During this time Martyn handled the promotion and marketing of a wide range of artists, including Neil Diamond, Sammy Hagar, Duran Duran, and Kim Carnes [shown above] and also Dr Hook, Paul McCartney, Marc Bolan, Tim Rice, Sheena Easton, George Melly, Steeleye Span, Leo Sayer, Marillion, Kate Bush, the Stranglers, Kim Wilde, Cliff Richard, Queen, Kraftwerk, and the Rolling Stones. At EMI he was responsible for the marketing campaigns behind the company's two best selling albums in a single year - Neil Diamond's The Jazz Singer, and a million-plus selling Dr Hook album for which Martyn received an industry award. He produced two retrospective promos for the Beatles, set up an award-winning documentary about Duran Duran, and produced and co-directed a Kraftwerk video with group member Ralf Hütter.


After leaving EMI in 1983 Martyn moved into freelance video production work, while still working on occasional music projects along the way. His music industry clients after leaving EMI were Polygram, A&M, CBS/SONY, Warner Music, and BMG, and he produced or commissioned more than a hundred music videos and record company EPK's [electronic press kits] featuring artists as varied as The Cure, Michael Ball, Cathy Dennis, Nat King Cole, Yazz, Slade, 10cc, Jason Donovan, and even Timmy Mallett. When Jason was starring in Joseph & the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat Cox was the Executive Producer of the first promotional music video ever to feature the entire cast of a West End musical. This led to a highly successful Joseph 'sell-through' video, and he then set up filming in the Seychelles for Jason's 'Mission of Love' promo and 'All Around The World' long-form video.


Now, more than twenty years later, Martyn is an independent writer, producer, and director with well over two hundred productions behind him. In the non-broadcast sector Cox has written, produced, and directed more than 120 corporate video productions: In-flight programmes, Product Launches, Conference Presentations, Speaker Support, Training films, and In-store promotions. Many were produced for Chapman Chapman Associates and the 'end users' included British Gas, RAC, Police Federation, Southern Electric, Coral Racing, IBM, Teletext, International Tennis Federation, and the Royal Opera House, plus many travel industry companies and organisations, notably Eurostar, Hayes & Jarvis, Club 18-30, Tradewinds, Air Europe, Air Seychelles, Dollar Rentacar, Worldchoice, Carlson Wagonlit, and Airtours, and also the national tourist boards of the Seychelles, Cayman Islands, Jamaica, and Spain.


Martyn was the co-producer of 'You Only Breathe Twice' - directed by Mike Seares for Discovery Channel. It documented the development of a revolutionary underwater breathing unit permitting deeper, longer, and bubble-free dives; and in the US the duo gained unique filming access to NASA's largest neutral-buoyancy facility where this new 're-breather' system was being evaluated. [It’s Mike NOT Martyn in the water in the photo below!]

During the late 1980s and early 90s Cox and lighting cameraman Alan Benns had their own production company - Vision Control - and its was under this banner than many of the aforementioned corporate productions were handled. Alan then had a stint concentrating on freelance broadcast work during which time Martyn formed a close working relationship with editor Mike Ray and as Clipper Pictures they continued to service Chapman Chapman Associates and other clients.

Cox’s involvement in such a wide variety of productions over so many years has meant producing not only UK-based filming but also working in locations as varied as Montreal, Miami, Mahé, and Marbella - plus many more locations whose names don't even start with M! He’s always had a hands-on philosophy and although claims to a “only a reluctant, albeit capable, cameraman” he’s a proficient non-linear editor. This means he can 'off-line' edit and script his own projects before commissioning and overseeing the remaining post-production - i.e. graphics, on-line edit, and audio. Throughout his career Martyn has always worked closely with the broadcasters, television programmes and other ‘end users’ of his productions, footage, and ideas.

Martyn Cox and Alan Benns have been reunited for their on-going WW2 oral history project, and for which they've been filming in France, Belgium, and all over the UK. See www.our-secret-war.org


For information on Martyn's more recent and current activities please click HERE.


For information about Alan Benns click HERE.


To return to this site's ‘Welcome’ page click HERE.

MARTYN COX - days gone by:


After leaving his Surrey grammar school Martyn Cox headed north to study civil engineering at Leeds University, but his academic progress was soon interrupted by helping stage some of the biggest live music events of that era. These included The Who's now legendary "Live at Leeds" concert, by which time Martyn's interest in music and entertainment had already distracted him sufficiently to spend a 'gap year' working at the newly opened BBC Radio Leeds.


Joining this fledgling broadcaster at the age of 20 provided the perfect introduction to the techniques of broadcasting when he was given the opportunity to not only produce and host his own record review show but also become a roving reporter for the news desk, notably to get celebrities visiting the city on the air. Martyn was soon carrying out interviews and producing and editing programme inserts featuring the top entertainers, actors, and rock and pop stars of the day. He still recalls with great affection early interviews with Sir Alec Guinness, Roy Wood of The Move, Rosemary Squires, The Scaffold, Frankie Laine, Harry Secombe, and Michael Bentine.


A year later Martyn left the radio station to embark on a long overseas trip, which was almost obligatory for young people in that era, and in his case it was overland to North and East Africa. Soon after his return he decided re-apply himself to academic work but, having been accepted by the University of Bradford for a degree course in Psychology & Sociology, the music industry was already beckoning. By the time he graduated three years later he'd already moved seamlessly into what would prove to be a decade of marketing and promotion work for two of the major music companies, Warner and EMI, and also a spell at Chrysalis.