Career
His best-known film is Rescued by Rover (1905). Other directing credits include That Fatal Sneeze (1907), The Manitoba and his Bottle (1908) and A New Hat for Nothing (1910). In total, he directed around 400 films.
Fitzhamon began his career as a music hall performer.
He became involved in filmmaking in 1900, working with film pioneer Robert West. Paul. He gained experience in both directing and acting, with credits in films such as Briton versus
Boer (1900). Cecil Hepworth recruited Fitzhamon as a stage manager in 1904, to replace Percy Stow, who had left to establish his own film company, Clarendon.
Fitzhamon continued working with Hepworth until 1912, gaining writing, acting and directing credits. One of his most popular films was Rescued by Rover (1905).
Fitzhamon loved animals, producing many other films with an animal in a heroic role, such as Dog Outwits the Kidnappers and Dumb Sagacity. Fitzhamon, like Hepworth, had an interest in special effects, producing many "trick films", including Sister Mary Jane"s Top Note (1907) and The Manitoba and his Bottle (1908).
Luke McKernan has described how many of his films had "no concern except to get the central trick effect or plot idea across, but their very lack of pretension makes for pleasurable viewing now".
He had a wide and varied output, covering westerns, fantasy films, comedies, chase films and melodramas. In 1912, Fitzhamon established his own film company, Fitz Films. He also worked as a freelance director, for various producers.
He published two novels: The Rival Millionaires (1904) and The Vixen (1915).