Trix Worrell (born 1959) is a

St Lucia Saint Lucia ( acf, Sent Lisi, french: Sainte-Lucie) is an island country of the West Indies in the eastern Caribbean. The island was previously called Iouanalao and later Hewanorra, names given by the native Arawaks and Caribs, two Amerindi ...

-born writer, composer and director best known as the creator and writer of television

sitcom A sitcom, a portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troupe may use ...

s ''

Desmond's ''Desmond's'' is a British television situation comedy broadcast by Channel 4 from 1989 to 1994. Conceived and co-written by Trix Worrell, and produced by Charlie Hanson and Humphrey Barclay, ''Desmond's'' stars Norman Beaton as barber Des ...

'' and '' Porkpie'' for

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a fourth television service ...

. His son is actor

Elliot Barnes-Worrell Elliot Barnes-Worrell (born March 1991) is an English theatre and film actor known for his role as Easter in the ITV drama series '' Jericho'' (2016) and as Job Cloovers in the ITV crime drama series ''Van der Valk'' (2020). Early life Barnes ...

Biography

Worrell started as a theatre writer and director. He went on to create the Albany Basement Theatre Company and has written and directed plays in most of the leading London fringe theatres from Upstairs at the

Royal Court A royal court, often called simply a court when the royal context is clear, is an extended royal household in a monarchy, including all those who regularly attend on a monarch, or another central figure. Hence, the word "court" may also be appl ...

Ovalhouse Ovalhouse, formerly called Oval House Theatre, was an Off-West End theatre in the London Borough of Lambeth, located at 52–54 Kennington Oval, London, SE11 5SW. It closed in 2020, and moved to Brixton, becoming the Brixton House theatre (located ...

. A graduate of the National Film and Television School, and winner of

's "Debut" writers competition, Worrell went on to create, write and direct ''

'' and '' Porkpie'' for Channel 4 and ''What You Looking At'' for

London Weekend Television London Weekend Television (LWT) (now part of the non-franchised ITV London region) was the ITV network franchise holder for Greater London and the Home Counties at weekends, broadcasting from Fridays at 5.15 pm (7:00 pm from 1968 un ...

. He has written the scripts for several award ceremonies, including MTV Europe Awards for Ali G in Frankfurt, for

P Diddy Sean Combs (born Sean John Combs; November 4, 1969), also known by his stage names Puff Daddy, P. Diddy, Puffy, or Diddy, is an American rapper, actor, record producer, and record executive. Born in New York City, he worked as a talent directo ...

in Barcelona, the

MOBO Awards The MOBO Awards (Music of Black Origin, also known as the MOBOs) are an annual British music award presentation honouring achievements in " music of black origin", including hip hop, grime, UK Drill, R&B, soul, reggae, jazz, gospel, and ...

and the BBC2 Windrush Ceremony. Worrell directed an internet drama entitled ''Dog Endz'', and the critically acclaimed one-woman show ''Little Big Woman'', starring

Llewella Gideon Llewella Gideon (born 27 September 1967 in Peckham, South London) is a British actress, comedian and writer. She has appeared in a number of comedy series, including '' Absolutely Fabulous'', '' The Real McCoy'', '' The Crouches'', and ''The De ...

, at

Leicester Square Theatre The Leicester Square Theatre is a 400-seat theatre in Leicester Place, immediately north of Leicester Square, in the City of Westminster, London. It was previously known as Notre Dame Hall, Cavern in the Town and The Venue. The theatre hosts st ...

. He has also taught in three of the most highly established film schools in Europe; at the

NFTS The National Film and Television School (NFTS) is a film, television and games school established in 1971 and based at Beaconsfield Studios in Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire, England. It is featured in the 2021 ranking by ''The Hollywood Repor ...

in the UK,

La Fémis La Fémis (French: ''École Nationale Supérieure des Métiers de l'Image et du Son''; "National Superior School for the Professions of Image and Sound", formerly known as the '' Institut des hautes études cinématographiques'', IDHEC) is a Fre ...

in Paris, and Lodz in Poland. Screen credits include ''

For Queen and Country ''For Queen and Country'' is a 1988 crime drama film co-written and directed by Martin Stellman and starring Denzel Washington in Panavision. Washington stars as Reuben James, a Black British former paratrooper, who joined the British Army to esc ...

'' which was produced by

Working Title Films Working Title Films is a British film studio that produces motion pictures and television programs and is a subsidiary of Universal Pictures, a division of NBCUniversal, which is itself a division of Comcast. The company was founded by Tim Be ...

and directed by

Martin Stellman Martin Stellman (London, July 28, 1948) is a British screenwriter and director best known for creating and writing '' The Interpreter'', starring Nicole Kidman and Sean Penn, and co-writing with Franc Roddam the 1979 British cult classic ''Quadro ...

and which starred Denzel Washington,

Amanda Redman Amanda Jacqueline Redman, (born 12 August 1957) is an English actress, known for her roles as Detective Superintendent Sandra Pullman in the BBC One series '' New Tricks'' (2003–2013) and as Dr. Lydia Fonseca in ''The Good Karma Hospital'' ...

and

Sean Chapman Sean, also spelled Seán or Séan in Irish English, is a male given name of Irish origin. It comes from the Irish versions of the Biblical Hebrew name ''Yohanan'' (), Seán (anglicized as '' Shaun/Shawn/ Shon'') and Séan (Ulster variant; anglic ...

