Waris Hussein

Born in Lucknow, India, 'Waris Hussein' (qv) moved to England at age nine with his parents. He later attended Cambridge and at 21 started as a trainee director with BBC, where his mother, the late Attia Hussein, worked. In addition to reading news in Hindi, she was also the station's dramatic star--translating 'William Shakespeare' (qv) in Urdu and Hindi--as well as an author. Young Hussein, too, was influenced by his mother's artistic abilities and knew very early on that he wanted to be a director. After starting in television with work on _Doctor Who (1963)_ (qv) (including directing the very first episode, _Doctor Who: An Unearthly Child (1963)_ (qv)), Hussein moved on to film, directing such legends as Lord 'Laurence Olivier' (qv), 'Bette Davis' (qv) and 'Joan Plowright' (qv).While considering himself a British filmmaker, Hussein has worked both sides of the Atlantic, as well as in the country of his birth, India.::Mike Konczewski (qv's & corrections by A. Nonymous)