Saturday saw the passing of producer Simon Channing Williams, without whom some of the most important British films of the past three decades would not have happened. Channing Williams worked with everyone from Stephen Frears to Michael Apted, yet it was his ongoing partnership with Mike Leigh that brought him most acclaim.
As a producer, Channing Williams worked with Leigh on films like Naked, Secrets And Lies, Vera Drake and the recent Happy-Go-Lucky. He was also responsible for such diverse productions as When The Whales Came, Brothers Of The Head and The Constant Gardener. He also worked on a season of the much-loved television comedy Minder.
The founder of Thin Man Films, Channing Williams went on to form Potboiler Productions with fellow independent film enthusiast Gail Egan. Potboiler is currently working on two John Le Carre adaptations, The Mission Song and A Most Wanted Man, which Egan has pledged to complete.
Channing Williams is survived by his wife Annie and five children, who were at his bedside at the end.
