Terry O'Neill CBE

Terry O’Neill CBE (1938-2019) was one of the world’s most collected photographers with work hanging in national art galleries and private collections worldwide. From presidents to pop stars he photographed the frontline of fame for over six decades.

O’Neill began his career at the birth of the 1960s. While other photographers concentrated on earthquakes, wars and politics, O’Neill realised that youth culture was a breaking news story on a global scale and began chronicling the emerging faces of film, fashion and music who would go on to define the Swinging Sixties. By 1965 he was being commissioned by the biggest magazines and newspapers in the world.

No other photographer has embraced the span of fame, capturing the icons of our age from Winston Churchill to Nelson Mandela, from Frank Sinatra and Elvis to Amy Winehouse, from Audrey Hepburn and Brigitte Bardot to Nicole Kidman, as well as every James Bond from Sean Connery to Daniel Craig.

He photographed The Beatles and The Rolling Stones when they were still struggling young bands in 1963, pioneered backstage reportage photography with David Bowie, Elton John, Eric Clapton and Chuck Berry and his images have adorned historic rock albums, movie posters and international magazine covers.

There is currently a digital exhibition of his work here on this link;

Terry O'Neill sadly passed away in November 2019.

The audio interview below was recorded for the Opening of the "All About Bond" exhibition" at the Proud Gallery in Chelsea, London, UK.

Extract taken from "Every Picture Tells a Story" by Terry O'Neill.

“My career, in many ways, started with The Beatles. They were young, I was young, and the world was young. You have to remember that back in the early 1960s, we didn’t have to automatically enlist in the National Service. So a whole new generation of kids suddenly had their worlds open up for them. And in London, the town was filled with musicians, artists, models, filmmakers, writers—you name it. I was lucky to be there.

“As the ’60s wound down, The Beatles decided to go their separate ways. As solo artists, all of them went on to achieve remarkable things in so many different directions.”

By the mid-1960s, George Harrison had become interested in Indian culture and travelled to India several times. Under the guidance of Ravi Shankar and other gurus, he studied meditation and yoga, became vegetarian, and embraced the Hare Krishna tradition.

“I went to George’s house in Henley-on-Thames, this incredible estate he’d bought in 1970. He had everything there, including a full studio that was reportedly better than Abbey Road (in terms of equipment).

“He took me on a walk through some of the gardens. It was like a wonderland, complete with caves, gardens, grottoes and streams of water. There was this one little patch of water with a small deck that had the most perfect view of the house in the background. So he sat down, as Zen as anything, draped in this off-orange Hare Krishna wrap. He just looked completely at peace. When I looked up and saw the outline of this magical-looking house behind him I knew that this was going to be a stunner of a portrait."

He received his CBE for services to photography.

To commemorate Paramount Pictures' 75th anniversary in 1987, O'Neill photographed what is arguably the most star-studded picture in history. Posed at the arched entrance to the studio were (Front Row): Martha Raye, Dana Andrews, Elizabeth Taylor, Frances Dee, Joel McCrea, Harry Dean Stanton, Harrison Ford, Jennifer Beals, Marlee Matlin, Danny DeVito; (Second Row) Olivia de Havilland, Kevin Costner, Cornel Wilde, Don Ameche, DeForest Kelley, Tom Cruise, Charlton Heston, Penny Marshall, Bob Hope, Victor Mature, Elizabeth McGovern, Robert De Niro; (Third Row): Andrew McCarthy, Henry Winkler, Anthony Perkins, Robert Stack, Mark Harmon, Faye Dunaway, Charles 'Buddy' Rogers, Gregory Peck, Debra Winger, Timothy Hutton; (Fourth Row): Jane Russell, Mike Connors, John Travolta, Janet Leigh, Charles Bronson, Ted Danson, Louis Gossett Jr., Ryan O'Neal, Rhonda Fleming, Leonard Nimoy; (Fifth Row): William Shatner, Peter Graves, Molly Ringwald, Dorothy Lamour, Olivia Newton-John, Cindy Williams, Matthew Broderick, Gene Hackman, Walter Matthau, Robin Williams; (Back Row): Ali MacGraw, Burt Lancaster, Scott Baio, Rhea Perlman, Bruce Dern, James Caan, Glenn Ford, Fred MacMurray, Shelley Long, James Stewart. This stellar two-page spread appears in O'Neill's compilation coffee-table book "Celebrity" (2003). [Cindy Williams is the only person in the group with her back to the camera; she appears to be talking to Glenn Ford who is standing behind her in the back row.].

For the 75th Anniversary of Paramount Studios in 1987, Terry O’Neill was commissioned to take a ‘class photo’ of the actors under the studio umbrella.

In Terry's words; “There was an incredible amount of co-ordination behind the scenes, as you can imagine. Getting everyone there—and ready—for the photo. It’s incredible now looking at it—it is a Who’s Who of Hollywood. There are the greats like Elizabeth Taylor, Jimmy Stewart, Jane Russell, Bob Hope next to the new Hollywood stars of the day—Robert De Niro, Faye Dunaway, Tom Cruise, Harrison Ford, Kevin Costner, the list goes on and on."

“What I remember most about that day was how the stars acted around each other. To me, they were all stars. But when you started speaking to them individually, I realised that they were just like me—fans. Elizabeth wanted to meet De Niro, Harrison Ford wanted to meet Elizabeth and so on. I felt a bit like the matchmaker that day, because I was the one who was introducing all these incredible people to each other! I’m really glad I decided to get a few candid Polaroids of a few of those meetings.”

To see these and more images please go to;