Francis Spiller

Spiller, Francis Edwin

1922 - 2020

Born on March 21, 1922 in Bridport, England, died July 15, 2020.  Predeceased by his wife Una and brother Dick.  Survived by his daughters Carol Young, Barbara Morningstar, Heather and Kathryn Drouin (Mario).  Grandfather to Kyla and Owen Drouin, Kaitlyn (Jeff) Nitz and Erika (Tyson) Carswell and great grandfather to Jackson Nitz.  After serving in WWII with the British Navy, he joined English Electric where he managed to start a film unit.  He came to Canada in 1952 and worked in the upstairs attic offices of Crawley Films until he joined the National Film Board a year later.  He worked his way up to Director of English Production.  At the NFB he was a film Director, Producer and Executive Producer.  Frank then joined the CRTC where he did policy work on cable television, community channels and pay television.

He “retired” and did broadcast consulting for more than a decade.  He also acquired his pilot’s license, learned to swim and started writing fiction.  He self-published four books: “House on The Sunderstrasse”, “Shadows”, “Going Back” and  “Beyond the Pier”.  Frank was a devoted husband to Una for 63 years.  He was creative, tenacious and an inspiration to many.  His four daughters felt blessed to call him their father. He will be missed.  A service will be held at the Garden Chapel of Tubman Funeral Homes, 3440 Richmond Rd, Ottawa (between Baseline and Bayshore) on Friday, July 24th at 10 am, followed by a private burial at Highland Park Cemetery. Due to COVID restrictions, seating for the service is limited, to reserve a seat or request the link to the live stream of the service, please call 613-726-0292.  Please note that due to current COVID-19 regulations all those attending the service will have to wear a mask.  In lieu of flowers, donations to the Heart and Stroke Foundation or Alzheimer Society of Canada would be appreciated.  Condolences, tributes, and donations may be made at www.tubmanfuneralhomes.com