Phil Collinson

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Television producer Phil Collinson wanted to be an actor before becoming one of England's most successful talents behind the camera. After attending drama school, he auditioned for the role of Alexander on the breakthrough Channel 4 show "Queer as Folk"; his friend, the creator/writer for the show Russell T. Davies, wrote the role for him. But Collinson's audition went poorly, and he lost the job to actor Antony Cotton. Acting, it seemed, was not to be his creative path after all. In the aftermath of this realization, he landed a job at Granada Television Studios as a script editor and writer on the soap opera "Emmerdale" and the medical drama "Peak Practice." He also got his first directing credit on the latter program. In 2004, he became a producer on the paranormal mystery show "Sea of Souls." He is best known, though, for hopping aboard as a producer on the revamped "Doctor Who" program that his friend Davies was steering into the 21st century. Long loved by science fiction fans, the show has become bigger than ever under Davies's tenure, and Collinson was an integral part of making sure the show did not lose its way. He left in 2007, partway through series three. Because of his ability to handle one of the BBC's most cherished programs, in 2010 he became the lead producer on Granada's long-running soap "Coronation Street," an appointment that proved controversial after several key actors were booted from the show under his tenure.