Up (film series)

British documentary film series (1964–2019)

This article is about the British documentary series. For other films with this name, see Up (disambiguation).

DVD cover

Genre| Longitudinal study Documentary
Directed by| Paul Almond (Seven Up!)
Michael Apted (all subsequent films)
Starring| Bruce Balden
Jackie Bassett
Symon Basterfield
Andrew Brackfield
John Brisby
Peter Davies
Susan Davis
Charles Furneaux
Nicholas (Nick) Hitchon (died 2023)
Neil Hughes
Lynn Johnson (died 2013)
Paul Kligerman
Suzanne (Suzy) Lusk
Tony Walker
Narrated by| Douglas Keay
Michael Apted (all subsequent films)
Theme music composer| Trevor Duncan
Opening theme| Syncho-Jazz
Ending theme| Syncho-Jazz
Country of origin| United Kingdom
Original language| English
No. of episodes| 9 (in 16 parts)[1]
Production
Producer| Claire Lewis
Production locations| United Kingdom
Bulgaria
France
Australia
United States
Spain
Portugal
Cinematography| George Jesse Turner
Editor| Kim Horton
Running time| 40–150 mins. per film
1,018 mins. total
Original release
Network| ITV (Granada Television) (1964–1991, 2005–2019)
BBC One (1998)
Release| 5 May 1964 (1964-05-05) –
6 June 2019 (2019-06-06)

The Up series of documentary films follows the lives of ten boys and four girls in England, beginning in 1964, when they were seven years old. The first film was titled Seven Up!, with later films adjusting the number in the title to match the age of the subjects at the time of filming. The documentary has had nine episodes—one every seven years—thus spanning 56 years. The series has been produced by Granada Television for ITV, which has broadcast all of them except 42 Up (1998), which was broadcast on BBC One. Individual films and the series as a whole have received numerous accolades;[clarification needed] in 1991, the then-latest instalment, 28 Up, was chosen for Roger Ebert's list of the ten greatest films of all time.[2]

The children were selected for the original programme to represent the range of socio-economic backgrounds in Britain at that time, on the assumption that each child's social class would determine their future.[3] The first instalment was made as a one-off edition of Granada Television's series, World in Action, directed by Canadian Paul Almond, with involvement by "a fresh-faced young researcher, a middle-class Cambridge graduate", Michael Apted, whose role in the initial programme included "trawling the nation's schools for 14 suitable subjects".[4] About the first programme, Apted has said:

> It was Paul's film ... but he was more interested in making a beautiful film about being seven, whereas I wanted to make a nasty piece of work about these kids who have it all, and these other kids who have nothing.[4]

After Almond's direction of the original programme, director Michael Apted continued the series with new instalments every seven years, filming material from those of the fourteen who chose to participate.[4] The aim of the continuing series is stated at the beginning of 7 Up as: "We brought these children together because we wanted a glimpse of England in the year 2000. The shop's steward and the executive of the year 2000 are now seven years old." The most recent instalment, the ninth, titled 63 Up, premiered in the UK on ITV in 2019.[5][6] A special episode featuring celebrity fans of the series, 7 Up & Me, also aired on ITV in 2019.[7] Apted is reported to have said, "I hope to do 84 Up when I'll be 99";[8] however, he died in 2021.[9]

In July 2025 it was confirmed that the series will continue with a new director for the next instalment, 70 Up.[10]

## Creation

[edit]

The first film in the series, Seven Up! (1964), was directed by Paul Almond,[4][11] and was commissioned by Granada Television as a programme in the World in Action series.[4] From 7 Plus Seven until 63 Up the films were directed by Michael Apted, who had been a researcher on Seven Up! and was involved in finding the original children,[4] with Gordon McDougall.[citation needed] The premise of the film was taken from the Jesuit motto "Give me a child until he is seven and I will give you the man".[12][13] The 1998 edition, 42 Up, was broadcast on BBC One but was still produced by Granada Television.[citation needed]

## List of films and premiere dates

[edit]

No.  | Title  | Director  | Original air date  | Channel  | Length

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1  | Seven Up! | Paul Almond | 5 May 1964  | ITV (Granada Television) | 40 minutes
2  | 7 Plus Seven | Michael Apted | 15 December 1970  | 53 minutes
3  | 21 Up | 9 May 1977  | 100 minutes
4  | 28 Up | 20, 21 November 1984  | 136 minutes
5  | 35 Up | 22 May 1991  | 116 minutes
6  | 42 Up | 21, 22 July 1998  | BBC One | 133 minutes
7  | 49 Up | 15, 22 September 2005  | ITV | 134 minutes
8  | 56 Up | 14, 21, 28 May 2012  | 144 minutes
9  | 63 Up | 4, 5, 6 June 2019  | 150 minutes

## Participants

[edit]

The subjects are first seen on a group visit to London Zoo in 1964, where the narrator announces "We brought these 20 children together for the very first time." The series then follows fourteen of the children: Bruce Balden, Jackie Bassett, Symon Basterfield, Andrew Brackfield, John Brisby, Peter Davies, Susan Davis, Charles Furneaux, Nicholas Hitchon, Neil Hughes, Lynn Johnson, Paul Kligerman, Suzanne Lusk and Tony Walker.

The participants were chosen in an attempt to represent different social classes in Britain in the 1960s. Apted states in the 42 commentary track that he was asked to find children at the extremes. Because the show was not originally intended to become a repeating series, no long-term contract was signed with the participants.[citation needed] According to Apted, participants in the subsequent programmes since Seven Up! have been paid a sum for their appearance in each instalment, as well as equal parts of any prize the film may win. Each subject is filmed in about two days and the interview itself takes more than six hours.

Apted has said that it was a poor decision to include only four female participants.[14]

### Andrew

[edit]

Andrew Brackfield was one of three boys chosen from the same pre-preparatory school in the wealthy London district of Kensington (the other two being Charles and John). The three are introduced in Seven Up! singing "Waltzing Matilda" in Latin. At the age of seven, when asked which newspaper he reads, if any, Andrew stated that he reads The Financial Times (although he later revealed he was just repeating what his father had told him when asked the same question). All three could say which prep schools, public schools and universities they planned to attend (Oxford or Cambridge in all cases); two named the specific Oxbridge college they intended to join.

