Adrian Biddle

• Born — 20 July 1952 • Birthplace — Woolwich, London, England • Died — 7 December 2005 • Place of death — London, England • Years Active — 1967–2005

Biddle was a talented swimmer in his youth, and because of that, the underwater photographer Egil Woxholt hired him to be his apprentice. Uncredited, he worked in this capacity on both the James Bond film On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969) and Murphy's War (1971). After this, Biddle worked for Ridley Scott's advertising company "R.S.A.", shooting many commercials, and when Scott began working on films, Biddle followed him, working as a clapper loader on The Duellists (1977), and as a focus puller on Alien (1979). He then returned working as a cinematographer on advertisements, where he developed some new lighting techniques and worked on several famous campaigns, most notably the 1984 ad for Apple, also directed by Scott. The advert's photography, along with a personal recommendation from Scott, prompted James Cameron to hire Biddle for Aliens (1986), after the original cinematographer Dick Bush left over creative differences. Biddle was a cinematographer on another 25 feature films, including Thelma & Louise (1991), which earned him a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Cinematography.

Biddle died at the age of 53 on December 7, 2005. His wife was driving him to shoot a commercial in Central London when he suffered a heart attack. He was survived by his wife Mo and his three children, Alice, Esther and Alfie, who is also a cinematographer. V for Vendetta, which he had finished filming, was dedicated to his memory.

Film • Year — Title — Director — Notes • 1986 — Aliens — James Cameron • 1987 — The Princess Bride — Rob Reiner • 1988 — Willow — Ron Howard • The Dawning — Robert Knights • 1989 — The Tall Guy — Mel Smith • 1991 — Thelma & Louise — Ridley Scott • 1992 — 1492: Conquest of Paradise • 1994 — City Slickers II: The Legend of Curly's Gold — Paul Weiland • 1995 — Judge Dredd — Danny Cannon • 1996 — 101 Dalmatians — Stephen Herek • 1997 — The Butcher Boy — Neil Jordan • Event Horizon — Paul W. S. Anderson • Fierce Creatures — Robert Young Fred Schepisi — With Ian Baker • 1998 — Holy Man — Stephen Herek • 1999 — The World Is Not Enough — Michael Apted • The Mummy — Stephen Sommers • 2000 — The Weight of Water — Kathryn Bigelow • 102 Dalmatians — Kevin Lima — With Roger Pratt • 2001 — The Mummy Returns — Stephen Sommers • 2002 — Reign of Fire — Rob Bowman • 2003 — Shanghai Knights — David Dobkin • 2004 — Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason — Beeban Kidron • Laws of Attraction — Peter Howitt • 2005 — An American Haunting — Courtney Solomon — Posthumous release • V for Vendetta — James McTeigue Television • Year — Title — Director — Notes • 1989 — Smith and Jones in Small Doses — Paul Weiland — Episode "Second Thoughts"