Bob Godfrey

Roland Frederick Godfrey MBE (27 May 1921 – 21 February 2013), known as Bob Godfrey, was an English animator whose career spanned more than fifty years. He is probably best known for the children's cartoon series Roobarb (1974–75), Noah and Nelly in... SkylArk (1976-77) and Henry's Cat (1983–95) and for the Trio chocolate biscuit advertisements shown in the UK during the early 1980s. However, he also produced a BAFTA and Academy award-winning short film Great (1975), a tongue-in-cheek biography of Isambard Kingdom Brunel. Further Academy Awards nominations received were for Kama Sutra Rides Again (1971), Dream Doll (1980), with Zlatko Grgic, and Small Talk (1994).

Godfrey was born in West Maitland, Australia, but his British parents returned to England while he was still a baby. He attended school in Ilford, Essex, and Leyton Art School. at first working at Lever Brothers as a graphic artist during the 1930s. During World War II he served as a Royal Marine and was involved in the D-Day landings.

He was taken on by the Larkins Studio in 1950 where he worked with Peter Sachs before leaving to set up Biographic with Keith Learner and Jeff Hale. Other members joined them later, including Nancy Hanna and Vera Linnecar in 1957. The company, set up to meet the demand for commercials for the new ITV, was responsible for the first animated commercial to be shown on the network. While still working at Larkins Godfrey made Big Parade (1952) and Watch the Birdie (1954), a film inspired by a painting by Paul Klee, both were filmed in the basement of his flat.

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