Andrew's academic career culminated in his studying at Trinity College, Cambridge. Andrew subsequently became a solicitor, married and raised a family. He is the only one of the three Kensington boys to have appeared in all the Up films. Both Andrew and his wife, Jane, are most satisfied with how their children have turned out, followed by their relationship.

### Charles

[edit]

Charles Furneaux did not get into Oxford, saying in 21 he was glad to have avoided the "prep school–Marlborough–Oxbridge conveyor belt" by going to Durham University instead; however, he later attended Oxford as a post-graduate student. Charles has worked in journalism in varying capacities over the years, including as a producer for the BBC, and in the making of documentary films, including Touching the Void. When contacted to appear in 28, Charles declined; a subsequent phone conversation during which Apted, by his own admission, "went berserk", destroyed the relationship to the degree that Charles has refused to participate in all subsequent films, and even attempted to force Granada to remove archive images of him from the films in which he did not appear.[15]

During an on-stage interview at London's National Film Theatre in December 2005, Apted alleged that Charles had attempted to sue him when he refused to remove Charles from the archive sequences in 49. Apted also commented on the irony that as a documentary maker himself, Charles was the only one who refused to continue.[16][17]

By the time of 63, all references to Charles have been removed save for fleeting glimpses of joint shots with Andrew and John.

### John

[edit]

John Brisby KC, who was vocal on politics by 14, attended Oxford and became a barrister.[18] He married Claire, the daughter of Sir Donald Logan, a former ambassador to Bulgaria.[19] Brisby devotes himself to charities related to Bulgaria, and hopes to reclaim family land there that had been nationalised. He is a great-great-grandson of the first Prime Minister of Bulgaria, Todor Burmov.[20]

Brisby said in 35 that he only does the films to give more publicity to his chosen charities. In 56, he criticised Apted's decision to originally portray him as part of the "privileged upper class". He disclosed that his father had died when he was 9 and his mother worked to put him through elite private schools; he had attended Oxford on a scholarship. In 56, he remains a litigator who feels very blessed in almost all aspects of his life. In 63, he refers to the series as a "poison pill" but also says he sees that it has value.

### Suzy

[edit]

Suzanne (Suzy) Lusk comes from a wealthy background and was first filmed at an independent London day school. Her parents divorced around the time of 7 Plus Seven. She then dropped out of school at the age of 16, deciding to travel to Paris. By 21, she had formed a strong negative opinion about marriage and being a parent, though this soon changed dramatically. By 28, she was married with two sons, and credited her marriage with bringing her the optimism and happiness that was not evident in the earlier films. Her husband, Rupert Dewey, is a solicitor in Bath and they have three children, two boys and a girl. She became a bereavement counsellor. In 7 Plus Seven, she stated that she thought Apted's project was pointless and silly, a point that she restated in 21. At 49, she believed that she would not participate again, but in 56, she admitted that she felt an obligation to the project regardless of how she feels about it. Suzy did not appear in 63 aside from footage from previous films.[21]

### Jackie

[edit]

Jackie Bassett was one of three girls (the others being Lynn and Sue) who were chosen from the same primary school, in a working-class neighbourhood of east London. She eventually went to a comprehensive school and married at age 19. Jackie went through several different jobs, divorced, remarried and moved to Scotland, divorced again and raised her three sons as a single parent. As of 56, she had been receiving disability benefit for 14 years, due to rheumatoid arthritis.[22] Her family remains close and lives near each other in Scotland.

### Lynn

[edit]

Lynn Johnson, after attending the same primary school as Jackie and Sue, went on to attend a grammar school. She married at 19, had two daughters, and became a children's librarian at 21. She later became a school librarian and remained in that position until being made redundant due to budget cuts.[23] At 56, she continued to believe her career as a librarian was of great value and it helped define her life. She was a doting grandmother with three grandchildren, and still married to her husband Russ, whom she considered her soulmate. In May 2013, after a short illness, Lynn became the first participant to die. She served as Chair of Governors of St Saviour's primary school in Poplar, London, for over 25 years; after her death, a section of the school library was renamed in her memory.[24]

In 63, after much of the earlier footage, particularly from 56, Russ and her daughters recall her death and discuss its effect on them.[3]

### Sue

[edit]

Susan (Sue) Davis attended the same primary school as Jackie and Lynn and following that attended a comprehensive school. Sue married at 24 and had two children before getting divorced. She has been engaged to her current boyfriend, Glenn, for 21 years as of 63. She works as a university administrator for Queen Mary, University of London, despite not having gone to university herself, and is fond of amateur dramatics. By 63, she is looking forward to retiring in the near future.

### Tony

[edit]

Tony Walker was chosen from a primary school in the East End of London and was introduced along with his classmate Michelle, who Douglas Keay, the narrator, stated was Tony's "girlfriend". At age 7, Michelle described Tony as a "monkey". He wanted to be a jockey at 7 and was at a stable training as one by 14. By 21, his chance had come and gone after riding in three races before giving it up. He was proud to have competed against Lester Piggott. He then gained "the Knowledge" and made a comfortable life for himself and his family as a London taxi driver. His later dream of becoming an actor has met with modest success; he has had small parts as an extra (almost always playing a cabbie) in several TV programmes since 1986, including The Bill and twice in EastEnders, most recently in 2003. His wife, Debbie, was carrying their third child in 28, and she reveals in 35 that she lost that baby but has since had another; she admits that losing their third child placed a tremendous stress on their relationship. Tony admitted in 35 that being in a monogamous relationship was becoming a strain, and by 42, he had committed adultery, though he and his wife have got past it and are still together. By 42, he had moved to Essex, and by 49, owned two homes, including a holiday home in Spain. In 63, he and his wife had settled in the English countryside.

