British composer George Fenton has died in London at 76. He received five Academy Award nominations for film scores and also wrote music for BBC documentaries including The Blue Planet, Planet Earth and Frozen Planet.
Fenton’s family announced his death, which was also confirmed by his representatives at CMG Music. The family described it as unexpected but did not give a cause. He died in London on Monday, 5 October.
Fenton composed for more than 100 feature films as well as documentaries, theatre productions and television programmes. His best-known work includes Gandhi, Groundhog Day, Land and Freedom and The Fisher King. He also wrote music for several major David Attenborough documentary series: The Blue Planet, Planet Earth and Frozen Planet.
Fenton received five Academy Award nominations. His first was for the score to the 1982 film Gandhi, which he composed with Ravi Shankar. For Cry Freedom, he was nominated for both original score and its title song, co-written with Jonas Gwangwa. He also received nominations for Dangerous Liaisons and The Fisher King.
Fenton frequently worked with directors including Stephen Frears, Ken Loach, Richard Attenborough, Nora Ephron, Neil Jordan and Terry Gilliam. Beyond film, he composed theme music for BBC programmes, including news broadcasts and Newsnight. In 2023, he was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire for services to music.
His family’s statement named his wife Amanda, former wife Jane, daughters Gemma, Grace and Bridget, and six grandchildren. The cause of death has not been disclosed.