Peter Yates

Having seen Robbery (1967) and Bullitt (1968), it comes as no surprise that Peter Yates started out as a professional racing car driver and team manager - albeit briefly - before turning his attention to film. The son of a military man, he was educated at Charterhouse School and trained at RADA, gaining his first experience as an actor with local repertory companies. In the early 1950's, he worked as a dubbing assistant, cutter, stage manager and theatre director (Royal Court), eventually graduating to assistant director on The Inn of the Sixth Happiness (1958). He cut his teeth, directing many episodes of The Saint (1962) and Secret Agent (1964) for television, before helming his first feature film, the musical Summer Holiday (1963). "Summer Holiday" did nothing for his career. However, the exhilarating car chase through the streets of London - staged for his next film, "Robbery" - so impressed Steve McQueen that he requested Yates to direct him in "Bullitt". The rest is history: for