### Paul

[edit]

Paul Kligerman was at an orphanage (called Children's Home) in the East End of London at 7, his parents having divorced and he having been left with his father. Soon after Seven Up!, his father and stepmother moved the family to Australia, where he has remained in the Melbourne area ever since. By 21, he had long hair and a girlfriend to whom he is still married.[3] After leaving school he was employed as a bricklayer and later set up his own business. In 49, he is working for a sign-making company. In 21, 49 and 63, Paul was reunited with Symon, who had attended the same boarding school; portions of their time together are included in all three films. By 56, Paul had started work at a local retirement village with his wife Susan. He does odd jobs and maintenance of the small units and gardens.

### Symon

[edit]

Symon Basterfield, given name also spelt Simon in previous films, chosen from the same orphanage (called Children's Home) in the East End of London as Paul, is the only mixed-race participant.[22] He never got to know his black father, and had left the orphanage in the East End of London to live with his white mother by the time of the 7 Plus Seven filming; her depression is alluded to as the cause for his being in the home. As filming for 35 took place, he was going through a divorce from his first wife and mother of his five children, and he elected not to participate. Symon returned for 42 and 49, remarried with one son and one stepdaughter. In 49, he and his wife had become foster parents.[22] By 56, he regretted his lack of formal education, which he felt limited his income over the years. He remains happily married and looks forward to the next chapters of his life. In 63, his relationship with his children from his first marriage is mending and he has 10 grandchildren.

### Nick

[edit]

William Nicholas "Nick" Hitchon was born on 22 October 1957 and raised on a small farm in Arncliffe, a tiny village in the Yorkshire Dales. (He was only 6 when Seven Up! was first broadcast, and therefore always remained a year younger than the episodes' nominal age.[25]) He was educated in a one-room school four miles' walk from his home, and later at a boarding school. He went to Oxford University (where, he mentions in 63 Up, Theresa May was a contemporary) and then moved to the United States to work as a nuclear physicist. He married Jackie, another British immigrant, who participated in 28 but was displeased with how her comments were received by viewers, many of whom apparently concluded that the marriage was doomed. She declined to appear in 35 and 42. By 49, the couple had divorced and Nick had remarried, this time to Cryss Brunner, ten years his senior, and at that time taught in Minneapolis. Nick was a professor at the University of Wisconsin–Madison in the Electrical & Computer Engineering Department from 1982 to 2022, serving as department chair from 1999 to 2002.[26][25] He appeared as a guest on NPR's quiz show Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me aired 21 June 2014, and spoke briefly about his participation in the Up series.[27] By 63, he had developed a cancerous mass in his throat and had recently lost his father, leading him to contemplate mortality and the future of his family after his death (he says at one point that if there is a 70 edition of the series, he will not be alive to participate in it).[3] Nick retired from the university in spring 2022 and died on 23 July 2023 at the age of 65.[28][25]

### Peter

[edit]

Peter Davies went to the same middle-class Liverpool suburban school as Neil, who, like Peter, wanted to be an astronaut. Peter drifted through university, and by age 28, he was an underpaid and seemingly uninspired school teacher. Peter dropped out of the series after 28, following a tabloid press campaign against him after he criticised the government of Margaret Thatcher in his interview. The director's commentary for 42 revealed that he later divorced, took up study of the law, became a lawyer, remarried, had children and moved back to Liverpool. He returned in 56 to promote his band, the Liverpool-based country-influenced The Good Intentions;[29] the group was still together, although one member had died, in 63.

### Neil

[edit]

Neil Hughes, from a Liverpool suburb, turned out to be perhaps the most unpredictable of the group.[30] At seven he was a happy child, funny and full of life and hope, but by 7 Plus Seven, he was nervous and stressed. By 21, he was living in a squat in London, having dropped out of Aberdeen University after one term, and was finding work as he could on building sites. During the interview, he was in an agitated state. At 28, he was still homeless, although now in Scotland; by 35, he was living in a council house in the Shetland Islands, writing and appearing in the local pantomime. By 42, he was living in Bruce's apartment in London and Bruce had become a source of emotional support.[30] He was involved in local council politics, as a Liberal Democrat in the London Borough of Hackney, and had completed a Bachelor of Arts degree from the Open University.[30] He was first elected to Wick ward on Hackney London Borough Council in 1996, and resigned his seat in 2000.[31][32]

By 49, he was a district councillor in the Eden district of Cumbria.[33] He was first elected for Shap on Eden District in 2003.[34] He was a candidate for Eden Lakes on Cumbria County Council in 2005 and 2009, coming second to the Conservative candidate on both occasions.[35] In 2013, following new division boundaries, Neil was elected to Eden Lakes, and did not stand again for Shap. He was re-elected to Eden Lakes in 2017.[36][37]

He stood as the Liberal Democrat candidate for Stockton North in the 2005 general election and for Carlisle in the 2010 general election, finishing third on both occasions.[38][39] Neil stood for Penrith and the Border—which covers the same area he represents as a councillor—at the 2015 and 2017 general elections. In 2015, he came fourth, whilst in 2017, he came third. At the 2019 general election, Hughes contested the Labour–Conservative marginal seat of Workington in Cumbria. Finishing fourth, he increased the party's vote share, but lost his deposit.

By 63, Neil has married; however, he and his wife have separated due to unspecified difficulties. He is a lay Baptist preacher, district councillor and also has a home in France.[30]

### Bruce

[edit]

Bruce Balden, as a child, was concerned with poverty and racial discrimination and wanted to become a missionary. He was attending a private boarding school. At the age of seven, he said that his greatest desire was to see his father, a soldier in Southern Rhodesia, and he seemed brave though a little abandoned. In 21, Bruce was studying mathematics at Oxford University. After graduation, he worked in an insurance company for a short term. He then began to teach maths at a school in the East End of London. He said that he enjoyed being a part of people's advancement. In 35, he was taking a sabbatical leave and teaching maths and English in Sylhet, Bangladesh, as well as helping teachers design courses. He subsequently returned to London and continued teaching in the East End. Just before 42, he married a fellow teacher: Apted broke the seven-year structure to film the wedding, which was also attended by Neil. Eventually becoming worn down by teaching in the East End, Bruce got a teaching position at St Albans School, Hertfordshire, a prestigious public school. Between 42 and 49, he had two sons. In 56, he admitted he still had a hard time expressing his innermost feelings, in particular to his wife, but was a happily devoted father and husband. Still teaching at St Albans School with his wife, he had no regrets about the development of his career.[22]

