Jenny Ash
British documentary filmmaker
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jenny Ash is a British film and television director and writer.[1] Ash has directed major feature documentaries across various genres for broadcasters such as Sky, Channel 4, the BBC, ITV, and the History Channel.[2] Some of her notable films include The World's Biggest Murder Trial: Nuremberg (Channel 5, 2020), Bin Laden: The Road to 9/11 (Channel 4, 2021), and Flight 149: Hostage of War (2025).[3][4] In 2021, Ash became the first documentary director to win the WFTV Best Director Award.[1]
- Angry, White and American (2017)
- 100 Vaginas (2019)
- The World's Biggest Murder Trial: Nuremberg (2020)
- Bin Laden: The Road to 9/11 (2021)
- Flight 149: Hostage of War (2025)
Jenny Ash | |
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| Born | United Kingdom |
| Occupations | Documentary film director and writer |
| Years active | 2000s–present |
| Notable work |
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| Website | www |
Career
Ash began her directing career in British television drama, working on series such as Waterloo Road (BBC One), Personal Affairs (BBC Three), and Missing (BBC One).[5]
Her early documentary work included Dolly Parton: Platinum Blonde (BBC One), and The Pity of War (ITV), a drama-documentary starring John Hurt as the poet Siegfried Sassoon. She also directed for the 2010 Emmy-winning series America: The Story of Us (History Channel), which focused on slavery and the Civil War.[6] As a writer on the History Channel's America: The Story of Us (2010), Ash shared a Primetime Emmy nomination for Outstanding Writing for Nonfiction Programming.[7]
Ash directed the ITV drama-documentary The Pity of War (2016), starring John Hurt, about the poets Wilfred Owen and Siegfried Sassoon.[8][9] She also directed Gary Younge's political road-trip documentary Angry, White and American (2017, Channel 4).[10] The documentary, which discussed race and identity in the United States, was nominated for the Grierson Awards.[11] In addition, Ash has produced a series of short anti-war films for Channel 4 featuring actors Sean Bean, Gemma Arterton, Stephen Graham, and Sophie Okonedo.[12]
In 2019, Ash produced the film 100 Vaginas for Channel 4.[13] Its companion film, Me and My Penis was released in 2020 on Channel 4.[14][15] The following year, The World's Biggest Murder Trial: Nuremberg (2020, Channel 5), which was nominated for Royal Television Society and Banff awards.[16]
In 2020, she directed Bin Laden: The Road to 9/11 (Channel 4), a three-part series that traced Osama bin Laden's radicalisation through the accounts of those who knew him personally.[17]
Ash's feature documentary Flight 149: Hostage of War (Sky Documentaries, 2025) premiered at the 2025 South by Southwest Film & TV Festival (SXSW Festival).[18] The film investigates the controversial landing of British Airways Flight 149 in Kuwait on the eve of Saddam Hussein's invasion, and the subsequent detention of the flight's passengers and crew.[19][20][21]
In addition to her film and television work, Ash has directed commercials for companies such as Virgin Atlantic, Google, British Airways, LG, BT, Always, Tena, and the Rwandan Genocide Museum.[22]
Selected filmography
- The Pity of War (2016, ITV) – director/writer[23]
- Angry, White and American (2017, Channel 4) – director[24]
- 100 Vaginas (2019, Channel 4) – director/writer.[25] The film was nominated for RTS and Broadcast awards.
- Me and My Penis (2020, Channel 4) – director[26]
- The World's Biggest Murder Trial: Nuremberg (2020, Channel 5) – director[27]
- Bin Laden: The Road to 9/11 (2021, Channel 4; 3×60') – director[28]
- Flight 149: Hostage of War (2025, Sky Documentaries) – director/writer[19][18][21][20]
Awards and honours
- Royal Television Society Programme Award nomination for The World's Biggest Murder Trial: Nuremberg (2020)[29]
- Primetime Emmy Award nomination (team), Outstanding Writing for Nonfiction Programming, for America: The Story of Us (2010)[30]
- 42nd NAACP Image Award (2011), for America: The Story of Us – "Part 4"
- Banff Mountain Film Festival award nomination for The World's Biggest Murder Trial: Nuremberg (2020)
- WFTV Award winner (The Company 3 Director Award, 2021)[1]