Born: 27th July 1944
Episodes Broadcast: 1984-1985

Matthew Robinson was born in Paddington, London, and completed a Masters of Arts in economics at Cambridge University, where he was also the editor of the student newspaper. In 1966, he joined Associated Television as a researcher on programmes like Good Evening!. Robinson became a current affairs director for the BBC in 1969, and made the transition to drama in 1973, working on programmes such as Softly Softly: Task Force, Crown Court, Coronation Street and twenty episodes of Emmerdale Farm. In 1979, he earned his first credit as a producer on Tropic, which he also directed. In the early Eighties, he worked frequently on Together and Angels.

In 1983, Robinson approached Doctor Who producer John Nathan-Turner with a proposal for a programme about an industrial spy called Just A Little Bit Of Business. Although nothing came of this, it led to Robinson being hired to direct 1984's Resurrection Of The Daleks, one of Peter Davison's last serials as the Fifth Doctor. He was back the next year for Attack Of The Cybermen, the second story to feature Colin Baker's Sixth Doctor. It was expected that Robinson would direct two adventures for Doctor Who's 1986 season, until the BBC delayed its production by several months. Instead, Robinson became a key figure in the development of EastEnders, for which he spent two years as the primary director. Other work in the late Eighties included The District Nurse, Howards' Way and Shadow Of The Noose. Robinson also wrote more than forty episodes of Crossroads.

In 2000, Robinson became the Head of Drama for BBC Wales

In 1989, Robinson helped develop Byker Grove, which he both produced and directed. He returned to EastEnders as its executive producer in 1998. In 2000, Robinson became the Head of Drama for BBC Wales, overseeing programmes such as The Bench and Servants. He barely missed becoming involved in the twenty-first-century revival of Doctor Who: his successor at BBC Wales, Julie Gardner, would instead become instrumental in the early years of the programme's renaissance.

Instead, Robinson left BBC Wales in 2003 and relocated to Cambodia, where he developed the phenomenally popular Taste Of Life, which was funded by the British government through the BBC World Service Trust. When the funding ended in 2006, Robinson decided to stay in Cambodia. He co-founded Khmer Mekong Films with Millan Lov, and reassembled the Taste Of Life production team to develop a variety of television and film projects, some of which he directed. Robinson was awarded Cambodian citizenship in 2020.