## Participation record

[edit]

Age
(Year)
| 7
(1964)  | 14
(1970)  | 21
(1977)  | 28
(1984)  | 35
(1991)  | 42
(1998)  | 49
(2005)  | 56
(2012)  | 63
(2019)

|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|

1  | Andrew |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
2  | Charles |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
3  | John |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
4  | Suzy |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
5  | Jackie |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
6  | Lynn |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | [a]
7  | Sue |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
8  | Tony |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
9  | Paul |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
10  | Symon |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
11  | Nick |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
12  | Peter |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
13  | Neil |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
14  | Bruce |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |

1. ^ Lynn died in May 2013. A segment on Lynn being discussed by her husband and her daughters was included on 63.[24]

## Motifs

[edit]

A number of themes have appeared repeatedly over the course of the series. Questions about religion, family, class, happiness and psychological state dominate many of the interviews, as well as inquiries about the worries and concerns subjects have for their future.[40] In addition, questions often take a personal tone, with Apted noting that viewers often respond to his questioning of Neil's sanity or his perception of Tony's success in life as being too personal, but that he has been able to do this because of the friendship he has developed with the subjects over the course of their lives.[41][full citation needed]

## Critical responses, including awards

[edit]

This section needs expansion with: a more thorough representation of the reviews of critics to the overall series, and to individual programmes in the series. You can help by adding to it. (December 2019)

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The series has received high praise over the years. Roger Ebert said that it is "an inspired, even noble, use of the film medium", that the films "penetrate to the central mystery of life", and that the series is among his top ten films of all time.[40] Michael Apted won an Institutional Peabody Award in 2012 for his work on the Up series.[42] In a list of the 100 Greatest British Television Programmes drawn up by the British Film Institute in 2000, voted for by industry professionals, 28 Up placed 26th.[43]

The Up series has been criticised by both ethnographers and the subjects themselves for its editing style. Mitchell Duneier has pointed out that Apted has the ability to assert causal relationships between a character's past and present that might not actually exist.[44] Apted has acknowledged this fact, pointing out that in 21 Up he believed Tony would soon be in prison, so he filmed him around dangerous areas for use in later films.[45] Apted also portrayed the troubled marriage of Nick earlier in the film, although his time frame for anticipating their divorce was premature. Apted has stated in interviews that his "tendency to play God" with the interviews was "foolishness and wrong."[41] In 21 Up, the women participants were offended that all the questions concerned domestic affairs, marriage and children, rather than politics.[46] A New Yorker article by Rebecca Mead noted "[Apted] can be unbearably patronizing toward his subjects, particularly the working-class women, while he sets his more affluent participants up to look ludicrous." However, she did note that "To his credit, Apted has shown participants arguing back against the show's premise and against his own prejudices. One of the most exhilarating moments in the series occurs in '49 Up', when Jackie [...] rounds on Apted, castigating him for his decades of underestimating her. Apted's implied humility is ultimately, if belatedly, Jackie's vindication."[47]

## Influence on participants

[edit]

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Over the course of the project the programme has in varying degrees had a direct effect on the lives of its participants. The series participants often speak of the series having become popular enough that they were recognised in public. For instance, in 56 Up, Tony related an anecdote about giving a ride to Buzz Aldrin, and being surprised when a passerby asks him, not Aldrin, for an autograph.

The participants' opinions regarding being involved in the series are often mentioned, and varied greatly among the participants. John refers to the programme as a poison pill that he is subjected to every seven years, while Paul's wife credits the series for keeping their marriage together. Michael Apted has commented that one of the big surprises between filming 42 Up and 49 Up was the impact of reality television—i.e., that the subjects wanted to talk about their contribution to the series in the light of this genre.[citation needed]

In addition, there have been instances of the interactions of participants being engineered by the programme's producers. For instance, Paul and Nick were flown back to England at Granada's expense for the filming of 35 Up and 42 Up respectively. In addition, Paul was flown back again for 49 Up and visited Symon; Symon and his wife were in turn flown to Australia to visit Paul in 63 Up. As well, Bruce was affected by Neil's plight and offered him temporary shelter in his home shortly before 42 Up, allowing Neil time to get settled in London; despite Neil's eccentricities during his two-month stay, they clearly remained friends, with Neil later giving a reading at Bruce's wedding. In 56 Up, Suzy and Nick are interviewed together, having become friends due to their shared rural upbringing.

## Cultural and broader influences

[edit]

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The original hypothesis of Seven Up! was that class structure is so strong in the UK that a person's life path would be set at birth. The producer of the original programme had at one point thought to line the children up on the street, have three of them step forward and narrate "of these twenty children, only three will be successful" (an idea which was not used). The idea of class immobility held up in most, but not all, cases as the series has progressed. The children from the working classes have by and large remained in those circles, though Tony seems to have become more middle class. Apted has said that one of his regrets is that they did not take feminism into account, and consequently had fewer girls in their study and did not select them on the basis of any possible careers they might choose.

Although it began as a political documentary, the series has become a film of human nature and existentialism. In the director's commentary for 42 Up, Apted comments that he did not realise the series had changed tone from political to personal until 21 Up, when he showed the film to American friends who encouraged him to submit it (successfully) to American film festivals. Apted also comments that this realisation was a relief to him and allowed the films to breathe a little more.

