BAFTA’s tribute to Ken Adam took place this past Monday night on the occasion of Ken Adam’s 90th birthday. As one of the most creative and imaginative production designers to ever live, not many people are more deserving of a gala celebrating their work than Sir Ken Adam.

Born in Germany in 1921, Ken Adam relocated with his family to England in 1934, where he studied at the Bartlett School of Architecture. He started his prolific film career in 1948 as a draughtsman and eventually went on to production design a whopping 44 movies, some of his most memorable being the seven James Bond films he designed.

Every film Ken Adam designed heightened the imagination including many incredibly expansive sets, giving the directors and cinematographers more to play with in terms of shots, light and composition which is no small feat.

For his efforts and contributions to the cinematic landscape the Art Director’s Guild awarded him a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2002 and he received 2 BAFTAs (Dr. Strangelove and The Ipcress File) and 2 Academy Awards (Barry Lyndon and The Madness of King George). In 2003, he was knighted by the Queen, the only Production Designer to ever receive this high honour. Take a look at some of Sir Ken Adam’s breathtaking creations.

The Selected Works of Production Designer Sir Ken Adam

Around the World in Eighty Days (1956)

A Victorian Englishman bets that with the new steamships and railways he can circumnavigate the globe in eighty days.

Director: Michael Anderson

Production Designer: Ken Adam

Art Director: James W. Sullivan

Set Decorator: Ross Dowd

Dr. No (1962)

A resourceful British government agent seeks answers in a case involving the disappearance of a colleague and the disruption of the American space program.

Director: Terence Young

Production Designer: Ken Adam

Art Director: Syd Cain

Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)

An insane general triggers a path to nuclear holocaust that a War Room full of politicians and generals frantically tries to stop.

Director: Stanley Kubrick

Production Designer: Ken Adam

Art Director: Peter Murton

Goldfinger (1964)

While investigating a gold magnate’s smuggling, James Bond uncovers a plot to contaminate the Fort Knox gold reserve.

Director: Guy Hamilton

Production Designer: Ken Adam

Art Director: Peter Murton

The Ipcress File (1965)

In London, a counter espionage Agent deals with his own bureaucracy while investigating the kidnapping and brainwashing of British scientists.

Director: Sidney J. Furie

Production Designer: Ken Adam

Art Director: Peter Murton

Thunderball (1965)

James Bond heads to the Bahamas to recover two nuclear warheads stolen by S.P.E.C.T.R.E. Agent Emilio Largo in an international extortion scheme.

Director: Terence Young

Production Designer: Ken Adam

Art Director: Peter Murton

Set Decorator: Peter Lamont

You Only Live Twice (1967)

Secret Agent James Bond and the Japanese Secret Service must find and stop the true culprit of a series of space hijackings, before war is provoked between Russia and the United States.

Director: Lewis Gilbert

Production Designer: Ken Adam

Art Director: Harry Pottle

Set Decorator: David Ffolkes

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1968)

A down-on-his-luck inventor turns a broken-down Grand Prix car into a fancy vehicle for his children, and then they go off on a magical fantasy adventure to save their grandfather in a far-off land.

Director: Ken Hughes

Production Designer: Ken Adam

Art Director: Harry Pottle

Diamonds are Forever (1971)

A diamond smuggling investigation leads James Bond to Las Vegas, where he uncovers an evil plot involving a rich business tycoon.

Director: Guy Hamilton

Production Designer: Ken Adam

Art Directors: Bill Kenney and Jack Maxsted

Set Decorator: John Austin and Peter Lamont





Sleuth (1972)

A man who loves games and theater invites his wife’s lover to meet him, setting up a battle of wits with potentially deadly results.

Director: Joseph L. Mankiewicz

Production Designer: Ken Adam

Art Director: Peter Lamont

Set Decorator: John Jarvis





Barry Lyndon (1975)

An Irish rogue wins the heart of a rich widow and assumes her dead husband’s aristocratic position in 18th-century England.

Director: Stanley Kubrick

Production Designer: Ken Adam

Art Director: Roy Walker

The Spy Who Loved Me (1977)

James Bond investigates the hijacking of British and Russian submarines carrying nuclear warheads, with the help of a K.G.B. Agent, whose lover he killed.

Director: Lewis Gilbert

Production Designer: Ken Adam

Art Director: Peter Lamont

Set Decorator: Hugh Scaife

Moonraker (1979)

James Bond investigates the mid-air theft of a space shuttle, and discovers a plot to commit global genocide.

Director: Lewis Gilbert

Production Designer: Ken Adam

Art Directors: Charles Bishop and Max Douy

Set Decorator: Peter Howitt

Addams Family Values (1994)

The Addams Family try to rescue their beloved Uncle Fester from his gold-digging new love, a black widow named Debbie.

Director: Barry Sonnenfeld

Production Designer: Ken Adam

Art Director: William J. Durrell Jr.

Set Decorator: Marvin March

The Madness of King George (1994)

When King George III goes mad, his Lieutenants try to adjust the rules to run the country without his participation.

Director: Nicholas Hytner

Production Designer: Ken Adam

Supervising Art Director: Martin Childs

Set Decorator: Carolyn Scott

Taking Sides (2001)

A tale based on the life of Wilhelm Furtwangler, the controversial conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic whose tenure coincided with the controversial Nazi era.

Director: István Szabó

Production Designer: Ken Adam

Supervising Art Director: Anja Müller

Set Decorator: Bernhard Henrich

My favourite Ken Adam set is the War Room from Dr. Strangelove. What’s your favourite set Ken Adam production designed? I’d love to know your thoughts about his work in the comments below.