Christopher McMaster (1925 - 1995) was the most prolific director of Coronation Street in the programme's first few years with 95 episodes to his credit from February 1962 to March 1966, after which he went on to produce and direct episodes of Freewheelers (guest starring Ivan Beavis), and write The Flower of Gloster, Granada's first full-colour television series. He was the first child and only son of the actor manager Anew McMaster and his wife Marjorie Wilmore, who had just founded a touring company which they ran until the late 1950s. The company went to Australia in 1949 and Chris followed but left the profession for a while to work elsewhere – both on a cattle farm and on the Barrier Reef. Moving to Perth, he worked on radio with drama and other programmes and came back to UK in 1954. Now interested in television he joined the BBC following a usual career path of floor manager through to the director's training course. He joined Granada in 1961 working on Skyport, Knight Errant and The Verdict is Yours (which he claimed was a favourite production of his). Among his writing credits was the 1965 science-fiction serial Object Z and its 1966 sequel Object Z Returns. He joined Southern Television in 1967. His career straddled three television disciplines and he was nominated for the Best Director award in the 1978 Bafta awards for his work on Midnight is a Place.
Episodes directed by Christopher McMaster[]
1962 (28 episodes)
- Episode 120 (5th February 1962)
- Episode 121 (7th February 1962)
- Episode 128 (5th March 1962)
- Episode 129 (7th March 1962)
- Episode 136 (2nd April 1962)
- Episode 137 (4th April 1962)
- Episode 142 (23rd April 1962)
- Episode 143 (25th April 1962)
- Episode 148 (14th May 1962)
- Episode 149 (16th May 1962)
- Episode 154 (4th June 1962)
- Episode 155 (6th June 1962)
- Episode 158 (18th June 1962)
- Episode 159 (20th June 1962)
- Episode 164 (9th July 1962)
- Episode 165 (11th July 1962)
- Episode 170 (30th July 1962)
- Episode 171 (1st August 1962)
- Episode 184 (17th September 1962)
- Episode 185 (19th September 1962)
- Episode 190 (8th October 1962)
- Episode 191 (10th October 1962)
- Episode 196 (29th October 1962)
- Episode 197 (31st October 1962)
- Episode 202 (19th November 1962)
- Episode 203 (21st November 1962)
- Episode 206 (3rd December 1962)
- Episode 207 (5th December 1962)
1963 (22 episodes)
- Episode 234 (11th March 1963)
- Episode 235 (13th March 1963)
- Episode 246 (22nd April 1963)
- Episode 247 (24th April 1963)
- Episode 252 (13th May 1963)
- Episode 253 (15th May 1963)
- Episode 258 (3rd June 1963)
- Episode 259 (5th June 1963)
- Episode 264 (24th June 1963)
- Episode 265 (26th June 1963)
- Episode 276 (5th August 1963)
- Episode 277 (7th August 1963)
- Episode 282 (26th August 1963)
- Episode 283 (28th August 1963)
- Episode 288 (16th September 1963)
- Episode 289 (18th September 1963)
- Episode 300 (28th October 1963)
- Episode 301 (30th October 1963)
- Episode 306 (18th November 1963)
- Episode 307 (20th November 1963)
- Episode 312 (9th December 1963)
- Episode 313 (11th December 1963)
1964 (17 episodes)
- Episode 320 (6th January 1964)
- Episode 321 (8th January 1964)
- Episode 326 (27th January 1964)
- Episode 327 (29th January 1964)
- Episode 368 (22nd June 1964)
- Episode 369 (24th June 1964)
- Episode 374 (13th July 1964)
- Episode 375 (15th July 1964)
- Episode 394 (21st September 1964)
- Episode 395 (23rd September 1964)
- Episode 400 (12th October 1964)
- Episode 401 (14th October 1964)
- Episode 406 (2nd November 1964)
- Episode 407 (4th November 1964)
- Episode 412 (23rd November 1964)
- Episode 413 (25th November 1964)
- Episode 419 (16th December 1964)
1965 (26 episodes)
- Episode 428 (18th January 1965)
- Episode 429 (20th January 1965)
- Episode 434 (8th February 1965)
- Episode 435 (10th February 1965)
- Episode 440 (1st March 1965)
- Episode 441 (3rd March 1965)
- Episode 446 (22nd March 1965)
- Episode 447 (24th March 1965)
- Episode 452 (12th April 1965)
- Episode 453 (14th April 1965)
- Episode 458 (3rd May 1965)
- Episode 459 (5th May 1965)
- Episode 464 (24th May 1965)
- Episode 465 (26th May 1965)
- Episode 470 (14th June 1965)
- Episode 471 (16th June 1965)
- Episode 478 (12th July 1965)
- Episode 479 (14th July 1965)
- Episode 494 (6th September 1965)
- Episode 495 (8th September 1965)
- Episode 506 (18th October 1965)
- Episode 507 (20th October 1965)
- Episode 512 (8th November 1965)
- Episode 513 (10th November 1965)
- Episode 520 (6th December 1965)
- Episode 521 (8th December 1965)
1966 (2 episodes)