A BRIEF BIOGRAPHY OF A TV DIRECTOR AND SAILOR
Michael Edwin Briant
1942 Born Bournemouth UK to Eileen and 'Binns' Briant - Receptionist and Hotel Manger
1944 My sister Barbara appeared on the Scene
1945 Parents purchased Elbury Hotel, Maidenhead
1947 Winbury Prep school - Maidenhead
1954 Italia Conti Stage School - Archer Street - London W1 - Elf and Rainbow Child in Where the Rainbow Ends
1955 Lead - Crispian in - Where The Rainbow Ends at the Royal Festival Hall
1955-61 At Conti's, lots of acting, stage management, touring etc
1962 Joined BBC TV as an ASM in Drama Department
1964 Became a Production Assistant in BBC DRAMA SERIALS
1966 Directors Course at BBC - directed Z cars, the Newcomers etc
1970 Left BBC and became a freelance television director
1972 Purchased my first keel boat - 22 ft Galion and sailed to France
1972-82 Lots of telly, theatre and film direction including winning an Emmy for A Tale of Two Cities
1982 Started my own Film and Television production company - LINKED RING FILMS
1992 Directed various drama productions in the Netherlands - my function was really to teach the production company how to make drama in the British/BBC style. Taught at the film school, instigated the British system of making sitcoms and produced and directed several drama and situation comedies in Amsterdam.
1996 Sailed to the Mediterranean and cruised W-E for 4 years then the Canaries in between directing assignments in UK and Netherlands
1998 Crossed the Atlantic for the first time - more directing - Cruised up and down East coast USA and the ICW o the Chesapeake..
2000 Completed first independent documentary - Blue water Cruising
2001 Transited the Panama Canal into the Pacific Ocean
2002 Purchased a new 'old' home in La Rochelle France - Transited Asia, Indian Ocean, Red Sea, Suez and Med to Atlantic coast again.
2003 Completed my circumnavigation and arrived in Bambola to La Rochelle - France.
2004 Finished main post production work on 6 episodes of BLUE WATER DESTINATIONS
2005 Commenced internet shop selling all my books including French Canal Route books, Navicartes, Living Aboard Around the World.
2007 Introduced download sales for some publications.
2008 Moved to Saujon - Boat still in Les Minimes