. Worrell started Wicked Films and Trijbits & Worrell with his business partner Paul Trijbits. They opened up offices in Los Angeles and went on to work with

New Line Cinema New Line Cinema is an American film production studio owned by Warner Bros. Discovery and is a film label of Warner Bros. It was founded in 1967 by Robert Shaye as an independent film distribution company; later becoming a film studio after ...

Fox Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelve sp ...

Universal Universal is the adjective for universe. Universal may also refer to: Companies * NBCUniversal, a media and entertainment company ** Universal Animation Studios, an American Animation studio, and a subsidiary of NBCUniversal ** Universal TV, a ...

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

Carsey-Werner The Carsey-Werner Company (previously known as Carsey-Werner Productions and Carsey-Werner-Mandabach Productions, before that, Carsey Productions and also known as Carsey-Werner Television) is an independent production company founded in 1981 by ...

Whoopi Goldberg Caryn Elaine Johnson (born November 13, 1955), known professionally as Whoopi Goldberg (), is an American actor, comedian, author, and television personality.Kuchwara, Michael (AP Drama Writer)"Whoopi Goldberg: A One-Woman Character Parade". ' ...

, ''

The Cosby Show ''The Cosby Show'' is an American television sitcom co-created by and starring Bill Cosby, which aired Thursday nights for eight seasons on NBC between September 20, 1984, until April 30, 1992. The show focuses on an upper middle-class Africa ...

'' and Ridley Scott. His company produced and developed a number of films; among the most notable are: *''

The Young Americans The Young Americans is a non-profit organization and performing group based in Southern California. First founded in 1962 by Milton C. Anderson, the group was credited with being the first show choir in America, mixing choreography with choral ...

'', written and directed by

Danny Cannon Daniel John Cannon (born 5 October 1968) is a British film and television producer, director and writer, known for executive producing the 15-season show ''CSI: Crime Scene Investigation'' series franchise (and directed multiple episodes inclu ...

and starring Harvey Kietel, Vigo Mortessen,

Thandiwe Newton Melanie Thandiwe Newton ( ; born 6 November 1972), formerly credited as Thandie Newton, is a British actress. Newton has received various awards, including a Primetime Emmy Award and a British Academy Film Award, in addition to nominations for ...

and

Iain Glen Iain Alan Sutherland Glen (born 24 June 1961) is a Scottish actor. Glen is best known for his roles as Dr. Alexander Isaacs/Tyrant in three films of the ''Resident Evil'' film series (2004–2016) and as Ser Jorah Mormont in the HBO fantasy t ...

. *''Roseanna’s Grave'', directed by

Paul Weiland Paul Weiland OBE (born 11 July 1953) is an English motion picture and television director, writer and producer. Weiland is a director and producer of television commercials in the UK, having made over 500 commercials, including a popular and ...

and starring

Jean Reno Jean Reno () (born 30 July 1948), is a French actor. He has worked in American, French, English, Japanese, Spanish and Italian movie productions; Reno appeared in films such as '' Crimson Rivers'', ''Godzilla'', '' The Da Vinci Code'', '' Mission ...

and Mercedes Ruehl. *''Hardware'', directed by Richard Stanley and starring

Dylan McDermott Dylan McDermott (born Mark Anthony McDermott; October 26, 1961) is an American actor. He is known for his role as lawyer and law firm head Bobby Donnell on the legal drama series ''The Practice'', which earned him a Golden Globe Award for Best ...

. Worrell is a BAFTA nominee, British Comedy and the Royal Television Society award winner. He is a recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Medal from the Royal Television Society. He is the first recipient of "Vantage", a special award presented at BAFTA by Screen Nation. Worrell was made an honorary member of the British Comedy Academy in 2011. He was also voted one of the "100 Great Black Britons Throughout History" by the '' Daily Mail''.Trix Worrell on the 100 Great Black Britons website
/ref> An excerpt from ''

'' was used in the opening ceremony of the

London 2012 Olympic Games The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

. In 2016, he was an Artistic Associate Producer on ''The Works'' short film, written and directed by

, starring

Ralph Fiennes Ralph Nathaniel Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes ( ; born 22 December 1962) is an English actor, film producer, and director. A Shakespeare interpreter, he excelled onstage at the Royal National Theatre before having further success at the Royal Shak ...

and Sharon D. Clarke and produced by Lisa Osborne. Worrell is currently working on his first novel, ''Brown Skins in the Rain'', a coming-of-age comedy set in 1969; and a children's illustrated book set in

Hastings Hastings () is a large seaside town and borough in East Sussex on the south coast of England, east to the county town of Lewes and south east of London. The town gives its name to the Battle of Hastings, which took place to the north-west ...

called ''Sea Dogs''.

References

External links

Trix Worrell and 100 Great Black Britons

* *
Trix Worrell's entry in the British Film Institute
{{DEFAULTSORT:Worrell, Trix 1959 births Living people English people of Saint Lucian descent Saint Lucian emigrants to the United Kingdom Black British writers British television writers British television producers British male screenwriters Alumni of the National Film and Television School British male television writers