Brian Eastman

British producer Brian Eastman burst into television in the '80s as a full-fledged producer. Beginning with 14 episodes of "Father's Day" in 1983 Eastman followed with several episodes of the comedy series "Blott on the Landscape," "Porterhouse Blue," and "Forever Green." Following production of the dramatic miniseries "Traffik," about a British businessman accused of smuggling heroin, Eastman produced the Masterpiece Theatre series "Jeeves and Wooster," earning BAFTA TV nominations for both series. The five-part comedy series "Jeeves and Wooster," based on the work of P.G. Wodehouse, follows the archetypal butler and his hapless employer. Eastman also began producing the crime series "Agatha Christie's Poirot," about the refined and eccentric Belgian detective. producing 42 episodes from 1989 to 2001. The series was Eastman's longest run on television. In 1997 he received another BAFTA TV nomination, for the short-lived drama series "The Fragile Heart," directed by Patrick Lau. One of Eastman's greatest film successes came in 1993 with the romantic biopic "Shadowlands," starring Anthony Hopkins as C.S. Lewis and Debra Winger as Joy Gresham, his friend and wife. Directed by Richard Attenborough, and with a script written by William Nicholson, the film was nominated for two Oscars and won Eastman his first BAFTA for Best British Film. In 1997 Eastman produced Nicholson's directorial debut, "Firelight," a romantic period drama starring Sophie Marceau. Focusing on television in the '00s, Eastman began executive producing the sci-fi series "Tracker" and the gardener detective series "Rosemary & Thyme" from 2003 to 2006.