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Paul Wilmshurst

Paul Wilmshurst

Director, writer and producer

BAFTA Award nominee

Paul Wilmshurst is an Emmy-winning, BAFTA-nominated director, specializing in high-end TV drama, with a particular interest in challenging or provocative stories, and a background in documentary film-making. Most recently he has directed three episodes of the hit international thriller Day of the Jackal, starring Eddie Redmayne, Lashana Lynch and Ursula Corberó. He has also directed on a number of popular drama series including Belgravia - The Next Chapter, Criminal Record, The Last Kingdom, Jamestown, Indian Summers, Doctor Who, Strike Back, Da Vinci's Demons, Combat Kids, Law and Order UK and Silent Witness. He has written and directed award-winning one-off projects Hiroshima, Runaway and Forgiven, as well as making a variety of documentaries about gambling, politics, psychology, crime and history, including Mob Law, The Gambler and White Tribe. He sometimes works as a consultant for documentary projects. He also has a number of film projects in development. He lives in North London, when he is not away working.

Read more

Biography from IMDb.

Works as
Director, writer and producer
Titles
13 on MovieCove · 22 credits in all
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)Wikidata (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 155 days to Oct 26Up 13% in 30 days

What are Paul Wilmshurst's films like?

Across their 9 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Survival and Power.

Themes

share of theme weight
Survival
28%
Power
27%
Society
16%
Morality
12%
Self
9%
Bonds
8%
Violence2 titles, browse their movies with this themePower2 titles, browse their movies with this themeFamily bonds2 titles, browse their movies with this themeGrief2 titles, browse their movies with this themeClass2 titles, browse their movies with this themeCommunity2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Tense
7
Dread
4
Melancholic
3
Contemplative
4
Bittersweet
2
Other
6

How their films linger

Thought-provoking6 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteBittersweet4 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHaunting2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteUnsettling3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteWistful2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end · 1 with a twist

  • Bittersweet5
  • Ambiguous4

AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.

Where can I watch Paul Wilmshurst's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 11 of their 13 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on The Roku Channel (4).

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Paul Wilmshurst's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.

Filmography

22 credits, 13 with a MovieCove page.

  • The Day of the Jackal(2024)

    Show 3 episodes · Director

    Midcredits score: 92nd percentile of all shows

  • Belgravia: The Next Chapter(2024)

    Show 3 episodes · Director

    Midcredits score: 49th percentile of all shows

  • Massacre of the Mormons(2024)

    Show Producer

    Midcredits score: 32nd percentile of all shows

  • Investigating Diana: Death in Paris(2022)

    Show Producer

    Midcredits score: 36th percentile of all shows

  • Jamestown(2017)

    Show Director

    Midcredits score: 51st percentile of all shows

  • The Last Kingdom(2015)

    Show 3 episodes · Director

    Midcredits score: 98th percentile of all shows

  • A.D. The Bible Continues(2015)

    Show Director

    Midcredits score: 74th percentile of all shows

  • Indian Summers(2015)

    Show Director

    Midcredits score: 57th percentile of all shows

  • Doctor Who: Last Christmas (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2014)

    Director

  • Strike Back(2010)

    Show 6 episodes · Director

    Midcredits score: 90th percentile of all shows

  • Runaway (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2009)

    Show 3 episodes · Director · Creator · Writer

  • Forgiven (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2007)

    Director · Writer

  • Hiroshima(2005)

    Director · Producer · Writer

    Midcredits score: 95th percentile of all films

  • Hiroshima: The First Weapon of Mass Destruction (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2005)

    Show 1 episode · Director · Producer · Writer

  • Doctor Who(2005)

    Show 2 episodes · Director

    Midcredits score: 93rd percentile of all shows

  • Pissed on the Job (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2004)

    Director · Producer · Writer

  • Seven Wonders of the Industrial World (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2003)

    Show 1 episode · Director · Writer

  • The Gambler (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2000)

    Director

  • Sharpe: The Legend(1997)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 91st percentile of all films

  • All Mod Cons (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1997)

    Show 1 episode · Director

  • Silent Witness(1996)

    Show 2 episodes · Director

    Midcredits score: 87th percentile of all shows

  • Diceworld (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Director

Career shape

A full career of 17 titles, 16 of them dated from 1996 to 2024.

Highest rated

Hiroshima (2005)

Midcredits 95th

Most popular right now

The Day of the Jackal (2024)

By role

only this rolewith another role
Directing17 of 17: 11 only directing, 6 with another role · typical Midcredits score92ndWriting6 of 17: 0 only writing, 6 with another roleProducing3 of 17: 0 only producing, 3 with another roleOther crew1 of 17: 0 only other crew, 1 with another role

17 titles, 6 with more than one role — directing and writing overlap on 6 of them.

By decade

1990s3 · crew2000s8 · crew2010s3 · crew2020s2 · crew

Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored.

Awards

2 major nominations and no wins, 2004–2011.

  1. 2011
    • BAFTA Award, nominated · Best Drama
  2. 2004
    • BAFTA Award, nominated · Huw Wheldon Award for Factual Series or Strand

Major bodies only: the Oscars, Primetime Emmys, Golden Globes, BAFTAs and Screen Actors Guild Awards are named; Cannes, Venice, the Berlinale, Sundance, the directors', writers' and producers' guilds, the Grammys, Critics Choice and the Independent Spirit Awards count as other major bodies. Festival and regional prizes are not counted. Source: IMDb.

Is Paul Wilmshurst's work okay for kids?

Across a limited sample of up to 4 MovieCove titles with content scores.

Their medianMedian of all films
Sex & Nudity4 titlesmedian 48 · moderateMedian of all films: 32

Severity 0–100 from the Content Guide. Categories with under 10 votes on a title are not counted.

Who does Paul Wilmshurst work with?

People who share at least 2 of Paul Wilmshurst's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; John Alexander shares the most, 3.

Directors

Cinematographers and editors

Producers