Brian Sterling Vete

Early life

Brian Sterling-Vete was born in the Rusholme/Moss Side district of Manchester, England. He attended school at Heald Place County Primary and then Burnage High School (listed as notable alumni) before taking a 3-year degree course at Manchester Polytechnic, now Manchester Metropolitan University.

Prior to working in the TV and film industry, Sterling worked at multiple jobs including: selling books, as a demolition rigger, a nightclub bouncer, builder’s apprentice, insurance sales, as a martial arts instructor, and as a gym instructor. Sterling bought a derelict gym in Rochdale, England and opened it as the Olympic Gym in 1980. This was successful until it was lost due to divorce in 1983.

Sterling began his career as a strength athlete in 1976 at the Apollo Gym on Deansgate in Manchester under senior bodybuilding coach, John Cupello. Sterling found some success in drug-free bodybuilding, competing in the National Amateur Body Building Association (NABBA) Junior Mr. North West, Junior Mr. Britain and Mr. Britain contests. Sterling set some acceptable lifts as a drug-free power lifter and strength athlete at 200 lbs bodyweight in 1980: squat 665 lbs x 1 rep, dead lift 525 lbs x 1 rep, bench press 405 lbs x 1 rep, seated press behind neck 225 lbs x 1 rep.

Stuntman

Sterling began working as a TV & Film Stunt Performer when offered work on projects by the Mancunian author, songwriter, composer and film producer Cliff Twemlow. In 1987 and 1988 Sterling set new world records in fire stunts for part body burns with gasoline. The first successful world record attempt in 1987 was set at 2 minutes, 24 seconds and the second successful world record attempt in 1988, was for 2 minutes, 53 seconds. Both records were set at the Armalite (now Armatomic) research laboratory under the direction of Craig Mills, the inventor of the pre-burnt carbon fibre multi-layer stunt suit system.

Martial Arts

Sterling began martial arts training in 1970 at the Chi Yun Kung Fu Woy club in the Houldsworth Hall on Deansgate in Manchester under Sifu George Taylor (later under Master Chan), as part of the British Kung Fu Council. Sterling began training Muay Thai under Master Sken and Toddy from 1975 to 1980 and during that time he was instructor at Master Toddy's club in Rochdale, England. Sterling also trained in Aikdo, Dim Mak, Yawara and Karate.

Sterling currently holds 4 Black Belts, is a national, international and World class referee and team coach. He was entered into the Bushido Martial Arts Roll of Honour; and given a Lifetime Achievement award by the World Karate and Kickboxing Council. His grades and awards are in the following chronology: Pak Mei Kung Fu Black Sash Hsiu Lung Tao Kung Fu 1998 Senior Instructor World Karate and Kickboxing Association: 2002 National Coach, Class A 2004 International Referee, Class A Bushido Martial Arts Association 2009 5th Degree Black Belt 2011 Honorary Fellow World Karate and Kickboxing Council 2010 World Coach Class A 2010 World Referee Class A 2011 8th Degree Black Belt 2011 Lifetime Achievement Award Senior Coach to the English National Team for the World Championships 2013 International Referee Class A

Wrestling

Sterling travelled to Iceland in 1985 to wrestle the then 1 time winner of the World's Strongest Man contest, Jón Páll Sigmarsson. This was to promote a production of Claire Luckham's play, Trafford Tanzi produced by the Icelandic National Theatre. As a specialist strength and martial arts coach, Sterling helped to coach his new friend Jon Pall Sigmarsson in the martial arts and strength for another 3 World's Strongest Man wins.

Guinness World Record

In January 2005 Sterling produced, and set, a new Guinness World Record in Cadiz, Spain, to mark the launch of the Eli Lilly medication, Cymbalta. This was for mass participation plate spinning with 398 plates spun for 10 seconds. Prior to this Sterling had set 2 other World Records, the 1st in 1987 for speed breaking 105 regulation blocks and done as part of the BBC's Children in Need programme. That record stood for one year until it was beaten by his friend Mac Gilmour who was also the Scottish Karate Champion on the ITV programme You Bet! in 1988. This prompted him to then make another successful attempt at the same world record, again for the BBC's Children in Need programme in 1989 (breaking 127 regulation blocks in one minute), making a personal lifetime total of 5 World Records to date.

Film

Projects in collaboration with writer and producer Cliff Twemlow included: The Pike starring Joan Collins,"G.B.H", Target Eve Island, Masons War,The Ibiza Connection, The Blind Side of God, Ring of Steel, Tuxedo Warrior" (aka "African Run" and "The Omega Connection"), Predator: the Quietus (aka Moonstalker), The Eye of Satan, Tokyo Sunrise, Firestar, and Lethal Impact. It was on the movie Predator the Quietus" that Sterling met cinematographer David Tattersall. Sterling has been noted as saying in his 2010 (2013 re-published & expanded) book, Mental Martial Arts, that meeting David Tattersall was pivotal for him because that was the point when he took an interest in direction and cinematography to learn the arts himself while taking advice from, and being inspired by his new friend and Emmy Award winning cinematographer. Sterling began to learn the art himself, a skill he would later use on TV documentaries and as part of the BBC TV news team. Sterling joined the professional actors union, British Actors Equity, and made on-screen appearances in the UK and internationally. Credits include: BBC TV's That's Life!, "Naming the Names", Coronation Street, Wipe Out (as Carl Chambers).

