Judy Craymer
| Judy Sarah Jarman Craymer | |
|---|---|
| Born |
October 26, 1957 London |
| Education |
Mount School, Mill Hill Guildhall School of Music and Drama |
| Occupation | Theatre Producer |
| Notable work | Mamma Mia! |
| Parent(s) | Leslie Craymer (d. 2000) and Betty (née Jarman) (d. 2002) |
| Awards | MBE (2007), FGS |
Mount School, Mill Hill
Judy Craymer MBE is an English creator and producer of musical theatre who has also worked extensively in the film, television and music industries. She is also the founder of Littlestar Services, Ltd. Craymer has achieved international popular success in musical theatre, in particular her work on Mamma Mia! which has been seen by more than 60 million people worldwide. Craymer was nominated for the 'Carl Foreman award for special achievement by a British director, writer or producer in their first feature film' at the 62nd British Academy Film Awards for the film version of Mamma Mia! She has been dubbed “the greatest showbiz impresario” of the first decade of the 21st century and has consequently been entered in Debrett’s.
Born in London in 1947, Judy Craymer graduated from the Guildhall School of Music in 1977. She worked as a stage manager for the Haymarket Theatre in Leicester, the Old Vic Theatre, London, on the original production of Cats for Cameron Mackintosh and for the Really Useful Theatre Company. In 1982 she became Tim Rice’s production assistant and went on to be executive producer for Chess.
In 1987, Craymer moved into film and television production. Her credits include White Mischief, starring Charles Dance and Greta Scacchi, and Neville’s Island, starring Martin Clunes and Timothy Spall. Craymer also produced various live comedy specials for Channel 4.
In 1999, Craymer returned to her working partnership with Benny Andersson and Bjorn Ulvaeus. She had been nurturing an idea for several years after working with them on Chess which was to become Mamma Mia! It took Craymer 10 years to persuade Andersson and Ulvaeus to give her the rights to the songs. Craymer’s inspiration for the musical was the song The Winner Takes It All.
“It's been said that, for a long time, the story of Mamma Mia! was the story of Judy Craymer and two blokes with beards who kept saying no,” Craymer told the Daily Mail, but they were impressed by the team Craymer had gathered around her to create the show; Phyllida Lloyd (a “cerebral director blessed with a popular touch”) and “highly savvy writer” Catherine Johnson. In 1996 Craymer formed Littlestar Services Ltd with Andersson and Ulvaeus to produce Mamma Mia!, which opened at the Prince Edward Theatre in London’s West End on April 6, 1999 and swiftly became a huge global success.
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