The series has also been satirised. The Simpsons' 2007 episode "Springfield Up" is narrated by an Apted-like filmmaker who depicts the past and current lives of a group of Springfield residents he has revisited every eight years. The "37 Up" segment of Tracey Ullman: A Class Act, first aired in 1992, parodies the series. Harry Enfield parodied the series in a spoof titled "2 Up" with his characters Tim Nice-but-Dim and Wayne Slob. The Australian comedy TV series The Late Show satirised the series with a version in which participants were interviewed every seven minutes.[48]

## Similar documentaries

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* Multinational
* I Am Eleven (2012) by Geneviève Bailey, features participants from Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, and North America.
* Australia
* Gillian Armstrong made a series following three girls/women from 1975 to 2009:
* Smokes and Lollies (1975)
* 14's Good, 18's Better (1980)
* Bingo, Bridesmaids & Braces (1988)
* Not Fourteen Again (1996)
* Love, Lust & Lies (2009)
* Belgium
* Jambers, 1980–1990. Two-part documentary by TV journalist Paul Jambers on Flemish public TV channel about secondary school students in Kapellen, near Antwerp.
* Canada
* Avoir 16 ans (Being 16 years old) (1992) and Avoir 32 ans (Being 32 years old) (2010), directed by Robbie Hart and Luc Côté of National Film Board of Canada.
* Du premier au dernier baiser (From the first to the last kiss) (2-part program, 2003), by reporter Hélène Courchesne and director Nicole Tremblay of Société Radio-Canada.
* Talk 16 (1991) and Talk 19 (1993), directed and written by Janis Lundman and Adrienne Mitchell of Back Alley Film Productions.
* Czech Republic – by Helena Třeštíková.
* René, a single-episode portrait of a man over 20 years, starting in the late 1980s. René at IMDb
* France
* Que deviendront-ils ? (What Will They Become) from Michel Fresnel (1984–1996)
* Germany
* Die Kinder von Golzow (The Children of Golzow) by Winfried Junge, set in former East Germany as well as in unified Germany after 1990 (1961–2006)
* Berlin – Ecke Bundesplatz (Berlin – On the Corner of Federation Square) (1985) by Detlef Gumm and Hans-Georg Ullrich. The documentary follows individuals, families or groups of related people in separate episodes of around one hour in length each. The sequel was broadcast in four seasons on 3sat.
* 1999: Der Prominenten-Anwalt (The Society Lawyer), Bäckermeister im Kiez (Neighborhood Baker), Wilmersdorfer Witwen (Widows in Wilmersdorf), Die nächste Generation (The Next Generation), Die Alleinerziehende (The Single Mother), Der Aussteiger (The Dropout)
* 2001: Grenzgänger (Tightrope-walkers), Solisten (Nonconformists)
* 2004: Kinder! Kinder! (Children! Children!), Alte Freunde (Old Friends), Vereinigungen (Associations), Recht und Ordnung (Law and Order)
* 2009: Mütter und Töchter (Mothers and Daughters), Die Aussteiger (The Off-beats), Schön ist die Jugend... (Youth is Beautiful...), Die Köpcke-Bande (The Köpcke Gang), Der Yilmaz-Clan (The Yilmaz Clan)
* Denmark
* Årgang 0 (Generation 0) by TV2 (2000) – The show follows the children, born in the year 2000, from birth.
* Italy
* Intervista a mia madre (Interview to my mother) (2000) and Le cose belle (The beautiful things) (2014) by Agostino Ferrente and Giovanni Piperno: the documentaries show two periods in the life of a group of teenagers living in Naples.
* Japan
* Kimiko Fukuda made a series following thirteen children living in different parts of Japan:
* Sekai no 7 sai Nippon (World 7 years in Japan,7 Up Japan)(1992)
* 14 sai ni narimashita Kodomotachi 7nen gotono seicho kiroku (I turned 14 Growth records every 7 years,14 Up Japan)(1999)
* 7nen goto no seicho kiroku 21sai Kazoku soshite watashi (Growth records every 7 years 21 Family and me,21 Up Japan) (2006)
* 7nen goto no seicho kiroku 28sai ni narimashista(Growth records every 7 years I turned 28 ,28 Up Japan) (2013)
* 7nen goto no seicho kiroku 35sai ni narimashista(Growth records every 7 years I turned 35 ,35 Up Japan) (2020)
* Joe, Tomorrow (2015), by Junji Sakamoto, follows the life of boxer Joichiro Tatsuyoshi.
* Latvia
* Ivars Seleckis film series following the lives of five different children.
* To Be Continued (2018)
* To be continued. Teenhood. (2024)
* The Netherlands
* Bijna volwassen (Almost Grown-up) (1982) – follows a group of 17–18-year-olds.
* Bijna 30 (Almost 30) (1994)
* Bijna 40 (Almost 40) (2005)
* South Africa – by Angus Gibson
* 7 Up in South Africa (1992)
* 14 Up in South Africa (1999)
* 21 Up South Africa (2006)
* 28 Up South Africa (2013)
* Spain
* Generació D by TV3 (1989–2019, ongoing). About a group of children from Catalonia.
* Sweden
* Jordbrosviten by Rainer Hartleb. About a group of children from Jordbro, a suburb of Stockholm.[49]
* Från en barndomsvärld (From a Childhood World) (1973)
* Barnen från Jordbro (Children from Jordbro) (1982)
* Tillbaka till Jordbro (Jordbro Revisited) (1988)
* Det var en gång... en liten flicka (Once Upon a Time... there was a Little Girl) (1992)
* En pizza i Jordbro (A Pizza in Jordbro) (1994)
* Nya barn i Jordbro (New Children in Jordbro) (2001)
* Alla mår bra (All are doing Well) (2006)
* Student 92 by Gunilla Nilars. About a group of high school graduates of '92, class of E3b from Gångsätra gymnasium in Lidingö, interviewed every five years for a total of twenty years.[50]
* Student 92...men sen då? (High school graduate of '92...and then what?) (1997)
* Student 92, tio år senare (High school graduate of '92, ten years later) (2002)
* Student 92, femton år senare (High school graduate of '92, fifteen years later) (2007)
* Student 92, tjugo år senare (High school graduate of '92, twenty years later) (2012)
* USSR/Russia/Former Soviet republics – by Sergei Miroshnichenko and Jemma Jupp.
* Age 7 in the USSR (1991)
* 14 Up Born in the USSR (1998) (this won an International Emmy)
* Born in the USSR: 21 Up (2005)
* Born in the USSR: 28 Up (2012)
* United Kingdom
* A new version of the Up series titled Up New Generation began with 7Up 2000 (2000, Julian Farino) and continued with 14 Up 2000 in 2007, 21 Up: New Generation in 2014 and 28 Up: Millennium Generation in 2021.
* Child of Our Time (2000–2020), a BBC/The Open University documentary series following the lives of 25 children who were born around the turn of the millennium
* Born to be Different, a Channel 4 documentary series which follows six children who were born with a disability
* United States
* Age 7 in America (1991) directed by Phil Joanou, produced by Michael Apted
* 14 Up in America (1998)
* 21 Up in America (2006) directed by Christopher Dillon Quinn
* All's Well and Fair (2012) directed by Luci Westphal. Released as a web series in 2012.[51] All's Well And Fair at IMDb
* Married in America (2002), also by Michael Apted
* Married in America 2 (2007), also by Michael Apted

