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John Power

1930 – 2016

Australian film and television director

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About John Power

Lived 1930 – 2016 (aged 85–86). John Power was an Australian film director, journalist, television director, screenwriter and director.

John Beresford Power (20 November 1930 – February 2016) was an Australian film and television director, who began his career as a journalist.

Early life and journalism career Power was born in Maitland, New South Wales. His older brother was Dave Power, a long-distance runner who won medals at the Olympics and Commonwealth Games. After leaving school, he joined the Maitland Mercury as a cadet journalist, later moving to Sydney to work for The Daily Telegraph and The Daily Mirror. He was a political journalist in Canberra at the time of the Australian Labor Party split of 1955, events which he would later cover in the documentary film Like a Summer Storm.

Awards Power won the AFI Award for Best Direction for the 1974 TV docudrama Billy and Percy.

Select filmography The Other Side of Innocence (1972) (documentary) - director Like a Summer Storm (1972) (TV movie) - director, writer, producer What did you do at school today? (1974) (documentary short) - director Escape from Singapore (1974) (TV movie) - director, writer, producer Billy and Percy (1974) (TV movie) - director, writer, producer They Don't Clap Losers (1975) (TV movie) - director, writer, producer The Picture Show Man (1977) - director The Sound of Love (1978) (TV movie) - director, writer A Single Life (1986) (TV movie) The Dismissal (1983) (TV miniseries) - director The Great Gold Swindle (1984) - director Special Squad (1984) (TV Series) - director Return to Eden (1986) (TV series) - director A Single Life (1986) - director, writer Alice to Nowhere (1986) (TV miniseries) - director Willing and Abel (1987) (TV series) - director Mike Willesee's Australians (1988) (TV series) - director episode "Clyde Fenton" The Dirtwater Dynasty (1988) (TV miniseries) - director Tanamera - Lion of Singapore (1989) (TV miniseries) - director Father (1990) - director Sky Trackers (1990) (TV movie) - director All the Rivers Run 2 (1990) (TV miniseries) - director Charles and Diana: Unhappily Ever After (1992) (TV movie) - director The Tommyknockers (1993) (TV miniseries) - director Someone Else's Child (1994) (TV movie) - director Betrayed by Love (1994) (TV movie) - director Fatal Vows: The Alexandra O'Hara Story (1994) (TV movie) - director A Child is Missing (1995) (TV movie) - director Heart of Fire (1997) (TV movie) - director Goldrush: A Real Life Alaskan Adventure (1998) (TV movie) - director

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Important facts

Birth century
Died
2016, Woollahra
Nationality
Awards
AACTA Award for Best Direction
Also known as
John Beresford Power, John Power (director)

People in John Power's life

Named in this biography and alive at the same time

Contemporaries

People whose lives overlapped John Power's

Frequently asked questions

Who was John Power?

Australian film and television director (1930-2016)

When was John Power born?

John Power was born on 20 November 1930 in Maitland.

When did John Power die?

John Power died in 2016 in Woollahra.

What was John Power's occupation?

John Power was a film director, journalist, television director, screenwriter and director.

What nationality was John Power?

John Power was Australian.

Sources & further reading

· Wikipedia: John Power

· Wikidata: Q3182311

· DBpedia: John Power (director)

Cite this page

APA: Biography.guide. (2026). John Power. https://biography.guide/john-power-film-director/

MLA: "John Power." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/john-power-film-director/.

Chicago: "John Power." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/john-power-film-director/.

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