David Lean David Lean Sir David Lean (25 March 190816 April 1991) was an English film director, producer, screenwriter and editor, responsible for large-scale epics such as "The Bridge on the River Kwai" (1957), "Lawrence of Arabia" (1962), "Doctor Zhivago" (1965) and "A Passage to India" (1984). He also directed adaptations of Charles Dickens novels "Great Expectations" (1946) and "Oliver Twist" (1948), and the romantic drama "Brief Encounter" (1945). Originally a film editor in the early 1930s, Lean made his directorial debut with 1942's "In Which We Serve", which was the first of four collaborations with Noël Coward. Beginning with "Summertime" in
Peggy Ashcroft King's Gold Medal, Norway (1955), and the Order of St Olav, Norway (Commander, 1976). She was awarded honorary degrees by eight universities and was an honorary fellow of St Hugh's College, Oxford. In addition to the Oscar and BAFTA awards mentioned above, she received a Venice Film Festival Award for "She's Been Away" (1989), a BAFTA Award for the television play "Caught on a Train" (1980), a special award from the British Theatre Association for the television play "Cream in My Coffee" (1982), a special award from BAFTA (1990) and a special Laurence Olivier Award (1991). Ashcroft is commemorated with