Tributes paid to television director Gareth Carrivick

Published Friday 19 March 2010 at 11:42 by Matthew Hemley

Tributes have been paid to prolific television director Gareth Carrivick, whose credits included The Smoking Room and Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps and who died earlier this week.

The director, who had been battling leukaemia, worked on a number of BBC projects, including Jonathan Harvey’s Beautiful People and The Vicar of Dibley.

Harvey, writing on his Facebook page today, said: “Gareth directed the first series of Beautiful People and made the show the success it was. He always fought for my writing, and we had such a laugh together.”

Meanwhile, Micheal Jacob, creative head of the BBC’s College of Comedy, who executive produced The Smoking Room, said: “Gareth was the all-round director. He had a strong visual sense, an acute eye for how scripts could be improved, and an affection for actors, which didn’t prevent him asserting his authority when the occasion arose.”

Jacob added that Carrivick “had the great knack of making every shoot a happy shoot”.

“Knowing that I would be seeing him on location or in the gallery made it a day to look forward to,” he added.