## See also

[edit]

* "Springfield Up", an 18th season episode of The Simpsons that parodies the Up series
* Boyhood, an American drama film shot over twelve years as its young actor aged from 6 to 18 years
* Anna: 6-18, a filmmaker in the USSR interviews his daughter once a year while she grows up in a changing country
* Dunedin Multidisciplinary Health and Development Study, a University of Otago research project since 1972
* British birth cohort studies continuing, multi-disciplinary longitudinal surveys monitoring the development of babies born in the UK during specific weeks
* The Truman Show, 1998 film

## References

[edit]

1. ^ 28 Up, 42 Up and 49 Up premiered in 2 parts each, and 56 Up and 63 Up in 3 parts each, making a total of 16 parts.
2. ^ Ebert, Roger. "Ten Greatest Films of All Time". Roger Ebert's Journal.
3. ^ a b c d Adams, Tim (9 June 2019). "If the magisterial 63 Up teaches us anything, it's that we are sustained by love". The Observer. The Guardian. Retrieved 30 August 2023.
4. ^ a b c d e f Radio Times Staff (14 May 2012). "56 Up: Michael Apted on the Documentary Series that's Spanned Five Decades". RadioTimes. Retrieved 2 December 2019. "It all began in 1964 with Seven Up!, a one-off edition of Granada Television's World in Action, which was directed by a Canadian, Paul Almond, but shaped by a fresh-faced young researcher, a middle-class Cambridge graduate called Michael Apted. / "It was Paul's film", says Apted now, "but he was more interested in making a beautiful film about being seven, whereas I wanted to make a nasty piece of work about these kids who have it all, and these other kids who have nothing". / A pause. [Michael Apted continues.] "But maybe I'm deluding myself. They might think, 'Oh good, someone new. We're fed up with grumpy old Michael.'" / Certainly, the relationship has had its ups and downs. Several of the original 14 have withdrawn from one or more of the films and one, Charles Furneaux, opted out completely after 21 Up. "He's now a documentary film-maker himself [he was executive producer of Touching the Void], which I find particularly hard to swallow", says Apted. / "He actually tried to get himself removed from the earlier films, too, but he's integral to the famous 'posh boys three' shot [the prep school boys interviewed together in Seven Up!] and Granada told him to take a flying jump."
5. ^ Centre, ITV Press (22 May 2019). "Confirmed: 63 Up starts Tuesday 4 June at 9pm on ITV". "ITV's landmark documentary Up series began in 1964, following a group of people drawn from startlingly different backgrounds who have allowed television cameras to drop into their lives at seven-year intervals ever since."[better source needed]
6. ^ Mangan, Lucy (4 June 2019). "63 Up review – documentary marvel makes all other reality TV look trivial". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 18 August 2020.
7. ^ "7 Up & Me Episode 1". Press Centre. Retrieved 4 June 2019.
8. ^ "The "Up Series" at 56". On the Media. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
9. ^ Dagan, Carmel (8 January 2021). "Michael Apted, Director of 'Coal Miner's Daughter' and 'Up' Series of Documentaries, Dies at 79". Variety. Retrieved 8 January 2021.
10. ^ "Future of groundbreaking documentary series 70 Up confirmed after creator dies". The Irish Sun. 2 July 2025.
11. ^ Fox, Margalit (15 April 2015). "Paul Almond, the Director of 'Seven Up!,' Dies at 83". The New York Times. Retrieved 16 April 2015.
12. ^ Kramer, Gary (22 November 2019). "Interview: Michael Apted on 63 Up and the Changing Face of a Nation". Slant Magazine. Retrieved 10 January 2021.
13. ^ This is spoken of as being based on a quotation by Francis Xavier, see the wikiquote article on Children.
14. ^ "Apted: '7 Up should have had more girls'". BBC News. 9 May 2012.
15. ^ Pedersen, Susan (2 November 2020). "A Thing or Two About Life". The Nation. Retrieved 4 November 2020.
16. ^ "56 Up: Michael Apted on the documentary series that's spanned five decades". Radio Times. 14 May 2012. Retrieved 8 August 2012.
17. ^ Pearson, Allison (16 May 2012). "Seven Up!: A tale of two Englands that, shamefully, still exist". The Daily Telegraph. London. Retrieved 8 August 2012.
18. ^ "Barristers' Chambers : John Brisby QC". 4 Stone Buildings. Retrieved 27 March 2010.
19. ^ "In Memoriam: Sir Donald Logan". Friends of Bulgaria. Retrieved 13 June 2012.
20. ^ Mariana Parvanova (25 March 2010). "Todor Burmow und seine Nachkommen" [Todor Burmov and his descendants] (in German). BNR. Retrieved 13 June 2012.
21. ^ "When is 63 Up on TV? What's it about? Which members of the original line-up are taking part?". Radio Times. 5 June 2019. Retrieved 5 June 2019.
22. ^ a b c d Moss, Stephen (7 May 2012). "56 Up: 'It's like having another family'". The Guardian. Retrieved 9 January 2021.
23. ^ What's on TV. "56 Up". IPC MEDIA. Retrieved 23 June 2012.
24. ^ a b "Library opened in memory of Lynn Johnson". St. Saviour's School. Archived from the original on 27 April 2020. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
25. ^ a b c Hitchon, Andrew. "Obituary for Professor William Nicholas Guy Hitchon". Ryan Funeral Homes. Retrieved 5 August 2023.
26. ^ "Electrical & Computer Engineering Department People: Hitchon, William N." University of Wisconsin–Madison. Retrieved 3 October 2019.
27. ^ "Not My Job: We Quiz A Member of The '7 Up' Series About The Number 8". National Public Radio. Retrieved 1 April 2015.
28. ^ Hitchon, Andrew (27 August 2023). "Nick Hitchon obituary". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 29 August 2023.
29. ^ "The Good Intentions". Retrieved 4 May 2009.
30. ^ a b c d Simpson, Dave (3 June 2019). "'I see my life as a failure' – the amazing rebirths of Seven Up star Neil Hughes". The Guardian. Retrieved 9 January 2021.
31. ^ Minors, Michael; Grenham, Dennis (1998). London Borough Council Elections 7 May 1998 (PDF). London Research Centre. ISBN 1-85261-276-2. Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 October 2016. Retrieved 26 June 2019.
32. ^ Minors, Michael; Grenham, Dennis. London Borough Council Elections 2 May 2002 (PDF). Greater London Authority.
33. ^ "Councillors for Eden District - Neil Hughes". Eden District Council. Retrieved 4 May 2009.
34. ^ "Shap Ward". Local Elections Archive Project. Retrieved 26 June 2019.
35. ^ "Eden Lakes Division". Local Elections Archive Project. Retrieved 26 June 2019.
36. ^ "Eden Lakes Division". Local Elections Archive Project. Retrieved 26 June 2019.
37. ^ "Local Election Results 2015 - Eden". Local Elections Archive Project. Retrieved 26 June 2019.
38. ^ "Election 2005 - Result: Stockton North". BBC News. Retrieved 1 December 2021.
39. ^ "Election 2010, Carlisle". BBC News. Archived from the original on 10 May 2010. Retrieved 1 April 2015.
40. ^ a b Ebert, Roger. "The Up Documentaries Movie Review (1985) | Roger Ebert". www.rogerebert.com.
41. ^ a b Ebert, Roger (interviewer) & Michael Apted (interviewed) (1 June 2006). Roger Ebert Discusses the Up Series with Director Michael Apted (Streaming video). Chicago, IL: Ebert & Roper. Event occurs at Timestamp not given. Archived from the original on 12 December 2021. Retrieved 4 December 2019 - via youtube.com.[full citation needed]
42. ^ "Institutional Award: Michael Apted's 'Up' Series". www.peabodyawards.com.
43. ^ "BFI | Features | TV 100 List of Lists". 11 September 2011. Archived from the original on 11 September 2011.
44. ^ Dunier, Mitchell (2009). "Michael Apted's Up! series: Public sociology or folk psychology through film?". Ethnography. 10 (3): 341–45\. doi:10.1177/1466138109342832. S2CID 145398738.
45. ^ Apted, Michael (2009). "Michael Apted Responds". Ethnography. 10 (3): 359–67\. doi:10.1177/1466138109342835. S2CID 220718991.
46. ^ "The story behind TV's longest-running documentary series, Up". Royal Television Society. 13 June 2019.
47. ^ Mead, Rebecca (9 January 2013). "What "56 Up" Reveals". The New Yorker - via www.newyorker.com.
48. ^ "The Late Show - 7 Up". ABC TV. Archived from the original on 12 December 2021. Retrieved 24 December 2019.
49. ^ Kellberg, Christina; Karlsson, Thomas (5 November 2006). "Alla har vuxit upp" [Everyone has grown up] (in Swedish). Dagens Nyheter. Archived from the original on 24 September 2010. Retrieved 19 April 2020.
50. ^ "Hur gick det sen för studenterna?" [What became of the high school graduates?] (in Swedish). Sveriges Television. 2012. Archived from the original on 19 May 2012. Retrieved 19 April 2020.
51. ^ "All's Well and Fair".

