
Sir Francis Vivian Dunn in 1966
Lieutenant-Colonel Sir Francis Vivian Dunn KCVO OBE FRSA (December 24th, 1908 - April 3rd, 1995) was an Indian-born Royal Marines Director of Music, conductor, and composer. He conducted The Band of H.M. Royal Marines playing the Thunderbirds March at the end of the 1966 feature film Thunderbirds Are Go.
Dunn was born on 24 December 1908 in what was then British India. He subsequently relocated to England. Between 1931 and 1953, he was the Director of Music of the Portsmouth Division of the Royal Marines. Between 1953 and 1968, he was the Principal Director of Music of the Royal Marines.
For Thunderbirds Are Go, a cherry picker was used during the filming The Band of H.M. Royal Marines. Dunn wanted to conduct from the crane. He initially did so, however his conducting caused the camera to rock and Dunn was said to have become "excited" with the music, causing the camera to rock further. There were concerns that people on the crane could fall off if Dunn continued, so director David Lane asked Dunn to conduct from the ground.
In December 1968, Dunn retired from the military.
He died on 3 April 1995 following a battle with lung cancer. He was 86.