home town of

. The project is calle
The Fording Point

Credits

Director

* '' Freebird'' - Feature film - Nationwide cinematic release UK 2008, Also Berlin Film Fest 2009, Cannes Film Festival 2009 and USA 2008. Opening Film, Dalmatian Film Festival (St Petersberg); prior to Russian & Eastern Europe Cinema Release. * ''Freebird'' – Stageplay - Edinburgh Festival (Pleasance Theatre) * ''Lonestar'' by James Mclure - Kenneth More Theatre Ilford/small scale tour * ''Bouncers'' by John Godber - two national tours (also Lincoln Theatre Royal) * ''Inside the Firm'' - Edinburgh Festival (Adam House Theatre). Won Spirit of the Fringe award * ''Teechers'' by John Godber - two national tours * ''Just Like That'' - National tour (two-act play) (also Edinburgh Festival Gilded balloon one-act play) * ''Vintage Stuff'' by Tom Sharpe - national tour * ''

The Rise and Fall of Little Voice ''The Rise and Fall of Little Voice'' is a 1992 play written by English dramatist Jim Cartwright. Production history Sam Mendes directed the first production at the Royal National Theatre that transferred to the Aldwych Theatre in London's ...

'' by Jim Cartwright - national tour * ''Popcorn'' - two national tours * ''Delorean'' - The Assembly Rooms,

Edinburgh Fringe The Edinburgh Festival Fringe (also referred to as The Fringe, Edinburgh Fringe, or Edinburgh Fringe Festival) is the world's largest arts and media festival, which in 2019 spanned 25 days and featured more than 59,600 performances of 3,841 dif ...

(and Touring)

Writer

*''Inside The Firm'' – One act play - Edinburgh Festival - Adam House C-Venues *''Inside The Firm'' – Two act play – Queens Theatre Hornchurch *'' Freebird'' – Stage play –

Bristol Old Vic Bristol Old Vic is a British theatre company based at the Theatre Royal, Bristol. The present company was established in 1946 as an offshoot of the Old Vic in London. It is associated with the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, which became a fin ...

– Cockpit London –

Edinburgh Festival __NOTOC__ This is a list of arts and cultural festivals regularly taking place in Edinburgh, Scotland. The city has become known for its festivals since the establishment in 1947 of the Edinburgh International Festival and the Edinburgh Fe ...

*'' Freebird'' – Feature film. UK and American release – Berlin and Cannes Festivals *''DELOREAN'' – Stage play (Edinburgh 2017) *''Anna's Call'' - Two Act Play (Writing) *''A Whitehall Farce'' - (Stage Play Announced) *''Catch A Falling Star'' - (Play with Original Music - Announced)

Producer

* ''

Travels with My Aunt ''Travels with My Aunt'' (1969) is a novel written by English author Graham Greene. The novel follows the travels of Henry Pulling, a retired bank manager, and his eccentric Aunt Augusta as they find their way across Europe, and eventually ev ...

'' by Graham Greene. Co-produced by Salisbury Playhouse and national tour. Directed by

Rupert Goold Rupert Goold (born 18 February 1972) is an English director who works primarily in theatre. He is the artistic director of the Almeida Theatre, and was the artistic director of Headlong Theatre Company (2005–2013). Early years Goold was ...

* ''Inside the Firm'' by Jon Ivay. Co-produced by Queens Theatre and Hornchurch. Directed by Marina Calderone * ''

'' - Co-produced by Chester Gateway and national Tour. Directed by

* ''

'' - Co-produced by Exeter Northcott and Vienna Est (6 week run). Directed by Sue Lefton * ''On the Piste'' by John Godber. National tour. Directed by James Puddephatt * ''Outside Edge'' by Richard Harris. National tour. Directed by Grant Burgin * ''Freebird'' by Jon Ivay. Co-produced by Bristol Old Vic. Directed by Ian HastingsTheatre Record - Volume 19 Page 1385 1999 FREEBIRD TRISTAN BATES THEATRE 19 October- 6 November 1999 "... this affable comedy - three motorbikes dominate the stage and the soundtrack's stacked up with Lynyrd (Skynyrd, that is, ..." * ''Freebird'' - 1999. Cockpit Theatre London. Directed by

Samantha Spiro Samantha Spiro (born 20 June 1968) is an English actress and singer. She is best known for portraying Barbara Windsor in the stage play '' Cleo, Camping, Emmanuelle and Dick'' and the television films ''Cor, Blimey!'' and ''Babs'', DI Vivien F ...

* ''Love Me Slender'' – Vanessa Brooks – 1999. Co-produced by Perth Theatre and national tour

Associate producer and management

* ''Ecstasy'' by

Mike Leigh Mike Leigh (born 20 February 1943) is an English film and theatre director, screenwriter and playwright. He studied at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) and further at the Camberwell School of Art, the Central School of Art and Design ...

. Arts Theatre. West End. Directed by Patrick Davey * ''Mr. Wonderful'' by James Robson. Chester Gateway. Directed by Deborah Shaw

References

External links

Jon Ivay's Time Out Film Biography
*
Freebird Movie Official WebsiteFreebird Movie YouTube Channel
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ivay, Jon 1966 births Living people