## Further reading

[edit]

* Apted, Michael (1999). Singer, Bennett (ed.). 7 Up. London: Heinemann. ISBN 9780434007479.
* Bruzzi, Stella (2007). Seven Up. London: British Film Institute. ISBN 978-1844571963.
* Lewis-Kraus, Gideon (27 November 2019). "Does Who You Are at 7 Determine Who You Are at 63?". The New York Times Magazine.

## External links

[edit]

* Seven Up! at IMDb
* 7 Plus Seven at IMDb
* 21 Up at IMDb
* 28 Up at IMDb
* 35 Up at IMDb
* 42 Up at IMDb
* 49 Up at IMDb
* 56 Up at IMDb
* 7 Up & Me at IMDb
* 63 Up at IMDb
* Charles Furneaux at IMDb
* Tony Walker at IMDb
* P.O.V. 49 Up \- PBS's site dedicated to the film
* 63 Up website

* v
* t
* e

BAFTA Award for Best Documentary

1948–1989|

* Louisiana Story (1948)
* Daybreak in Udi (1949)
* The Undefeated (1950)
* Beaver Valley (1951)
* Royal Journey (1952)
* The Conquest of Everest (1953)
* The Great Adventure (Det Stora äventyret) (1954)
* The Vanishing Prairie (1955)
* On the Bowery (1956)
* Journey into Spring (1957)
* Glass (Glas) (1958)
* The Savage Eye (1959)
* Dispute (1960)
* Volcano (Le Rendezvous du diable) (1961)
* Four Line Conics (1962)
* Individual Honour (1963)
* Nobody Waved Good-bye (1964)
* Tokyo Olympiad (1965)
* Goal! The World Cup (1966)
* To Die in Madrid (1967)
* In Need of Special Care (1968)
* Prologue (1969)
* Sad Song of Yellow Skin (1970)
* The Hellstrom Chronicle (1971)
* Cutting Oils and Fluids (1972)
* Grierson (1973)
* Cree Hunters of Mistassini (1974)
* The Early Americans (1975)
* The Canadians (Los Canadienses) (1976)
* No Award (1977)
* The Silent Witness (1978)
* The Tree of Wooden Clogs (1979)
* No Award (1980)
* Soldier Girls (1981)
* Burden of Dreams (1982)
* Schindler (1983)
* 28 Up (1984)
* Leonard Bernstein's West Side Story (1985)
* Shoah (1986)
* Baka – People of the Rainforest (1987)
* Death on the Rock (1988)
* Four Hours in My Lai (1989)

