Biography
Brendan Foley is an Irish writer, film producer, and director.
Raised in Belfast, Northern Ireland, he has written feature scripts for companies across the UK, USA, Canada, South Africa, and Thailand. In 2005, he wrote and produced the thriller Johnny Was, featuring Vinnie Jones, Eriq La Salle, and Patrick Bergin. The film received multiple awards, including Audience Awards and Best Feature Awards at six film festivals.
In 2006, he wrote, produced, and directed The Riddle (2007), starring Derek Jacobi, Vinnie Jones, and Vanessa Redgrave. In September 2007, The Riddle became the first feature film worldwide to premiere on DVD via a national newspaper. The UK's Mail on Sunday acquired the UK DVD rights and distributed 2.6 million copies, making it one of the most widely viewed independent films in the UK.
During 2006-2007, Foley wrote and directed Legend of the Bog, a satirical horror film set in rural Ireland, starring Vinnie Jones, Jason Barry (Titanic), and Nora Jane Noone (The Descent). The film was released on DVD in the USA by Lionsgate in 2009. He later co-created and wrote for Shelldon, a children's environmental animated series on NBC in 2010.
Foley has authored books for US and UK publishers, and his journalism spans feature assignments in 55 countries, covering topics such as people, business, and conflict. His reporting has ranged from bomb disposal operations in Angola, West Africa, to the cleanup efforts following the Exxon Valdez oil spill in Alaska.
His book Under The Wire, a World War II POW escape story co-written with its subject William Ash, was published by St Martin's Press in New York and Transworld Publishing, Random House, London, in 2005 (hardback) and 2006 (UK paperback). The book became a bestseller, topping Amazon UK's World War II and Biography charts upon release.
He is a member of the Writers Guild (GB), a Fellow of the British Association of Communicators in Business, and was honored with lifetime membership in the National Union of Journalists in June 2006.
