Understand
Composer George Fenton dies at the age of 76
Overview
George Fenton, the prolific British composer known for his iconic film and television scores including Gandhi, The Blue Planet, and Planet Earth, has died unexpectedly at the age of 76. Throughout his career, he received five Oscar nominations, won numerous awards for his natural history and television work, and composed theme tunes for several BBC programmes.
Key points
- Composer George Fenton has died unexpectedly at the age of 76.
- He received five Oscar nominations for film scores including Gandhi, Cry Freedom, and The Remains of the Day.
- His work on television natural history programmes included The Blue Planet, Planet Earth, and Frozen Planet.
- He composed well-known theme tunes for BBC News programmes, Newsnight, and Bergerac.
- He collaborated extensively with director Ken Loach, scoring 18 films including The Wind That Shakes the Barley.
- Fenton was made a CBE for services to music in 2023 and received a fellowship from The Ivors Academy.