2005|

* The Orphans of Nkandla (2005)

2011–present|

* Senna (2011)
* Searching for Sugar Man (2012)
* The Act of Killing (2013)
* Citizenfour (2014)
* Amy (2015)
* 13th (2016)
* I Am Not Your Negro (2017)
* Free Solo (2018)
* For Sama (2019)
* My Octopus Teacher (2020)
* Summer of Soul (...Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) (2021)
* Navalny (2022)
* 20 Days in Mariupol (2023)
* Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story (2024)

* Between 1990–2012, the documentaries continued to be honoured at the British Academy Television Awards.

* v
* t
* e

International Emmy Award for Outstanding Documentary

1960s|

* Big Deal at Gothenburg (1967)
* La Section Anderson (1968)
* The Last Campaign of Robert Kennedy (1969)

1970s|

* No Awards (1970–1978)
* Secret Hospital (1979)

1980s|

* Fighting Back (1980)
* Charter pour l'enfer (1981)
* Is There One Who Understands Me?: The World of James Joyce (1982)
* The Miracle of Life (1983)
* Heart of the Dragon (1984)
* 28 Up (1985)
* Chasing a Rainbow: The Life of Josephine Baker (1986)
* The Sword of Islam (1987)
* The Last Seven Months of Anne Frank (1988)
* Four Hours in My Lai (1989)

1990s|

* J'ai Douze Ans et Je Fais la Guerre (1990)
* Cambodia: The Betrayal (1991)
* To Sell a War (1992)
* Disappearing World: We Are All Neighbours / Monika and Jonas – the Face of the Informer State (1993)
* Life in the Freezer: The Big Freeze (1994)
* Anne Frank Remembered / Contre L'Oubli (1995)
* The Pelican of Ramzan the Red / People's Century / The Saga of Life: The Unknown World (1996)
* Gerrie & Louise (1997)
* Exile in Sarajevo (1998)
* 14 Up Born in the USSR / Just Like Anyone Else (1999)

2000s|

* Kapo (2000)
* Welcome to North Korea (2001)
* The Power of Good: Nicholas Winton (2002)
* Das Leben geht weiter (2003)
* The Boy Whose Skin Fell Off (2004)
* Das Drama von Dresden (2005)
* Hiroshima: BBC History of World War II (2006)
* Stephen Fry: The Secret Life of the Manic Depressive (2007)
* The Beckoning Silence (2008)
* The Ascent of Money (2009)

2010s|

* Mom and the Red Bean Cake (2010)
* Life with Murder (2011)
* Terry Pratchett: Choosing to Die (2012)
* 5 Broken Cameras (2013)
* No Burqas Behind Bars (2014)
* Miners Shot Down (2015)
* Krieg der Lügen (2016)
* Exodus: Our Journey to Europe (2017)
* Goodbye Aleppo (2018)
* Bellingcat: Truth in a Post-Truth World (2019)

2020s|

* For Sama (2020)
* Hope Frozen: A Quest to Live Twice (2021)
* Iraq's Lost Generation (2022)
* Mariupol: The People’s Story (2023)
* Otto Baxter: Not a F**ing Horror Story (2024)

* v
* t
* e

Satellite Award for Best Documentary Film

* 4 Little Girls (1997)
* Ayn Rand: A Sense of Life (1998)
* Buena Vista Social Club (1999)
* Reckless Indifference (2000)
* In Cane for Life (A Vida em Cana) (2001)
* The Kid Stays in the Picture (2002)
* Amandla!: A Revolution in Four-Part Harmony (2003)
* Super Size Me (2004)
* Mad Hot Ballroom (2005)
* Deliver Us from Evil (2006)
* Sicko (2007)
* Anita O'Day: The Life of a Jazz Singer / Man on Wire (2008)
* Every Little Step (2009)
* Restrepo (2010)
* Senna (2011)
* Chasing Ice (2012)
* Blackfish (2013)
* Citizenfour (2014)
* Amy / The Look of Silence (2015)
* 13th (2016)
* Chasing Coral (2017)
* Minding the Gap (2018)
* 63 Up (2019)
* Collective (2020)
* Summer of Soul (...Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) (2021)
* Fire of Love (2022)
* Bad Press (2023)
* Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story (2024)

* v
* t
* e

Works directed by Michael Apted

Feature films|

* The Triple Echo (1972)
* Stardust (1974)
* Trick or Treat (1975, unfinished)
* The Squeeze (1977)
* Agatha (1979)
* Coal Miner's Daughter (1980)
* Continental Divide (1981)
* Gorky Park (1983)
* Firstborn (1984)
* Critical Condition (1987)
* Gorillas in the Mist (1988)
* Class Action (1991)
* Thunderheart (1992)
* Blink (1993)
* Nell (1994)
* Extreme Measures (1996)
* The World Is Not Enough (1999)
* Enigma (2001)
* Enough (2002)
* Amazing Grace (2006)
* The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (2010)
* Chasing Mavericks (2012)
* Unlocked (2017)

Documentary films|

* Bring On the Night (1985)
* Incident at Oglala (1992)
* Moving the Mountain (1994)
* Inspirations (1997)
* Me & Isaac Newton (1999)
* The Power of the Game (2007)

Television|

* There's a Hole in Your Dustbin, Delilah (1968)
* P'tang, Yang, Kipperbang (1982)
* Always Outnumbered (1998)

| Documentaries|

* Up series (1970–2019)
* Married in America (2002–06)

|

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