Biographie
Geoffrey, whose father was a print compositor, was educated at Berkhampstead School, where he excelled in sports, academics, and school plays. After completing his national service with the Royal Tank Regiment in Hong Kong, he enrolled at Exeter College in 1953 to study law, while also participating in college plays and revues. Although he aspired to an acting career, his parents disapproved. He married Gina Gurney and emigrated to Canada, working for ICI producing promotional films. In 1960, he founded Geoff Reeve Productions, producing and directing commercially sponsored documentary films worldwide. He later joined Carl Foreman’s Open Road Films as an associate producer. While seeking film rights to Daphne du Maurier’s works, he met author Alastair MacLean, who went on to write the screenplay for Geoffrey’s directorial debut, Puppet on a Chain. Geoffrey introduced MacLean to the Spanish Camargue, hoping he would write a thriller set there for adaptation into a film. This led to Caravan to Vaccares, which Geoffrey produced and directed. In 1984, he produced the television miniseries The Far Pavilions, and in 1987 began a long collaboration with Michael Caine, producing Half Moon Street, The Whistle Blower, Shadow Run, and serving as executive producer on Quick Sand. His first marriage was to actress Katharine Wightman, with whom he had two sons, Jim and Tom, both of whom worked in various roles on his films. His second marriage was to Jennifer Clare, a fashion photographic model, with whom he had a daughter, Emma Victoria, born in 1998.
