Richard Levin OBE (31 December 1910 - 2 July 2000) was the former head of design at BBC Television from 1953 to 1971, and gave the BBC its modern look in the late 1960s, when colour television was innovatively introduced. As a

stage designer Scenic design (also known as scenography, stage design, or set design) is the creation of theatrical, as well as film or television scenery. Scenic designers come from a variety of artistic backgrounds, but in recent years, are mostly trai ...

, he had been drafted in as head of

camouflage Camouflage is the use of any combination of materials, coloration, or illumination for concealment, either by making animals or objects hard to see, or by disguising them as something else. Examples include the leopard's spotted coat, the b ...

for the Air Ministry during the

Battle of Britain The Battle of Britain, also known as the Air Battle for England (german: die Luftschlacht um England), was a military campaign of the Second World War, in which the Royal Air Force (RAF) and the Fleet Air Arm (FAA) of the Royal Navy defende ...

Early life

He was born north London.

Career

British films

He joined

Gaumont-British The Gaumont-British Picture Corporation produced and distributed films and operated a cinema chain in the United Kingdom. It was established as an offshoot of the Gaumont Film Company of France. Film production Gaumont-British was founded in 1 ...

in 1928 as a stage designer, where he worked until 1932.

World War II

From the start of World War 2 he was the head of camouflage for the

Air Ministry The Air Ministry was a department of the Government of the United Kingdom with the responsibility of managing the affairs of the Royal Air Force, that existed from 1918 to 1964. It was under the political authority of the Secretary of State ...

from 1939–42, to conceal RAF stations. He worked at the Ministry of Information as Exhibition Division designer of the Army's national exhibition that toured the UK to Manchester Cardiff and Glasgow. Former stage designer and art director on films After the war, he had designed exhibitions for the BBC. He had designed all BBC exhibitions from 1933.

BBC

He took over at the BBC as Head of TV Design from Peter Bax on Monday 9 March 1953, when aged 42. Peter Bax had died suddenly aged 57, on Tuesday 28 October 1952, after a three-weeks illness. He designed the set of the

Eurovision Song Contest 1960 The Eurovision Song Contest 1960 was the fifth edition of the annual Eurovision Song Contest, held on Tuesday 29 March 1960 at the Royal Festival Hall in London, United Kingdom, and hosted by British television presenter and actress Catherine ...

, held on 29 March 1960 in London. From 1967 he was the head of the BBC Television Design Group, when the BBC changed to colour. By March 1968, over 90% of programmes were in colour. He retired from the BBC in 1971. In 1971, he became one of the

Royal Designers for Industry Royal Designer for Industry is a distinction established by the British Royal Society of Arts (RSA) in 1936, to encourage a high standard of industrial design and enhance the status of designers. It is awarded to people who have achieved "sustaine ...

. He became a photographer in the 1970s.

Publications

In 1961 he wrote the book Television By Design.

Personal life

He was awarded the OBE in the

1952 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 1952 were appointments by King George VI to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of the British Empire and Commonwealth. They were announced on 1 January 1952 for the British Empire, Austra ...

. He married Evelyn Alexander in 1932 in London; they had two daughters in 1932 and 1935. He later married Patricia Foy, a producer, in March 1960 in London, becoming engaged in January 1960. Patricia Foy (born 25 November 1922) had joined the BBC in the late 1950s; she died in Wiltshire on 26 July 2006.''The Stage'' Thursday 24 August 2006, page 51

References

External links

IMDb
{{DEFAULTSORT:Levin, Richard 1910 births 2000 deaths Officers of the Order of the British Empire Air Ministry during World War II BBC people British production designers Civil servants in the Air Ministry English scenic designers Gaumont Film Company Military camouflage Military deception during World War II Royal Designers for Industry