ABOUT ANDY
Andy Smythe
Andy has worked as a camera journalist/senior producer at the BBC for 20 years, telling stories about ordinary people in extraordinary circumstances. He shoots, produces and edits current affairs films and documentaries about issues facing under-served and overlooked communities across the world.
From investigating Chinese claims of ‘miracle’ stem cell cures, to uncovering the criminal deception of a bogus Zimbabwean solicitor and following the life of a mother of 15 children in northeast England, Andy's work explores
problems affecting society's most vulnerable groups, bringing them to a mass audience.
Andy was among the first at the BBC to be trained as a video journalist back in 2002. He was a producer/director at Inside Out in Newcastle-Upon-Tyne for a decade, before becoming a senior member of the BAFTA-winning team at Victoria Derbyshire on BBC2 in London, where his role was not only filmmaking, but also leading the team to produce a two-hour daily news programme.
Andy's greatest loves are storytelling, shooting and editing. In April 2019, he began working as a senior camera journalist for the BBC’s Europe team, visiting far-flung corners of the continent, making documentaries and long news films about issues that affect audiences in the UK including migration and the impact of Covid-19.
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Andy successfully pitched an idea for a prime-time BBC2 documentary series tackling the UK's school exclusions crisis. As a result he was also a shooting director on the series Don't Exclude Me (2021)
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A qualified drone pilot with an A2CofC licence, in 2021 he founded aerial photography, sports analysis and surveying company HoverSquad.co.uk with his brother Neil.
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Andy has made several high-end corporate films, managed projects and large budgets.
He is a father, a keen runner and his other interests include playing guitar, DJing and art.
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FILMOGRAPHY
THE STRANGER WHO
SAVED MY LIFE
BBC2 2019
In March 2017, Liv Pontin tried to kill herself in front of a train. The driver stopped and talked her out of it. I found the driver and re-united them for the first time since that night. This is what happened when they met.
INSIDE A PRU
BBC2 2018
For the first time in British TV history, I negotiated access for a live broadcast from a pupil referral unit for excluded primary school children. This film shows how teachers at Hawkswood PRU deal with challenging behaviour and prepare children for mainstream school again.
BOSNIA'S
MIGRANT CRISIS
BBC 2019
Bosnia has become a bottleneck for thousands of migrants, the new entry point into the EU. We investigate and find thousands of migrants sleeping rough and a government which can't cope with the influx.
RISE OF THE FAR RIGHT
IN EUROPE
BBC 2019
Across Europe, the far right is on the rise. This documentary for the BBC investigates why, meeting controversial movements at the forefront of a changing continent and asking if their politics are fuelling extremism.
THE GEORDIE SYMPHONY SCHOOL
BBC4 2015
Produced/directed 30-minute documentary. One of England's poorest schools is the site of an ambitious social experiment. Can classical music change the fortunes of an entire community in Newcastle's west end?
WAS MY DAD A PAEDOPHILE?
BBC2 2019
Paedophile hunter groups and their social media 'stings' are notorious. But we've uncovered a string of suicides, because of their methods. Is this justice? And what about families left behind, who'll never have their questions answered?