Sterling doubled for Hollywood star Steve McQueen in a series of TV Commercials recreating the movie The Great Escape for Holsten Pils breweries, he again doubled as Ian Fleming's 007 character, James Bond for Barratt Developments and made appearances in Star Trek: The Next Generation by Paramount Pictures. In 2014, Sterling portrays the role of Max Warwick in the horror movie, Geist,. Sterling's character in the movie is that of the leading paranormal investigator exorcising demons from those possessed in a haunted mental asylum

Documentary filmmaker

In 1988, Sterling formed the MajorVision organisation and began pioneering specialist documentary films. Sterling has produced 58 independent film productions, including the merited Porsche Cars 50th Anniversary documentary, The Power to Win, Fitness on the Move, The Ultimate Self Defence, The Mighty Steam Roller and the award winning Giants of Steam.

As a broadcaster and presenter, Sterling produced programmes and news for Discovery TV, CNN, ITN and the BBC front line news for 15 years. Sterling was part of the BBC team winning 4 Royal Television Society awards, performing interviews with US President Bill Clinton and British Prime Minister Tony Blair at the G-8 Summit meeting in 1988. Sterling introduced the concept of Steadicam to the directors of Formula 1 motor racing TV coverage and he also performed the Pit Lane interviews in 1998/9 for FOCA TV.

Sterling was the director/camera operator (Rick Bayles – producer) for the team which received the Creative Excellence award for best documentary at the US Film and TV Festival in Chicago 2001 for the documentary "Millennium Bridge." Sterling and MajorVision covered two war zones, Desert Storm in 1991 and Bosnia in 1995; then in 2001 the Oldham race-religion riots in the UK for the BBC News.

In 2013/4, Sterling was the presenter, co-producer, director and the director of cinematography (D.O.P.) for the hour-long TV special about the origins of the United States as a nation; Robert Browne; The Rebel Who Inspired a Nation. . . Shot on location in England and in the United States, the documentary reveals never before seen data about how and why the Pilgrims first settled in America; and that the pilgrims were actually known for the 1st 200 years after settling Plymouth colony as the Brownist Emigration. It also how reveals how the core values of the United States as a nation owe much to the man behind them, Robert Browne (1550 to 1633).

As a producer/director of sports coaching and fitness instructional films, Sterling produced: Pro Boxing Heavy Bag Drills, Thai Bag Drills, Focus Pad Drills, Swiss-Ball Drills and Medicine Ball Drills all through the UK's National Coaching Foundation's publications division, Coachwise-1st 4Sport,. These followed on from Sterling's production of the Dictionary of Weight Training in 1991 for the same organisation.

In 2003, Sterling led the marine salvage diving team to lift the Baltic Trading ship, The Glaciere from its resting place at the bottom of the Collingwood Dock in Liverpool Bay. The ship's new home is in the Albert Dock moored outside the World famous Tate Gallery. The ship's owner, Captain Dave Murray generously donated the ship for use as a sail and dive training vessel for charity, benefiting under privileged children. Sterling arranged for three special feature length news reports to be produced and broadcast by the BBC about each stage of this operation including the salvage day, the re-launch day and the maiden voyage day.

Documentary productions

Business

In business, Sterling partnered with Perry Hughes (Roots Music Group), manager to opera star Jon Christos, contemporary jazz singer and songwriter Rick Guard and former manager to opera star Russell Watson). Sterling is the current CEO of MajorVision International, which produces specialist international TV and news services. Sterling's MajorVision organisation expanded into cellular telecom between 1995–2000, first contracting with CellStar (1995–1997) and then BrightPoint Europe, Middle East and Asia. Sterling is involved with international telecom with Bonjour and Emerald Networks.

Consultant

From 1985 to 1989 Sterling was consultant to British vitamin and food supplement manufacturers, Healthilife and to produce their Super-Bodypower range of food supplements. They were later the sponsorship owners of the NABBA Mr and Miss Universe contests for that period. In 2006 Sterling acquired Record Breakers company and turned it into a non-profit Registered International Fund Raising organisation for multiple Charities or C.I.C. The name was more commonly associated with the BBC TV show about World Records, hosted by Roy Castle OBE.

Author

In 2013 Sterling wrote and published the updated and expanded version of his 2010 book, Mental Martial Arts,. He began writing this in 2002 and it explains how the use of mental agility, tactics and strategy found in Kung Fu and other Martial Arts, can guide and re-direct the energy of other people, organisations and corporations to gain the advantage in life and business.

Sterling’s next book, to be entitled Tuxedo Warriors ., tells the complete behind the scenes story about the film making and other projects he was involved in with author, actor, and cult film producer, Cliff Twemlow, between 1977 and Twemlow's death in 1993. Tuxedo Warriors follows-on from Cliff Twemlow's biographical book, Tuxedo Warrior, which ended its timeline roughly about the time Sterling's book, Tuxedo Warriors, begins.

Recognition

Sterling was honoured as one of the pioneers of British Video and Digital Cinematography in the 2005 book by Julian Granger of the British Film Institute. Sterling's work was again honoured at the Manchester and Salford Film Festival in 2009 and 2010 and in the book The Lost World of Cliff Twemlow: The King of Manchester Exploitation Movies by C.P. Lee and Andy Willis (as featured in the Manchester Evening News. Sterling was part of the pioneering movie making team led by Twemlow from the late 70s through the 80s and into the 90s. This 3-decade era was dubbed in the book as being 'The Golden Age of Video Cinematography' in Britain.

As actor

TV Presenter

As stuntman

Theater