Peter Eckersley (7 April 1936 – 27 August 1981) was a British television producer. His television career began on Granada's Scene at 6.30 programme where he worked with his friend

Michael Parkinson Sir Michael Parkinson (born 28 March 1935) is an English broadcaster, journalist and author. He presented his television talk show '' Parkinson'' from 1971 to 1982 and from 1998 to 2007, as well as other talk shows and programmes both in the U ...

. He went on to become Head of Drama at Granada Television in the 1960s and '70s. In the 1960s, he was also a writer and producer on '' Coronation Street''. He wrote 62 episodes between April 1962 and November 1969. There he met and married one of its stars,

Anne Reid Anne Reid, MBE (born 28 May 1935) is a British stage, film and television actress, known for her roles as Valerie Barlow in the soap opera '' Coronation Street'' (1961–1971); Jean in the sitcom '' dinnerladies'' (1998–2000); and her role ...

, who played

Valerie Barlow '' Coronation Street'' is a British soap opera, initially produced by Granada Television. Created by writer Tony Warren, ''Coronation Street'' first broadcast on ITV on 9 December 1960. The following is a list of characters introduced in the sh ...

. He also produced the sitcom ''

Nearest and Dearest ''Nearest and Dearest'' is a British television sitcom that ran from 1968 to 1973. A total of 45 episodes were made, 18 in monochrome (black & white) and 27 in colour. The series, produced by ITV Granada, Granada Television for the ITV (TV netw ...

'' with

Hylda Baker Hylda Baker (4 February 1905 – 1 May 1986) was an English comedian, actress and music hall performer. Born and brought up in Farnworth, Lancashire, she is perhaps best remembered for her role as Nellie Pledge in the Granada ITV sitcom ...

and

Jimmy Jewel James Arthur Thomas Jewel Marsh (4 December 1909 – 3 December 1995),Gifford, Denni''The Independent'', 5 December 1995. Note: This obituary wrongly gives the year of birth as 1912, which is contradicted by the Ben Warriss obituary. Retrie ...

. During the late 1970s he spotted and developed a young comedian

Victoria Wood Victoria Wood (19 May 1953 – 20 April 2016) was an English comedian, actress, lyricist, singer, composer, pianist, screenwriter, producer and director. Wood wrote and starred in dozens of sketches, plays, musicals, films and sitcoms over se ...

, who went on to become one of the UK's most successful comedy stars. He produced the TV version of her play '' Talent'' and its sequel '' Nearly A Happy Ending'' as well as the play '' Happy Since I Met You'' (also by Wood). He also produced the pilot of ''

Wood and Walters ''Wood and Walters'' is a British television comedy sketch show starring Julie Walters and Victoria Wood for Granada Television and written entirely by Wood. The show was short-lived, with one pilot in 1981 and a series of seven shows in 1982. ...

'', but died before the series was made. Wood cited him as her biggest influence. He died aged 45 in 1981 after suffering from cancer.

David Liddiment David Liddiment (born 20 September 1952) is Creative Director of the independent production company All3Media. He is also an associate of The Old Vic Theatre Company and a member of the BBC Trust, the governing body of the British Broadcasting Cor ...

ITV ITV or iTV may refer to: ITV *Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of: ** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network covering the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islan ...

's former director of programmes said: "Peter Eckersley nurtured a new cadre of young northern writers who reflected the realities of post-war urban life for the first time....They were all to make television drama younger, sharper and closer to the experience of the mass audience."

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Eckersley, Peter 1936 births 1981 deaths English television producers Deaths from cancer in England