Biography
Peter Rogers was born in Rochester, Kent, on February 20, 1914. He was educated at Kings School, Rochester, and began his career as a journalist for the "Kentish Express." In the late 1930s, he transitioned to theatre, serving as assistant to Auriol Lee on West End productions such as J.B. Priestley's "People at Sea" and John Van Druten's "Gertie Maud." After his theatre work, he returned to Fleet Street to work on "Picture Post." Following a period of hospitalization during the war, Peter became a radio scriptwriter for the BBC. He entered the film industry as a scriptwriter in 1942 and joined the production executive committee of J. Arthur Rank's Religious Films Ltd. In 1946, he became an assistant scenario editor at Rank-controlled Gainsborough Studios in Shepherds Bush, where he met his future wife, Betty E. Box, O.B.E., one of Britain's leading producers. Together, they co-produced early films such as Marry Me (1949) and Don't Ever Leave Me (1949). When Rank consolidated its operations in the late 1940s and shifted production to Pinewood Studios in Buckinghamshire, Peter Rogers and Betty Box continued their successful collaboration, producing films like "Venetian Bird" and the Channel Islands wartime comedy Island Rescue (1951). Peter later focused on children's films, combining his flair for entertainment with his love of animals. These included The Gay Dog (1954), Circus Friends (1956), and The Dog and the Diamonds (1953), which won the Venice Film Festival Award in 1953. In 1957, he wrote and produced the highly successful suspense film Time Lock. Peter Rogers produced Carry on Sergeant (1958), unknowingly laying the foundation for what would become Britain's most beloved comedy series. In addition to producing 30 subsequent "Carry On" films, he brought the "Carry On" humor to the stage with "Carry On London!" at the Victoria Palace in 1973, which ran for 18 months. Over his career, he produced more than 100 films. Recently, Peter returned to writing, publishing several novels including "Forbidden" (2001), and worked on numerous screenplays for film and radio plays.
