Peter Lord

Peter Lord (born Peter Duncan Fraser Lord on 4 November 1953 in Bristol, England) is a pioneering British animator, director and film producer best known for co‑founding Aardman Animations, the studio that brought the world the beloved clay‑animation duo Wallace & Gromit. After studying English at the University of York, he teamed up with school‑friend David Sproxton in the mid‑1970s to create a modest backyard studio, producing experimental shorts such as Down and Out (1977) and Confessions of a Foyer Girl (1978) for the BBC. Their first iconic character, Morph, debuted on television in 1977 and quickly became a cultural staple, appearing alongside presenter Tony Hart on programmes like Take Hart and later starring in his own series The Amazing Adventures of Morph. Lord’s commitment to painstaking stop‑motion techniques, combined with a playful sense of humour, helped define Aardman’s signature style, which later attracted the talents of Nick Park in 1985. Together they produced award‑winning shorts that culminated in feature‑length successes such as Chicken Run (2000), Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were‑Rabbit (2005), and The Pirates! In an Adventure with Scientists! (2012), the latter earning an Academy Award nomination for Best Animated Feature. Beyond his creative work, Lord has served as producer or executive producer on every Aardman project, ensuring a consistent vision across titles like Arthur Christmas and Flushed Away. His contributions to British culture have been recognised with a CBE (Commander of the Order of the British Empire) in 2006, the Freedom of the City of Bristol in the same year, and a Gold Blue Peter badge in 2015. He has also shared his expertise academically, accepting a visiting professorship at Volda University College in 2016 and speaking at numerous international festivals. Three of his short films—War Story, Adam and Wat’s Pig—have been preserved by the Academy Film Archive, underscoring his lasting impact on the art of animation. In recent years, Lord has appeared in documentaries such as Cartoon Carnival (2021), offering insight into the origins of the medium he helped reinvent.